The largest fish in the world is the whale shark.
Whale sharks are gentle in temperament and are currently the largest fish in the world. They are mainly distributed in tropical and temperate sea areas and are found in all sea areas in China in summer and autumn. The whale shark has five pairs of huge gills and a mouth up to 1.5 meters wide. Its pectoral fin can be up to 4.8 meters long, and its tail fin can be up to 2.4 meters long. It is crescent-shaped, with the upper half longer than the lower half. The thickness of the skin is even more amazing, up to 15 centimeters, and can effectively resist attacks from other organisms.
The largest whale shark currently confirmed was discovered in Pakistan as early as 1947, weighing up to 21.5 tons. Whale shark (scientific name: Rhincodon typus): It is a shark of the family Rhincodonidae and the genus Rhincodon typus. There are only 1 family, 1 genus and 1 species of whale shark. With a huge body and a total length of up to 20 meters, it is the largest fish in the world. The body surface is scattered with light-colored spots and criss-crossing light-colored bands, like a chessboard. The nostrils are located on either side of the upper lip and appear inside the mouth.
The teeth are numerous and small, arranged in multiple rows. There are 5 pairs of gill slits, the gill slits are extremely large, almost reaching the dorsal and ventral edges of the body, and the last pair of gill slits is located in front of the base of the pectoral fins. There are 2 dorsal fins without spines. The first dorsal fin is located in front of the pelvic fin and has an anal fin. The caudal peduncle has lateral edges, the caudal fin is crescent-shaped, and the lower lobe is shorter than the upper lobe. For example, the whale shark has two dorsal fins of different sizes, the pectoral fin is large, located under the third pair of gill slits, the pelvic fin is small, the tail fin is forked, the mouth is wide, terminal, and the gill rakers are sponge-like.
The naming of the whale shark
The scientific name of the whale shark is Rhincodon typus, derived from the Latin words "rasp" and "tooth". Whale sharks have many layers of small, rough teeth that provide the basis for the name. The name "whale shark" comes from fish biology, indicating that the whale shark is as large as a whale and is also a filter feeder. In Vietnamese religious belief, the whale shark is considered a deity and is known as "Ca Ong" (meaning "Sir Fish").
Whale sharks are known as "pezdama" or "domino" in Mexico and much of Central America because of the shape of their spots. Because whale sharks often appear in the waters off the Belize Barrier Reef near the Sapodilla Cayes, Brazilians call it "Sapodilla Tom."
Whale sharks are called "papashillingi" in Kenya. This is because Kenyans believe that God threw shillings on whale sharks, so they have such spots on their bodies. "Marokintana" is the Madagascar name for whale sharks, which means "many stars." The Javanese people in Indonesia call whale sharks "gegerlintang", which means "fish with stars on its back". Filipinos call them "butanding".