The World’s Largest Shark Is a Whale-Like Filter Feeder with Teeth on Its Eyes

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Lately, we’ve been exploring the tiny dwarf lanternshark, now let’s shift our focus to the other extreme – the world’s biggest fish, the whale shark. This species is unique to the Rhincodon genus and holds the title as the largest living shark on Earth. Interestingly, it’s among the planet’s largest creatures, second only to certain types of whales.

On average, whale sharks reach approximately 30 feet in length, featuring a mouth that can span nearly 5 feet. The largest specimens double this size, reaching an astounding 60 feet from nose to tail. Known for their peaceful demeanor, these colossal creatures roam the warm waters worldwide, consuming plankton and small marine organisms using their wide-open jaws. They frequently dive several thousand feet beneath the ocean’s surface and travel thousands of miles at a leisurely pace of around 3 miles per hour. And that’s merely scratching the surface of what makes whale sharks fascinating.

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Great white sharks possess not only sight, hearing, taste, touch, and smell but also three additional extraordinary senses. Why then does someone dare to swim six miles a day through waters known as “shark-infested” reminiscent of the movie Jaws? Let’s delve into the story of “Contender,” the largest male great white shark ever recorded in the North Atlantic.

Great white sharks are equipped with more than just sight, hearing, taste, touch, and smell – they boast three exceptional senses. One might wonder, then, why someone would choose to swim six miles a day through supposedly “shark-infested” waters similar to those in the movie Jaws? Let’s explore the tale of “Contender,” the most substantial known male great white shark in the North Atlantic.

Whale sharks use their teeth in weird and unexpected ways

Sharks are famed for their numerous, sharp-edged teeth, arranged in multiple rows within their mouths. As time passes, the front ones fall out and are swiftly replaced by brand-new ones. The image of sharks is so deeply associated with their teeth that Peter Benchley named his groundbreaking 1974 novel “Jaws.

Whale sharks possess teeth, yet they do not employ them like other sharks. In the mouth of a whale shark, you’ll find over 300 rows of minute teeth, but they don’t utilize them for eating (let me explain further). Some marine biologists speculate that these teeth might be relics of their ancestors who were adapted differently.

Whale sharks might not possess teeth in their mouths, but they are equipped with tooth-like structures known as dermal denticles on their eyes. Each eye carries over 3,000 tiny teeth around the iris, which scientists speculate are employed to shield the eye from harm. A study published in PLOS One (2020) further revealed that whale sharks can retract their eyeball into the eye socket for protection. Since sharks lack eyelids and their eyes protrude on either side of their head, it appears that retractable armor-plated eyes are crucial to a whale shark’s survival.

Becoming the world’s largest shark takes a lot of food, here’s how whale sharks eat

Whale sharks are named for their resemblance to whales and the way they hunt. Much like baleen whales (such as humpback whales, blue whales, gray whales, and others), whale sharks feed by gulping large quantities of water and then filtering out tiny food particles from it.

Unlike typical sharks, a whale shark’s mouth is positioned at the front of its head instead of being under and slightly back. Five large gill slits are located on either side of its head, each containing spongy filter pads that catch food particles as water flows through them. It’s one of only three known species of sharks that filter-feed, joining megamouth sharks and basking sharks in this category. A whale shark can move over 1,500 gallons of water per hour through its filter pads, ingesting krill, crab larvae, fish larvae, small fish, and jellyfish along the way.

Whale sharks and baleen whales are both types of filter feeders, but they use different methods to collect their meals. Baleen whales have long, comb-like structures called baleen hanging from their upper jaws that act as strainers when water is passed through them, trapping krill, plankton, and small marine creatures. The whale then uses its tongue to scrape the trapped food off the plates before swallowing. On the other hand, whale sharks stop moving and take in water through their large mouths. Instead of baleen, they have filtering pads that catch edible particles as the water is expelled. Occasionally, the shark closes its mouth to swallow the collected food.

There’s a lot we still don’t know about whale sharks

Mature whale sharks typically reach around 30 years of age and may even live beyond the century mark. Just as every human has a distinct set of fingerprints, each whale shark sports its own unique arrangement of spots and stripes.

Whale shark females carry their young inside their bodies and give birth to live babies. A single litter can include hundreds of babies, but they aren’t all born simultaneously. Instead, a female whale shark might store sperm for later use, producing offspring in groups. This allows her to have multiple generations over time. Regrettably, only about 10% of young whale sharks make it to maturity.

As a gamer exploring the vast oceans in my favorite underwater game, I can only imagine the secrets that lie within the depths where whale sharks reside. Despite their frequent appearances and colossal size, these peaceful titans of the sea remain enigmatic, with their daily routines largely undisclosed. Yet, it’s comforting to know they are a part of our oceanic world, contributing to its beauty and mystery in ways we may never fully understand.

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2025-07-01 23:17