GENERAL DESCRIPTION

The whale shark has distinctive light-yellow markings (random stripes and dots) on its very thick dark gray skin. Its skin is up to 4 inches (10 cm) thick. There are three prominent ridges running along each side of the shark's body.

This enormous shark is a filter feeder and sieves enormous amounts of plankton to eat through its gills as it swims.

SIZE







A scuba diver above a Whale shark.

TEETH

DIET AND FEEDING HABITS

The whale shark is a filter feeder that sieves small animals from the water. As it swims with its mouth open, it sucks masses of water filled with prey into its mouth and through spongy tissue between its 5 large gill arches. After closing its mouth, the shark uses gills rakers that filter the nourishment from the water. Anything that doesn't pass through the gills is eaten. Gill rakers are bristly structures (the thousands of bristles are about 4 inches or 10 cm long) in the shark's mouth that trap the small organisms which the shark then swallows. The water is expelled through the sharks 5 pairs of gill slits. The prey includes plankton, krill, small fish, and squid. The shark can process over 1500 gallons (6000 liters) of water each hour.

SOCIAL GROUPS

Whale sharks are solitary creatures. Groups of whale sharks have only rarely been seen.

HABITAT

Whale sharks live in warm water (near the equator) both along the coast and in the open seas. They spend most of their time near the surface.

DISTRIBUTION

Whale sharks are found worldwide in the warm oceans from the equator to about ±30-40° latitude. They are not, however, found in the Mediterranean Sea.





SWIMMING

Whale sharks are slow swimmers, going no more than 3 mph (5 kph). They swim by moving their entire bodies from side to side (not just their tails, like some other sharks do).

REPRODUCTION

The Whale shark was long thought to be oviparous (an egg 14 inches (36 cm) long was found in the Gulf of Mexico in 1953; this would be the largest egg in the world). Recently, pregnant females have been found containing hundreds of pups, so, Whale sharks are viviparous, giving birth to live young. Newborns are over 2 feet (60 cm) long.

Whale sharks are sexually mature at 30 years old. This is the age at which they are able to mate and reproduce.

WHALE SHARK ATTACKS

Whale sharks are harmless to people and usually indifferent to divers.

LIFE SPAN

It has been estimated that whale sharks may live up to 100 - 150 years.

WHALE SHARK CLASSIFICATION



Kingdom Animalia (animals)

Phylum Chordata

SubPhylum Vertebrata (vertebrates)

Class Chondrichthyes (cartilaginous fish)

Subclass Elasmobranchii (sharks and rays)

Order Orectolobiformes

Family Rhincodontidae

Genus Rhincodon

Species typus

WHALE SHARK ACTIVITIES

A print-out about the whale shark.

A first grade addition activity. Solve the 1-digit addition problems, then do letter substitutions to answer a shark question.

