Biggest-fish-in-the-sea

The Whale shark

I am proud to be the biggest fish in the sea, although my name suggests I am part of the mammal family.

Despite my rather large size and feared cousins (sharks with teeth!), I am a gentle giant who mainly feasts on Plankton, one of the smallest organisms in the sea.

I live mainly in warm temperate seas and it is thought some of my kind can grow to almost 20 meters in length!

Since I am a filter feeding animal, I was named after my cetaceans friends, the whales. Despite not having any functional teeth, I am proud to be part of the shark team!

I am blue-grey in color with an array of whitish spots and stripes. My belly is white, and my large flat mouth enables me to scoop up big quantities of food  while filtering out extra water.

Since I am found journeying in some of the world's tropical oceans, I am beginning to be hunted myself for food and also my large fins. I have become a "threatened species", but little is known about how many of us currently exist in the wild.

Find our how more about Whale Sharks and how you can visit them in the wild and help protect their life in our oceans ☛ http://www.whalesharkproject.org/default.asp?home=1