鲸鲨：被误解的巨人

拉丁文Rhincodon typus，通常称为鲸鲨，是海洋中最大的鱼，长度为18至32.8英尺（5.5至10m）。尽管鲸鲨的大小庞大，但它们还是良性的生物，主要以浮游生物（微观）和nektonic（较大的自由游动）动物为食。对我们来说幸运的是，这意味着他们不会很快就会针对人类。

他们如何喂食

鲸鲨使用吸气过滤器喂养方法，这与Basking Shark的慢速运动不同。抽吸过滤器喂养方法使鲸鲨比bas鲨捕获更快的移动生物。但是，鲸鱼鲨鱼需要较短的猎物聚集，这是由于摄入量短。鲸鲨用一口肉的食物闭合，打开ill瓣以摘下水。然后，它的猎物被困在一个精美的筛子般的装置上，这是对鲨鱼的g射手的独特修饰。筛子阻碍了除液体以外的任何事物的通道，从而保留了直径2至3mm以上的所有生物。

如果您有幸见证了这种鲨鱼的喂食，您可能会观察到“咳嗽”，这被认为是清除累积食物颗粒的修改后的g射手的机制。鲸鲨大多在黄昏或黑暗后的表面附近进食，使用嗅觉提示帮助猎物区域。鲸鲨的眼睛很小，位于头部的侧面。从理论上讲，因此，视觉在进食中起着比嗅觉的角色要小得多。

如何识别一个

The whale shark is characterized by its streamlined body and its wide, flat head with a blunt snout. Its huge mouth is almost at the tip of the snout extending 5ft (1.5m) wide, and can contain more than 4,000 tiny teeth. The shark has five very large gill slits, two dorsal fins set posteriorly on the body, and a two lobed, semi-lunate caudal fin.

关于鲸鲨的最独特之处之一是其颜色。它具有“棋盘”颜色图案，并在4英寸（10厘米）厚的灰色皮肤和白色腹部上带有浅色斑点和条纹。值得注意的是，据估计鲸鲨已有60 - 100年的历史。

在哪里可以找到它们

在夏季，台湾的东南水域已被称为鲸鲨的繁殖场。作为卵巢鱼，鲸鲨生下了年轻的生活。年轻的幼崽在母亲子宫中的鸡蛋盒中发育。一只雌性鲸鱼鲨鱼一次可以携带300只幼崽，如果不存在雄性，则将精子储存以施肥。出生时，性别比例为1：1时，鲸鱼鲨鱼幼犬进入世界。

什么e sharks have a large worldwide distribution, occurring in all tropical and temperate seas with the exception of the Mediterranean. Studies have shown that these sharks prefer warm waters with the surface temperature around 70-86º F (21-30º C), which tend to be rich in plankton production. This shark species is pelagic, living in the open sea. It is hypothesized that the whale shark is a migratory species, but there is no direct evidence to support this idea. However, the movements due tend to be related to local productivity, where different geographical locations are preferred at certain times of the year. Generally, whale sharks are seen as solitary animals, but on occasion, groups of 100 or more animals have been seen. This evidence suggests that schooling does occur periodically.

他们面对的危险

Unfortunately, whale sharks are very susceptible to overexploitation due to their large size, slow growth, late maturation and extended longevity. Because of this, whale sharks are now protected in several countries, including Belize, Mexico, Honduras, the Maldives, Australia, the Seychelles, India, and the Philippines. Overfishing, in the Indo-Pacific region in particular, has had a major impact on this species. They are caught primarily for their meat, liver oil to waterproof boats, and for their fins that are used as status symbols. Whale sharks are considered Vulnerable to Extinction by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and are listed on Appendix II of the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Flora and Fauna (CITES), which helps to regulate fishing and tourism.