Rhincodon Typus
The biggest fish in the ocean is the Rhincodon typus or Whale Shark.
The Whale shark(Rhincodon typus) is a slow moving, filter-feeding carpet shark and the largest known extant fish species.
The largest confirmed individual had a length of 18.8 m (62 ft).
the whale shark holds many records for size in the animal kingdom, most notably being by far the largest living non-mammalian vertebrate.
It is the sole member of the genus Rhincodon and the only extant member of the family Rhincodontidae, which belongs to the subclass Elasmobranchii in the class Chondrichthyes. Before 1984 it was classified as Rhiniodon into Rhinodontidae.
Whale Sharks may grow up to 40 feet and weigh as much as 40 tons by some estimates. Whale sharks longer longer than about 39 feet are uncommon.
They have broad, flat heads with short snouts and their backs have an interesting white, yellow, and grey checkerboard pattern.
It is unknown how long whale sharks can live, however, scientist believe they can live approximately 60-100 years.
Whale sharks eat mostly small organisms like plankton, schooling fish, and squid, which they strain from the water as they swim with their meter-long mouths and specialized teeth.
Whale sharks is found in open waters of the tropical oceans and is rarely found in water below 21 °C (70 °F).
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