Male and female whale sharks grow at different rates, with females doing so more slowly but getting much larger than the males, recent research published on September 17 stated. Whale sharks are large filter-feeding carpet sharks and can be identified through their brownish-greyish colour on the back and sides with white spots, with a white underside.

For the purpose of the study, which was published in Frontiers in Marine Science, researchers tracked down the growth of 54 whale sharks over a period of 10 years. The research was conducted in the Ningaloo Reef off Australia’s west coast, where hundreds of these slow-swimming endangered fish migrate annually. Currently, the longest known whale shark is recorded to reach a height of 60 feet that is 18 meters.

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As a result, they discovered that regardless of the gender, whale sharks grew maximum as a juvenile, that is about 8-12 inches annually. In addition, they also concluded that males were found to grow slightly more quickly than females, plateauing at around 26 feet (8 meters) long after reaching sexual maturity at about 30 years old. Females plateaued at around 14 meters (46 feet) when they reached sexual maturity at about age 50. Scientists also speculated that whale shark may live up to 100 to 150 years.

“Whale sharks are remarkable in that females to have massive litters of pups, up to 300 at one time. Being very large is almost certainly a prerequisite for carrying this many young inside a female’s body,” said Australian Institute of Marine Science marine biologist Mark Meekan who led the study.

Read: Video Of A Man Riding On Endangered Whale Shark Leaves Netizens Divided | Watch

Read: Scientists Astonished To Find Sharks Living In Communities, Observe Their Social Life

Complex life

Meanwhile, another study has revealed that sharks lead a more complex social life that was previously thought. According to reports, a new study published earlier this week in the Proceedings of the Royal Society journal observed grey reef sharks and discovered the sea creatures capable of cultivating deep meaningful bonds with one another that can even last for years in some cases.

Representative image/ worldwildlife.org

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