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The basking shark (Cetorhinus maximus) is the second-largest living shark and fish, [4] after the whale shark. It is one of three plankton-eating shark species, along with the whale shark and megamouth shark. Typically, basking sharks reach 7.9 m (26 ft) in length.
Cetorhinidae is a family of filter feeding mackerel sharks, whose members are commonly known as basking sharks. It includes the extant basking shark, Cetorhinus, as well as two extinct genera, Caucasochasma and Keasius. [3] [4]
A planktivore is an aquatic organism that feeds on planktonic food, including zooplankton and phytoplankton. [1] [2] Planktivorous organisms encompass a range of some of the planet's smallest to largest multicellular animals in both the present day and in the past billion years; basking sharks and copepods are just two examples of giant and microscopic organisms that feed upon plankton.
The basking shark is a massive creature, growing up to 40 feet (12 meters) long, and is among the largest fish in the world — second only to the whale shark. Basking sharks are also endangered.
The last sighting of a live basking shark was in 2012, although the species used to be "very common" in New Zealand waters during the mid-late 1990s. The basking shark is the second-largest fish ...
As their name suggests, basking sharks are mostly thought of as gentle giants, lolling on the ocean’s surface as they feed on plankton, their huge mouths wide open.A recent encounter off the ...
The megamouth is considerably less active than the other filter-feeding sharks, the basking shark and the whale shark. The megamouth has a stout body and a long, wide bulbous head. Megamouths are large sharks, able to grow to 5.49 metres (18 ft 0 in) in length. [16] [17] [18] Mature males average at 4 m (13 ft) and females at 5 m (16 ft).
The common name refers to its distinctive, thresher-like tail or caudal fin which can be as long as the body of the shark itself. Cetorhinidae: Basking sharks: 1 1 The basking shark is the second largest living fish, after the whale shark, and the second of three plankton-eating sharks, the other two being the whale shark and megamouth shark.