2. SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION
COMMON NAME:whale shark
KINGDOM: Animalia
PHYLUM: Chordata
CLASS: Chondrichthyes
ORDER: Orectolobiformes
FAMILY: Rhincodontidae
GENUS SPECIES: Rhincodon typus
3. Fast facts
DESCRIPTION: The whale shark can be easily identified by its titanic
size and its distinctive coloration with patterns of light spots and
stripes on a blue to gray background. MALE External claspers
located on the far underside of the body - forward of the caudal fin
- distinguish males.
SIZE: Averages 4-12 m (13-39 ft.) in length; believed to reach a
maximum size of 18 m (59 ft.)
WEIGHT: Up to 11,800 kg (26,000 lb.)
DIET: Primarily plankton; occassionally small to medium-sized fish
GESTATION: Whale sharks are ovoviviparous ("egg live birth"). In this
form of reproduction, the internally fertilized eggs are retained
inside the female's body. The embryos develop in membranous
"shells." They shed their membranes inside the female, who then
gives birth to live offspring.
4. Where They are Found!
The whale shark is found in tropical and warm
oceans and lives in the open sea with a
lifespan of about 70 years.[3]
They are known to migrate every spring to the
continental shelf of the central west coast of
Australia
5. Diet
• Although whale sharks have very large
mouths, as filter feeders they feed mainly on
macro-algae, plankton, krill, Christmas Island
red crab, larvae, and small nektonic life such
as small squid or vertebrates.
• They are one of only three known filter
feeding shark species
6. Conservation status
• The whale shark is targeted by commercial
fisheries in several areas where they
seasonally aggregate.
Human purposes
•Food
•Entertainment in
aquariums
