Shark whale

The shark whale (Rhincodon typus) is largest of all the Requin S still in life and also of all the Poisson S.

Food

This immense shark is completely inoffensive for the man, indeed it nourishes only Plancton, of Krill or small fish of less than ten centimetres. To compensate for the small size of its preys, it must swallow great quantities of food (nearly a ton of plankton per day). For that, it filters the water which it swallows by its immense mouth.

Description

The shark whale measures between 12 and 18 meters, and weighs around 10 tons. Its dorsal face blue, is cut out white lines, and strewn with white points, its skin is thick approximately 15 centimetres. Its belly is white. It has a very broad head which ends in a mouth of approximately two meters broad, which enables him to filter 2.000 tons of water per hour. It has approximately 3.000 tiny teeth.

The shark whale is slow (5 km/h), but he traverses thousands of kilometers all the same. It is present in the tropical water of the whole world, as well at the edge of the coasts as with the broad one.

Reproduction

In the actual position of knowledge, one still does not know large thing about the particular mode of reproduction of the shark whale. One discovered well an egg of dimensions 30x14x9 cm in 1953, but one also observed a umbilical Cicatrice on a very young shark whale (55 cm length). In the same way, a Femelle accompanied by 14 small was observed and one found up to 300 Embryon S in the belly of a mother.

One cannot thus still categorically not affirm that the sharks whales are viviparous S, oviparous animal S, or even ovoviviparous S, although it is this last possibility which is privileged today.

It is known however that the shark whale measures between 40 and 60 cm with the birth, and that it reaches its sexual Maturité towards 20 or 30 years.

A threatened species

Although it is not in way of extinction, it is thought that its population decrease but its disparity in geographical term and its mobility make that it is very difficult to count the number of individuals. However, a recent technique developped at the point by an Australian researcher , Brad Norman, makes it possible to identify the sharks whales with their white tasks.

Like the digital fingerprints, it proved that the white tasks are single from one animal to another. To allow this identification, the researcher set up a Web site being used as photographic library and gathering the already identified individuals. This initiative received the price Rolex with the company spirit making it possible to finance the continuation of the project.

Its flesh is eaten only in China and especially with Taiwan. It is especially for its ailerons that it is driven out, an aileron can be worth nearly 20.000 €.

The species is since the November 15th 2002 registered on the list of the QUOTE (Convention on the international business of the species of fauna and flora savages threatened of extinction).

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