The Basking Shark is the second largest fish in the sea, second only the to whale shark. The largest Basking Shark ever found measured a gargantuan 12.27 metres, that's over 40 feet! However, not all Basking Sharks are that size, the average Basking Shark is between 6 and 8 metres in length. As for the weight of a Basking Shark, there is no definitive answer because we can't exactly pick them up and put them on the scales. All we know if that Basking Sharks weigh a lot, literally tonnes.
The Basking Shark was named 'Basking Shark' because it is commonly seen feeding at surface of the sea. Other names attributed to the Basking Shark are: bone shark, elephant shark, sun-fish and sailfish. Despite the Basking Shark's massive size and dangerous look, it is completely harmless.
You may be wondering what Basking Sharks eat in order to stay so huge. The answer - some of the tiniest creatures in the sea. Basking Sharks have enormous mouths which expand, shown in the picture above. They swim through the water using there mouth like a vacuum, and amongst 2 tonnes of water they take in every hour, are millions of plankton and small fish. This process is known as filter feeding.
The Basking Shark is normally spotted by people in cool to warm-temperate waters. It prefers waters between 8 and 14° C (46 and 57° F). The sharks will often enter enclosed bays following concentrations of plankton. During the year, Basking Sharks migrate and below is a map showing where Basking Sharks can be found (yellow zones). Basking Sharks tend to migrate during Autumn and Winter seasons, which is why they are rarely seen outside of Spring and Summer months. The sharks travel huge distances to find plankton, their main food source.
Basking Sharks are social animals, tending to swim with 3 or 4 other Basking Sharks of the same sex. There have been reports of schools of up to 100 Basking Sharks swimming together. Female Basking Sharks will swim to shallow water to give birth. Most Basking Sharks offspring are born towards the end of Summer. Baby Basking Sharks are tiny in comparison to the adults, measuring only 5 or 6 feet... wait that's as tall as most humans!
Basking Sharks are slow swimmers compared to most sharks. Their maximum speed while swimming reaches 2 knots about 3 mph (5 kph). They are often mistaken for Great White sharks, our Basking Shark photo gallery explains the main differences. Orcas and tiger sharks are the only predators that the Basking Shark has to watch out for. Sadly, Basking Sharks are at risk of extinction.