The Whale Shark Essay Research Paper The

Swimming in the whale sharks can go along well with their names. They are insanely slow swimmers, going no more that three miles per hour. They swim by moving their entire bodies from side to side, unlike other sharks who just use there tails. Their teeth are very tiny, but a whale shark carriers more than 3,000 teeth, but they are of little use. Whale sharks are filter feeders that get their food from their large gills (Sea Dwellers Whale Sharks. PBS Online). As a whale shark swims, it keeps it mouth open, so it can suck masses of water filled with prey into its mouth and through a type of spongy tissue between its several gill arches. After closing its mouth, the shark uses its gill rakers that filter the food from the huge amounts of water. Anything that doesn t pass

through the gills is eaten. Gill rakers are bristly structures in the shark s moth that trap the small organisms, which the shark then swallows (Sea Dwellers Whale Sharks. PBS Online). The water is excreted through the gill slits. Many food favorites for the whale shark are plankton, krill, small fish, and squid. But one amazing task that no other shark can do is that it can expel over 1500 gallons of water in an hour (Whale Sharks All About Sharks). Also in the whale sharks (social groups), they are very solitary creatures, which can rarely be seen. Most of the whale sharks live in warm waters along the coast and open seas, but most of their time is spent near the surface.

The whale shark is a fascinating creature that is a giant that in my opinion could be mistaken for a submarine. It is also set apart from many other sharks, which show that it may have evolved from a whale of some sort. Also, there are many behaviors of the whale shark that makes it different than other sharks, such examples could be about the friendliness it has. But overall, the whale shark, is a very interesting creature, and can dominate the ocean floor with its large size.