The Biggest Fish

Zac Wolf
The Biggest Fish: Whale Shark ( Rhincodon typus)

About the size of a school bus (reaching 40 feet in length), whale sharks are the biggest fish in the world. Although they may look scary, whale sharks are harmless to humans and are quiet the gentle giants -- sometimes even allowing swimmers to hitch a ride by hanging onto their fins! They typically eat plankton, and use their huge mouths to scoop up tiny plants and animals. Because the whale shark's favorite foods are at the surface of the ocean, they have become targeted by hunters, especially in Eastern and Southern Asia, and are considered a Threatenedt species. Whale sharks prefer warm waters, and live in all tropical seas on Earth.

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