AnimalsThe whale shark is the largest fish in the world. It is harmless to people and feeds by filtering plankton and small fish from the water. Each one has its own pattern of pale spots. They visit the coast of Gujarat every year.
Quick facts
- Scientific name
- Rhincodon typus
- Group
- Fish
- Diet
- Carnivore (eats other animals)
- Lives in
- Warm seas worldwide
- Habitat
- Open sea and coasts
- A young one is called
- pup
- A group is called
- no special name
- Conservation status
- Endangered
How it is classified
Scientists sort living things into groups within groups. Reading down, each step is a smaller group, ending with the species itself.
- Kingdom Animalia
- Phylum Chordata
- Class Elasmobranchii
- Order Orectolobiformes
- Family Rhincodontidae
- Genus Rhincodon
- Species Rhincodon typus
Classification follows the GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Other reference works arrange some groups differently. How classification works.
Is it in danger?
The whale shark is listed as Endangered. The species faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild.
This is the IUCN Red List category as recorded in Wikidata on 11 November 2026. The IUCN Red List itself is the authority and may carry a newer assessment. What the categories mean.