Which shark mainly feeds on plankton

The whale shark, like the world's second largest fish, the basking shark, is a filter feeder. In order to eat, the beast juts out its formidably sized jaws and passively filters everything in its path. The whale shark's flattened head sports a blunt snout above its mouth with short barbels protruding from its nostrils. Its back and sides are gray to brown with white spots among pale vertical and horizontal stripes, and its belly is white.

Its two dorsal fins are set rearward on its body, which ends in a large dual-lobbed caudal fin or tail. Preferring warm waters, whale sharks populate all tropical seas. They are known to migrate every spring to the continental shelf of the central west coast of Australia. The coral spawning of the area's Ningaloo Reef provides the whale shark with an abundant supply of plankton. Although massive, whale sharks are docile fish and sometimes allow swimmers to hitch a ride.

They are currently listed as a vulnerable species; however, they continue to be hunted in parts of Asia, such as the Philippines. All rights reserved. Common Name: Whale Shark. Scientific Name: Rhincodon typus. A whale shark swims towards a hand dangling into the water over the edge of a boat. Despite what its name might suggest, the creature is not looking for a bite of flesh; whale sharks are docile creatures that feed mainly on algae, plankton and krill.

They are lured to the coast of Tan-awan, a village in Oslob, in the southern Philippines island of Cebu, by fishermen who hand feed them small shrimp, drawing large numbers of tourists to come and watch.

The fishermen can earn good money by feeding whale sharks, the world's largest fish, as tourists come in their hundreds and pay to watch or dive with the giant animals. But although the local community benefits from the tourism income, the practice of feeding the whale sharks has created controversy on the internet and among biologists, who say it is unnatural.

Fisherman Jersen Soriano pushes his paddleboat at dusk as he prepares to search for and feed whale sharks. Tan-awan, in the southern Philippines island of Cebu, used to be a sleepy village that never saw tourists unless they were lost or in transit. Yet now they flock there by the hundreds - to swim with whale sharks, the world's largest fish. Whale sharks are lured to the Tan-awan coastline of the Oslob district by fishermen who hand feed them small shrimp, drawing divers and snorkelers to see the highly sought-after animals, known as gentle giants of the sea.

But the practice has sparked fierce debate on the internet and among biologists, who decry it as unnatural. Though whale sharks as large as What is an anemones favorite food? Does the plankton depend on whale shark? Is the frilled shark a carnivore or a herbivore? Which shark is not a planton eater? Does big shark depend on plankton for food? What is a shark that filter feeds and is a danger to humans? Is there a plankton eating hammerhead shark?

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What is the meaning of the term plankton name examples of plankton? What does the Megaladon shark eat? What does the wale shark eat? Is a whale shark a filter-feeder predator or grazer? How big is the worlds biggest shark? Study Guides. Trending Questions. What is the fourth element of the periodic table of elements? What can you hold in your right hand but not in your left hand? The frequent turns may keep the whale sharks in the denser parts of the plankton patches, searching and scanning when an olfactory cue weakens on one side or the other Martin, Because of this, vision may play a much smaller role than olfaction in directing the head turns during surface feeding.

One live whale shark pup removed from its dead mother was maintained in captivity in Japan. It did not eat for the first 17 days, even though it swam constantly.

This suggests that the pup had substantial stores of endogenous stored energy Chang, Historically, there was a great scientific debate about the mode of development of whale sharks. However, in , an meter female whale shark was harpooned off the eastern coast of Taiwan and fetal specimens, ranging in length from 42 to 63cm, were taken from the two uteri Compagno The egg-capsules of this whale shark were amber colored, with a smooth texture, and possessed a respiratory fissure opening on each side Chang, The sex ratio was approximately It would appear that female whale sharks give birth as they feed in the rich waters of the Kuroshio Current.

It is also apparent that the southeast waters off Taiwan are an important birthing area during summer months. It is believed that the young measure cm Predators A juvenile specimen was found in the stomach of a blue shark Prionace glauca.

Another specimen was found in the gut contents of a blue marlin Makaira nigricans. At Ningaloo Reef, great white sharks Carcharodon carcharias , and tiger sharks Galeocerdo cuvier have been reported to attack whale sharks when they congregate Fitzpatrick, Many parasitic copepods were found on the lining of the pharynx of a small 60cm total length whale shark from Taiwan.

The whale shark was first described and named by Andrew Smith in , based on a specimen harpooned in Table Bay, South Africa. Historically, there have been many synonyms alternative scientific names for family, genus and species names. However, in the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature suppressed previous generic variations in favor of genus name Rhincodon , and the family name Rhincodontidae. Others generic names formerly used include Rhiniodon and Rhineodon and the family names Rhiodontidae and Rhineodontidae.

Systematically, Rhincodontidae is placed in the order Orectolobiformes, which also includes families such as Ginglymostomatidae nurse sharks and Orectolobidae wobbegongs. The interrelationships between these families are based on anatomical and morphological similarities. The species name is translated as type. Discover Fishes Rhincodon typus.

Whale Shark Whale shark. Danger to Humans Generally considered harmless. National Museum Threats to this species include bycatch, fisheries, vessel strikes, and poorly conducted tourism Stacey, Geographical Distribution World distribution map for the whale shark The whale shark has a very widespread distribution, occurring in all tropical and warm temperate seas, except in the Mediterranean.

Habitat In contrast to most sharks from the same order Orectolobiformes , which are benthic live on or near the bottom species, the whale shark is a pelagic open sea species. A whale shark cruises at the surface accompanied by opportunistic remoras Echeneis sp. Distinguishing Characteristics Whale shark Rhindodon typus. Back and sides marked with unique checkerboard pattern of light spots and transverse bars 2.

Head is broad and flat with a short snout 3. Mouth is near the tip of the snout 4. Sides have three prominent ridges Biology Distinctive Features A streamlined body and a depressed, broad, and flattened head characterize the whale shark Compagno, Whale shark coloration pattern.

Dermal Denticles The whale shark has unique denticles tooth-like scales structures , each with an extremely strong central keel, no lateral keels, and a tri-lobed rear margin. Food Habits Whale sharks feed on a wide variety of planktonic microscopic and nektonic larger free-swimming prey, such as small crustaceans, schooling fishes, and occasionally on tuna and squids Martin, Dermal denticles from in front of and a bit below the first dorsal fin top , Illustrations A Lateral and apical views of dermal denticle about 75x , B dermal denticles about 35x Images courtesy Garrick Proceedings U.

National Museum. Reproduction Historically, there was a great scientific debate about the mode of development of whale sharks. A whale shark opens its mouth, bringing in plankton-rich water. Parasites Many parasitic copepods were found on the lining of the pharynx of a small 60cm total length whale shark from Taiwan.

Taxonomy The whale shark was first described and named by Andrew Smith in , based on a specimen harpooned in Table Bay, South Africa. Landings of whale sharks Rhincodon typus Smith, in Indian waters since protection in through the Indian Wildlife Protection Act,