BBegging sharks are wonders of the sea kingdom. This second-largest species of living fish can reach 40 feet in length and weigh more than 4.5 tons—all on a planktonic diet. Perhaps because ocean giants make their living by lolling on the surface of the water (thus “swimming”), vacuuming up tiny sea animals, they also have the smallest brain size on a weight-to-weight basis of any shark. I guess you don't need much street smarts when the hunt involves opening a massive mouth and swimming with a current filled with krill.
As if basking sharks couldn't get any weirder, they have a rarely seen trick up their sleeves: babies with an extraordinary signal.
In 2020, Tyler Greenfield, who calls himself a paleontologist and science writer, published amazing figurine from Japanese Journal of Ichthyology study it features an 8.5-foot baby basking shark in all its bow-shaped glory.
Researchers captured a curious specimen in a photograph off the Pacific coast of Honshu, Japan, in 1977 and estimated the female shark to be less than 6 months old. A chance catch was an unusual opportunity to shed light on an ephemeral feature. developing giant sharks. “Individuals are rare, and their growth changes quickly after birth.[ly]”, the authors wrote.
But the baby basking shark's impressive nose, with a groove running down its underside and leading directly to the fish's roof, isn't just for show. “Snout structure is thought to be related to juvenile feeding,” the researchers write, “during the early free-living stage, when snout shape may increase the efficiency of water flow into the mouth.” They theorized that since a baby basking shark does not have the swimming skills of an adult, this specially shaped nose helps increase the flow of plankton-containing water into its mouth.
However, baby basking sharks grow quickly and soon emerge from this awkward phase. Later photoswhich shows a young basking shark feeding off the coast of Scotland, captures a slightly less gonzo-like version of a baby basking shark's sneeze, although it likely serves the same purpose of funneling food into its gaping maw.
Main image: Izawa K. and Shibata T. Japanese Journal of Ichthyology (1993)
