The Galapagos Whale Shark Facts

Scientific Name: Rhincodon typus
Family: Whale Sharks - Rhincondontidae
Size: 20 - 45ft, max 55 ft (6 - 13m, max 17m)
Depth: 6 - 60 ft (2 - 20m)

The whale shark is the biggest of the sharks and the biggest fish on our planet. Although the name might suggest otherwise, it is NOT a whale. This shark has a very big mouth which can be up to 4 feet (1.4 m) wide.

Unlike with most sharks, where the mouth is found on the underside of the head, the mouth of a whale shark is found at the front of its head. It has a wide, flat head, a rounded snout, very small eyes, 2 dorsal fins (on its back), 5 very large gill slits, and 2 pectoral fins (on its sides). Its tail, similar to that of other shark species like the Hammerhead shark, has a top fin much larger than the lower fin.

Whale sharks have distinctive light-yellow / white markings (random stripes and dots) on its very thick dark gray skin. The skin is up to 4 inches (10 cm) thick and there are three prominent ridges running along each side of the shark's body. Unlike most sharks, whale sharks do not attack other fish to feed and they lack the distinctive shark teeth rows. Instead, this enormous shark is a filter feeder and sieves enormous amounts of plankton to eat through its gills as it swims

Identification:
It is gray to gray-brown, fading to white on the underside; thin whitish lines join spots on its back. Three ridges run on its sides from the head to the base of the tail. Its first dorsal fin is more than halfway back on the body. It is the world's largest fish.

Read more from the Blog:
• Albino Whale Shark Spotted in the Galapagos Islands