VietNamNet Bridge – Fishermen in the southern province of Kien Giang on November 12 caught a big fish in a net.

As the fish was much bigger than usual, fishermen were very confused. They pulled it to a wharf in Ha Tien town. The case was reported to relevant agencies.

Experts examined the fish and confirmed that it was a whale shark (Rhincodon typus), which is 4.7m long, 2m belly diameter and nearly two tons in weight. The fish died before it was brought to the shore.

Kien Giang’s fishermen caught a whale shark in 2006 but it was only a ton in weight.

Kien Giang authorities met to seek solutions to deal with the fish in the way that doesn’t harm the environment.

In August 2010, a fishing boat in the central province of Binh Dinh caught a whale shark weighing over a ton.

In September 2010, a fishing boat in Bac Lieu province caught a 4-ton whale shark in a net.

The whale shark is a slow-moving filter feeding shark, the largest living fish species. The largest confirmed individual was 12.65 meters in length. The heaviest weighed more than 36 tons but unconfirmed claims report considerably larger whale sharks.

This distinctively-marked fish is the only member of its genus Rhincodon and its family, Rhincodontidae, which belongs to the subclass Elasmobranchii in the class Chondrichthyes. The shark is found in tropical and warm oceans, lives in the open sea with a lifespan of about 70 years.

Although whale sharks have very large mouths, they feed mainly, though not exclusively, on plankton, microscopic plants and animals.

Anh Minh