When we talk about fish, we usually mean their taste, not size. However, the largest fish in the world are so large that they can swallow the tallest man on Earth, and there is still room for a snack. Do not believe? And we will prove it.
10. Giant sunfish - 3 meters long
This fish, belonging to the species of moon fish, was found recently, in 2014. And, therefore, little is known about her lifestyle. It is only clear that this is one of the largest fish in the world. And the heaviest, because it weighs up to 2 tons, which is comparable to the weight of an adult elephant.
Mola tecta, as scientists called it, is the first new species of sunfish discovered in 130 years.
9. Ordinary pointed-tailed moonfish - 3.4 m
For residents of Korea, Japan and Taiwan, this marine giant is a delicious delicacy. In honor of the pointed moonfish, Taiwan even hosts large-scale culinary festivals that attract hundreds of tourists. It is unlikely that the fish themselves are happy about this, but who asks for the opinion of the food?
Due to the characteristic shape of the fins, this good-natured and slow-moving fish is sometimes confused with a shark. But confusing the sharp-tailed moon fish with others is difficult, due to the special shape of the tail. It has the appearance of a pointed protrusion.
8. Beluga - 4.2 m
The largest freshwater fish fit to “roar the beluga” because it is threatened with extinction. The beluga habitat is limited to the Black, Caspian and Azov Seas. People intensively exploit this species to obtain black caviar - a very expensive and rare delicacy.
Unregulated fishing of this species and poaching significantly reduced the beluga population, which led to the urgent need to protect it from commercial exploitation.
By the way, the expression "roaring beluga" is actually associated with another predatory fish - a toothed whale.
According to unconfirmed information, beluga can grow much larger than 4 and even 5 meters. The largest instance allegedly reached 9 meters.
7. Atlantic Blue Marlin - 5 m
This giant, who lives in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, has virtually no natural enemies. And he would breed and multiply unhindered, if not for the most terrible predator on Earth - man. For people, blue marlin is just prey. In one of the best countries for fishing - Cuba - there is even a fishing tournament named after Ernest Hemingway. And it is devoted specifically to catching blue marlin, which, during his lifetime, the famous writer liked to do.
6. Reef Manta - 5.5 meters wide
This is one of the largest fish living in the modern world. This species of stingrays, also known as Manta alfredi, is usually found in tropical and subtropical sea waters, but is absent in the eastern part of the Pacific Ocean and in the western part of the Atlantic Ocean.
The fish can weigh up to 1.4 tons, and its huge pectoral fins, together with the body, form a disk reaching a width of up to 5.5 m. Moreover, the length of the body of the mantle is approximately 2.4 times less than the width
First of all, Manta alfredi consumes zooplankton and does not pose a danger to humans. Previously, there were rumors that such a large slope could swallow a person or crush him, “hugging” his fins.
5. Great White Shark - 6.4 m
It is impossible to accurately measure the length of a great white shark, since there are few who wish to approach this lively murder machine with a tape measure. According to unconfirmed information, the length of a great white shark can reach 10 meters, but the recorded record is 6.4 meters.
Perhaps this is not the largest fish in the world, but certainly the most dangerous. Most shark-related attacks on humans occur precisely through the fault of a white shark. Most often, it intersects with people in coastal waters. By the way, Steven Spielberg’s famous film “Jaws” is about a giant white cannibal shark.
Of course, in real life, people are not a favorite delicacy of white sharks, but the unprovoked attacks of this dangerous predator on swimmers and fishermen are quite common.
The great white shark is the most terrible predator in its ecosystem, although killer whales compete with them, and are sometimes even killed due to teamwork and speed of action. It is a pity that killer whales are not fish, but mammals, otherwise they would have taken a worthy place in our list of the largest fish in the world. On the video, the differences between the great white shark and the killer whale are clearly visible.
4. Sawfish slope - 7 m
These poorly studied cartilaginous fish are enormous. However, most of their length consists of long saw-shaped noses.
In appearance, the sawtooth slope resembles a sawnose shark. However, the latter could well call the stingrays “fry” and reason on the topic that “it was better before”. And all because sawnose sharks appeared much earlier than sawing rays, even on the border of the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, while sawing rays appeared 60 million years later.
These fish are big lovers of catching fish in troubled waters, and literally. Sawlaws spend most of their lives at the bottom, not interested in what is done on the surface. And if young individuals prefer shallow water, then adult sawlaws descend to a depth of 40 meters or more.
3. Giant Shark - 9.8 m
The third largest fish in the world. In the photo she looks menacing, but in fact it is a harmless creature, the diet of which consists of plankton. A giant shark feeds on the surface of the water, as if basking in the sun, hence its second name - "sun fish".
Years of intensive commercial use for food, oil production of shark liver oil and shark fins and many other factors have greatly reduced the population of this species.
2. Herring King - 11 m
Move, stingrays and sharks, in front of you is a king of fish along the length of the body. The largest specimens caught in length reached 7 and 11 meters. The herring king even got into the Guinness Book of Records as the longest living bone fish.
However, the fish got its name from Norwegian fishermen not for body length, but because it came across in herring stocks and the presence of a “crown” on the head, consisting of elongated first rays of the dorsal fin.
1. Whale Shark - 20 m
Here is the answer to two questions at once: what is the largest fish and what is the largest shark in the world? The whale shark weighs up to 21.5 tons and is the largest living fish species.
A whale shark is found in the open waters of warm tropical seas. These fish can live up to 70 years. Despite its size, this creature rarely poses a threat to humans and feeds mainly on plankton. The species of whale sharks is designated by IUCN as endangered.
And if the photo of the largest fish in the world cannot show you the true gigantic size of a whale shark compared to humans, then let this video do it.
