Fish vary greatly in size. The whale shark and basking shark exceed all other fish by a considerable margin in weight and length. Fish are a paraphyletic group that describes aquatic vertebrates while excluding tetrapods, and the bony fish that often represent the group are more closely related to cetaceans such as whales, than to the cartilaginous fish such as sharks and rays. [ citation needed ] As such, cross group comparisons on this page only serve a colloquial purpose.
Rank | Name | Binomial Name | Taxonomic Class | Known maximum mass [tonnes] | Maximum length [m (ft)] | Images | Size comparison to human |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Whale shark | Rhino typus | Chondrichthyes (Cartilaginous fish) | 21.5 [1] | 18.8 metres (61.7 ft) [2] | ||
2 | Basking shark | Cetorhinus maximus | Chondrichthyes (Cartilaginous fish) | 5.2 (16 unconfirmed) [3] | 14 metres (46 ft) [4] [5] [6] | ||
3 | Great white shark | Carcharodon carcharias | Chondrichthyes (Cartilaginous fish) | 3.324 [7] | 7 metres (23 ft) [8] | ||
4 | Tiger shark | Galeocerdo cuvier | Chondrichthyes (Cartilaginous fish) | 3.11 [9] [10] | 7.5 metres (25 ft) [11] | ||
5 | Giant oceanic manta ray | Mobula birostris | Chondrichthyes (Cartilaginous fish) | 3.0 [12] | 5 metres (16 ft) [12] | ||
6 | Southern sunfish | Mola alexandrini | Osteichthyes (Bony fish) | 2.744 [13] | 3.3 metres (11 ft) [14] | ||
7 | Ocean sunfish | Mola mola | Osteichthyes (Bony fish) | 2.3 [15] | 3.1 metres (10 ft) [15] | ||
8 | Beluga sturgeon | Huso huso | Osteichthyes (Bony fish) | 2.072 [16] | 7.2 metres (24 ft) [17] | ||
9 | Sharptail mola | Masturus lanceolatus | Osteichthyes (Bony fish) | 2 [18] | 3.0 metres (9.8 ft) [18] | ||
10 | Hoodwinker sunfish | Mola tecta | Osteichthyes (Bony fish) | 1.87[ citation needed ] | 2.4 metres (7.9 ft)[ citation needed ] | ||
11 | Reef manta ray | Manta alfredi | Chondrichthyes (Cartilaginous fish) | 1.4 [19] | 5.5 metres (18 ft) [19] | ||
12 | Greenland shark | Somniosus microcephalus | Chondrichthyes (Cartilaginous fish) | 1.397 [15] | 7.3 metres (24 ft) [20] | ||
13 | Megamouth shark | Megachasma pelagios | Chondrichthyes (Cartilaginous fish) | 1.215 [21] | 5.2 metres (17 ft) [21] | ||
14 | Kaluga | Huso dauricus | Osteichthyes (Bony fish) | 1.140 [15] | 5.6 metres (18 ft) [15] |
The largest fish of the now-extinct class Placodermi was the giant predatory Dunkleosteus . The largest and most well known species was D. terrelli, which grew almost 9 m (29.5 ft) in length [24] and 4 t (4.4 short tons) [25] in weight. Its filter feeding relative, Titanichthys , may have rivaled it in size. [26] Titanichthys reached a length of 7 m (23 ft) [27] [28] though in older paper it was estimated at 7.5 m (25 ft). [29]
The cartilaginous fish are not directly related to the "bony fish," but are sometimes lumped together for simplicity in description. The largest living cartilaginous fish, of the order Orectolobiformes, is the whale shark (Rhincodon typus), of the world's tropical oceans. It is also the largest living animal that is not a cetacean and, like the largest whales, it is a docile creature that filter-feeds on tiny plankton. An average adult of this species measures 9.7 m (32 ft) long and weighs an average of 9 tonnes. The largest verified specimen was caught in 1949 off Karachi, Pakistan and was 12.7 m (42 ft) long and weighed 21.5 tonnes. Although many are dubious, there are several reports of larger whale sharks, with reliable sources citing unverified specimens of up to 37 tonnes and 17 m (56 ft). [4] [30]
The largest of the now-extinct Acanthodii was Xylacanthus grandis , an ischnacanthiform based on a ~35 cm (14 in) long jaw bone. Based on the proportions of its relative Ischnacanthus , X. grandis had an estimated total length of 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in). [72]
The largest living bony fish (superclass Osteichthyes, which includes both ray-finned and lobe-finned fish) are the lesser known southern sunfish (Mola alexandrini) followed by widely distributed and better known ocean sunfish (Mola mola) and, both being members of the order Tetraodontiformes. The largest verified specimen belongs to the southern sunfish discovered dead near the Azores in the Atlantic has set the record for being the largest extant bony fish with the weight of 2,744 kg (6,049 lb). The record size ocean sunfish crashed into a boat off Bird Island, Australia in 1910 and measured 4.3 m (14 ft) from fin-to-fin, 3.1 m (10 ft) in length and weighed about 2,300 kg (5,100 lb), [4] while the other record for the biggest bony fish is yet held by a Mola alexandrini which was also coincidentally 2,300 kg in mass and 3.0 m in length, caught off in 1996 and misidentified as a Mola mola. [73] [74]
As for length, the longest extant bony fish on earth is the giant oarfish (Regalecus glesne). Slender and compressed, it averages over 6 m (20 ft) long at maturity. A specimen caught in 1885 of 7.6 m (25 ft) in length weighed 275 kg (606 lb). The longest known example, which was hit by a steamship, was measured as 13.7 m (45 ft) long. [4]
Much larger bony fish existed prehistorically, the largest ever known having been Leedsichthys of the Jurassic period. This species is certainly the largest bony fish ever and perhaps the largest non-cetacean marine animal to have ever existed. Estimates of the size of this fish range from 21 to 27 m (69 to 89 ft) and mass from 20 to 50 tons. A maximum size of 22 m (72 ft) and 25–30 tons has been deemed to be most realistic. [75]
The largest living lobe-finned fish is the coelacanth. The average weight of the living West Indian Ocean coelacanth, (Latimeria chalumnae), is 80 kg (180 lb), and they can reach up to 2 m (6.6 ft) in length. Specimens can weigh up to 110 kg (240 lb). The largest lobe-finned fish of all time was Rhizodus at up to 7 m (23 ft). [149]
The blue shark, also known as the great blue shark, is a species of requiem shark, in the family Carcharhinidae, which inhabits deep waters in the world's temperate and tropical oceans. Averaging around 3.1 m (10 ft) and preferring cooler waters, the blue shark migrates long distances, such as from New England to South America. It is listed as Near Threatened by the IUCN.
The ocean sunfish or common mola is one of the largest bony fish in the world. It was misidentified as the heaviest bony fish, which was actually a different species, Mola alexandrini. Adults typically weigh between 247 and 1,000 kg. The species belongs to the Mola genus, one of three in the Molidae family. It is native to tropical and temperate waters around the world. It resembles a fish head without a tail, and its main body is flattened laterally. Sunfish can be as tall as they are long when their dorsal and ventral fins are extended.
The Pacific sleeper shark is a sleeper shark of the family Somniosidae, found in the North Pacific on continental shelves and slopes in Arctic and temperate waters between latitudes 70°N and 22°N and in at least two places in the western tropical Pacific near Palau and the Solomon Islands, from the surface to 2,000 metres (6,600 ft) deep. The first evidence of the sharks in the western tropical Pacific emerged from a National Geographic video taken near the Solomon Islands in 2015. Its length is up to 4.4 m (14 ft), although it could possibly reach lengths in excess of 7 m (23 ft).
The spotted moray is a medium to large moray eel. Other common names include conger, spotted eel, red moray, speckled moray, white cong, white jawed moray, white-chinned moray and white-jawed moray eel. Spotted eels have a long snake-like body, white or pale yellow in general with small overlapping reddish brown to dark-brown spots. They are commonly 60 cm (24 in) in length and can grow up to 2 m (6.6 ft), weighing 2.51 kg (5.5 lb). They inhabit the Western Atlantic Ocean from North Carolina and Bermuda to Brazil, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. They are also found around the Mid- and Eastern Atlantic islands as far south as St Helena. They are typically found anywhere from the surface to a depth of 200 m (660 ft).
The iridescent shark,iridescent shark catfish is a species of shark catfish native to the rivers of Southeast Asia. Despite its name, it is not a shark. It is found in the Mekong basin as well as the Chao Phraya River, and is heavily cultivated for food there.
The shortfin mako shark, also known as the shortfin mako, blue pointer, or bonito shark, is a large mackerel shark. It is commonly referred to as the mako shark, as is the longfin mako shark. The shortfin mako can reach a size of 4 m (13 ft) in length and weigh 570 kg (1,260 lb). The species is classified as Endangered by the IUCN.
The Mekong giant catfish, is a large, threatened species of catfish in the shark catfish family (Pangasiidae), native to the Mekong basin in Southeast Asia and adjacent China. It is considered critically endangered due to overfishing and habitat loss.
Hippoglossus stenolepis, the Pacific halibut, is a species of righteye flounder. This very large species of flatfish is native to the North Pacific and is fished by commercial fisheries, sport fishers, and subsistence fishers.
The giant freshwater stingray is a species of stingray in the family Dasyatidae. It is found in large rivers and estuaries in Southeast Asia and Borneo, though historically it may have been more widely distributed in South and Southeast Asia. The largest freshwater fish and the largest stingray in the world, this species grows up to 2.2 m (7.2 ft) across and can reach up to 300 kg (660 lb) in weight. It has a relatively thin, oval pectoral fin disc that is widest anteriorly, and a sharply pointed snout with a protruding tip. Its tail is thin and whip-like, and lacks fin folds. This species is uniformly grayish brown above and white below; the underside of the pectoral and pelvic fins bear distinctive wide, dark bands on their posterior margins.
The European conger is a species of conger of the family Congridae. It is the heaviest eel in the world and native to the northeast Atlantic, including the Mediterranean Sea.
Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order Anguilliformes, which consists of eight suborders, 20 families, 164 genera, and about 1000 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the early larval stage to the eventual adult stage and are usually predators.
The largest prehistoric animals include both vertebrate and invertebrate species. Many of them are described below, along with their typical range of size. Many species mentioned might not actually be the largest representative of their clade due to the incompleteness of the fossil record and many of the sizes given are merely estimates since no complete specimen have been found. Their body mass, especially, is largely conjecture because soft tissue was rarely fossilized. Generally the size of extinct species was subject to energetic and biomechanical constraints.
The largest animal currently alive is the blue whale. The maximum recorded weight was 190 tonnes for a specimen measuring 27.6 metres (91 ft), whereas longer ones, up to 33.6 metres (110 ft), have been recorded but not weighed. It is estimated, this individual could have a mass of 250 tonnes or more. The longest non-colonial animal is the lion's mane jellyfish.
Hydrolycus armatus is a species of dogtooth characin found in freshwater of tropical South America. It is sometimes known as the payara, a name it shares with the related H. scomberoides.
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