How big do whale sharks get and what do they eat?

The answer

Whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) are the largest fish in the ocean, reaching confirmed lengths of over 40 feet (12 meters) with unconfirmed reports of individuals up to 60 feet (18 meters). Despite their enormous size, they are filter feeders that consume plankton, fish eggs, small fish, and krill by swimming with their massive mouths open and filtering water through their gill rakers. A whale shark can filter over 6,000 liters of water per hour. They are remarkably long-lived, with recent studies using carbon-14 dating from nuclear bomb testing suggesting lifespans of 100 to 150 years. Their distinctive spotted pattern is unique to each individual, like a fingerprint, which researchers use for photo identification.