Sharks & Rays
Basking shark
Cetorhinus maximus
Also known as
Bone shark, elephant shark
Distribution
Worldwide in warm to cold temperate latitudes; absent from the tropics and polar regions
Ecosystem/Habitat
Coastal to open ocean
Feeding Habits
Filter feeder
Conservation Status
Endangered
Taxonomy
Order Lamniformes (mackerel sharks and relatives); Family Cetorhinidae (basking sharks)
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Facebook Twitter Pinterest Google+Basking sharks are the second largest fish in the world, coming second only to whale sharks. Reaching lengths of 12 metres, basking sharks can give an intimidating impression. They are harmless to humans though because, much like whale sharks, they are filter feeders. These sharks get their name from their appearance of ‘basking’ at the sea surface, where they spend most of their time swimming with their extraordinarily large mouths open, filtering out their preferred prey: plankton and small crustaceans. Despite their large size, there are still large knowledge gaps about their life history; basking sharks are widely distributed throughout the world’s oceans and do not stay in any one place for longer than a few months. One thing we do know for sure – these sharks are gentle giants and witnessing one in the wild is something to behold.
- American Lobster
- American Plaice
- Arctic Char
- Atlantic Cod
- Atlantic Herring
- Atlantic Mackerel
- Atlantic Puffin
- Atlantic Walrus
- Atlantic Wolffish
- Basking shark
- Beluga Whale
- Blue Shark
- Bowhead Whale
- Bubblegum Coral
- Canary Rockfish
- Capelin
- Chinook Salmon
- Dungeness Crab
- Eulachon
- Fin Whale
- Fjords
- Giant Pacific Octopus
- Great White Shark
- Green Sea Turtle
- Greenland Halibut/Turbot
- Greenland Shark
- Humboldt Squid
- Humpback Whale
- Kelp Forests
- Leatherback Sea Turtle
- Lingcod
- Lion's Mane Jellyfish
- Loggerhead Sea Turtle
- Lophelia Coral
- Narwhal
- North Atlantic Right Whale
- Northern Gannet
- Northern Shrimp
- Orca
- Pacific Herring
- Pilot Whale
- Polar Bear
- Pom-Pom Anemones
- Redfish (Acadian & Deepwater)
- Sea Otter
- Sea Pens
- Sea Strawberry
- Seamounts
- Snow crab
- Sockeye Salmon
- Spiny Dogfish
- Thick-billed Murres
- Thorny Skate
- Tufted Puffin
- Yelloweye Rockfish