How big is the biggest recorded whale shark?
What is the biggest whale shark ever recorded? The Guinness Book of Records has the World’s Largest fish (a Whale Shark) registered as 12.65 meters which are 41 feet 6 inches. How big can a whale shark grow? These huge creatures can grow up to 39 feet long. But despite their size, whale sharks are often referred to as “gentle giants.”
What is the biggest whale shark ever found?
Biggest sharks in the world
- Megamouth shark. Megamouth sharks are rare and live in deepwater. ...
- Thresher shark. One look at a common thresher shark ( Alopias vulpinus) and it's easy to see where the bulk of its size comes from — their long, sickle-shaped ...
- Greenland shark. ...
- Great white shark. ...
- Helicoprion. ...
- Basking shark. ...
- Whale shark. ...
- Megalodon. ...
What is the biggest shark ever recorded?
“Easily the biggest shark I have ever seen in a lifetime of diving and flying the coast! “Most impressive however was the girth of the animal. “So wide was the shark that I immediately guessed at a pregnant female, but my shark scientist friends said ...
What is the average size of a whale shark?
The average size of their litter is of 12 pups. Whale Sharks are considered in danger of extinction as their current population trend is decreasing. Whale Sharks have a total length between 30’-62’ (9.1-18.9 m) and an overall weight in the range of 41000-50000 (20.6-25 tons) (18600-22675 kg). The typical lifespan of the Whale Shark is 70-130 years.
Where is the largest whale shark in the world?
The World's Largest Whale Sharks Are Disappearing. Whale sharks in Western Australia are among the best studied populations in the world.
What is the maximum size of a whale shark?
59 feetThe whale shark is enormous and reportedly capable of reaching a maximum length of about 18 metres (59 feet). Most specimens that have been studied, however, weighed about 15 tons (about 14 metric tons) and averaged about 12 metres (39 feet) in length.
Is megalodon bigger than whale shark?
The Megalodon has been compared to the whale shark (around 12.65 metres, or close to 41.50 feet) and the scientific community has determined that Megalodon was larger, based on both weight and length.
What shark is bigger than megalodon?
What is bigger than the megalodon and the whale shark? Blue whales are larger than megalodons and whale sharks.
How big was a Megalodon?
megalodon was not only the biggest shark in the world, but one of the largest fish ever to exist. Estimates suggest it grew to between 15 and 18 metres in length, three times longer than the largest recorded great white shark.
How big was Deep Blue?
20 ftDeep Blue is a female great white shark that is estimated to be 6.1 m (20 ft) long and is said to be over fifty years old. The shark was first spotted in Mexico by Mauricio Hoyos Padilla, a researcher. Deep Blue has been featured on the Discovery Channel's Shark Week.
Is a colossal squid bigger than a blue whale?
The largest animal in the world is the blue whale, but the largest invertebrate (a spineless creature) is the colossal squid, even bigger than its relative the giant squid. Scientists had a problem when they found the only known member of the genus Mesonychoteuthis - the colossal squid.
Who would win in a fight blue whale or megalodon?
A megalodon would win in a fight against a blue whale using it's powerful bite and speed.
What is the biggest shark alive today?
the whale sharkThe largest is the whale shark, which has been known to get as large as 18 meters (60 feet). The smallest fits in your hand.
Does the black demon shark exist?
The short answer is: it's extremely unlikely. No fossil records of megalodon extend beyond 2.6 million years ago. Our full article on megalodon breaks down all the theories for the species' extinction, but the bottom line is there is overwhelming evidence none have existed in the past million years.
What is the largest creature to ever exist?
the blue whaleFar bigger than any dinosaur, the blue whale is the largest known animal to have ever lived.
What's the biggest creature in the ocean?
The Antarctic blue whaleThe Antarctic blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus ssp. Intermedia) is the biggest animal on the planet, weighing up to 400,000 pounds (approximately 33 elephants) and reaching up to 98 feet in length.
Overview
The whale shark (Rhincodon typus) is a slow-moving, filter-feeding carpet shark and the largest known extant fish species. The largest confirmed individual had a length of 18.8 m (61.7 ft). The whale shark holds many records for size in the animal kingdom, most notably being by far the largest living nonmammalian vertebrate. It is the sole member of the genus Rhincodon and the only extant …
Description
Whale shark mouths can contain over 300 rows of tiny teeth and 20 filter pads which it uses to filter feed. Unlike many other sharks, whale sharks' mouths are located at the front of the head rather than on the underside of the head. A 12.1 m (39.7 ft) whale shark was reported to have a mouth 1.55 m (5.1 ft) across. The head is wide and flat with two small eyes at the front corners. The spiracles are …
Distribution and habitat
The whale shark inhabits all tropical and warm-temperate seas. The fish is primarily pelagic, and can be found in both coastal and oceanic habitats living in the open sea but not in the greater depths of the ocean, although it is known to occasionally dive to depths of as much as 1,900 metres (6,200 ft). It is migratory and has two distinct subpopulations: an Atlantic subpopulation, from Maine and the Azores to Cape Agulhas, South Africa, and an Indo-Pacific subpopulation whic…
Growth and reproduction
Growth, longevity, and reproduction of the whale shark are poorly understood. There was uncertainty as to whether vertebrae growth bands are formed annually or biannually, which is important in determining the age, growth, and longevity of whale sharks. A 2020 study compared the ratio of Carbon-14 isotopes found in growth bands of whale shark vertebrae to nuclear testing events in the 1950-60s, they found that growth bands are laid down annually. The study found a…
Diet
The whale shark is a filter feeder – one of only three known filter-feeding shark species (along with the basking shark and the megamouth shark). It feeds on plankton including copepods, krill, fish eggs, Christmas Island red crab larvae and small nektonic life, such as small squid or fish. It also feeds on clouds of eggs during mass spawning of fish and corals. The many rows of vestigial teeth pla…
Relationship with humans
Despite its size, the whale shark does not pose any danger to humans. Whale sharks are docile fish and sometimes allow swimmers to catch a ride, although this practice is discouraged by shark scientists and conservationists because of the disturbance to the sharks. Younger whale sharks are gentle and can play with divers. Underwater photographers such as Fiona Ayerst have photographe…
See also
• List of sharks
• List of threatened sharks
• Sharks portal
External links
• Whale Shark Photograph-identification Library
• Whale Shark And Oceanic Research Center
• Maldives Whale Shark Research Program
• Whale Sharks: Gentle Giants of the Seas