Hunters in Bremen, Maine, discover a dead person Shark The size of a pickup truck on a local beach Tuesday (Jan 5), according to News sources. Tanner Fields, who was one of the first to discover the washed shark, shared video footage of the shore giant with Maine News Center.
Officials at the Maine Department of Marine Resources identified the mammoth specimen as a male basking shark (Citorinus maximus, Which roughly translates to “the largest-nosed marine monster”) and measures 26 feet (8 meters) long. As of today (January 7), the cause of death is still unknown.
Basking sharks are the second largest fish in the world, reaching lengths of up to 40 feet (12 meters). According to the Florida Museum. Just a dodger The whale shark, Which can grow to over 60 feet (18 meters), is larger. Basking sharks are found in warm waters around the world, occasionally They migrate thousands of milesIt is the largest shark that roams the waters off New England.
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Despite their majestic appearance, basking sharks are mostly harmless to humans. They feed by swimming forward with their huge mouths open, gobbling up thousands of tons of sea water every hour and filtering tasty zooplankton and other small marine invertebrates through their gills, according to the Florida Museum.
These sharks often feed near the surface, appearing to bask in the sun (hence the name). The Florida Museum warns that although a basking shark will likely not bite you, it may shock you with its rough, rough body if you find yourself in its way.
And don’t forget to look up: basking sharks can jump up to 4 feet (1.2 meters) out of water, researchers found in The 2018 study.
Originally published on Live Science.