The whale shark, Rhincodon typus, is a slow moving filter feeding shark, the largest living fish species. The largest confirmed individual had a length of 12.65 metres (41.50 ft) and a weight of more than 21.5 tonnes (47,000 lb), but unconfirmed claims report considerably larger whale sharks. This distinctively-marked fish is the only member of its genus Rhincodon and its family, Rhincodontidae (called Rhinodontes before 1984), which belongs to the subclass Elasmobranchii in the class Chondrichthyes. The shark is found in tropical and warm oceans, lives in the open sea with a lifespan of about 70 years. The species originated about 60 million years ago. Although whale sharks have very large mouths, they feed mainly, though not exclusively, on plankton, microscopic plants and animals, although the BBC programme Planet Earth filmed a whale shark feeding on a school of small fish.
The whale shark inhabits all tropic and warm-temperate seas. Primarily pelagic, seasonal feeding aggregations occur at several coastal sites such as Gladden Spit in Belize; Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia; Útila in Honduras; Donsol, Pasacao and Batangas in the Philippines; off Isla Mujeres and Isla Holbox in Yucatan Mexico; Ujung Kulon National Park in Indonesia; Nosy Be in Madagascar Off Tofo Reef in Mozambique, and the Tanzanian islands of Mafia, Pemba and Zanzibar. Although typically seen offshore, it has been found closer to land, entering lagoons or coral atolls, and near the mouths of estuaries and rivers. Its range is generally restricted to about ±30° latitude. It is capable of diving to depths of 700 metres (2,300 ft), and is migratory.