A new study has revealed that whale sharks use a combination of mathematics and energy conservation to stay afloat.

The study by marine scientists published in the British Ecological Society’s journal Functional Ecology revealed that the whale sharks’ gliding motion is actually an astonishing feat of calculus and energy conservation.

They saw that the fish are able to glide without investing energy into movement when descending, but they had to beat their tails when they ascended. This is because sharks have negative buoyancy – meaning they don’t naturally float.

The sharks also seemed to have two different ways of moving – for travelling horizontally they used shallow ascent angles which helped them use less energy. And when they travelled upwards they used a steeper angle which gave them maximum movement while using minimum energy. They also observed the sharks diving down then pulling up using their own momentum – much in the same way a bird dives, then soars using its momentum and gravity to conserve as much energy as possible.