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Largest Sharks

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Who are the biggest sharks in the sea?

From massive plankton-eating sharks the size of a school bus, to the most feared predatory sharks in the sea, we countdown the largest sharks in the ocean. Its not just about the total length of the shark, its also about how bulky a shark is. You may be surprised to learn that the biggest sharks are harmless, such as the mighty Whale Shark! Lets take a look at 10 of the largest sharks alive today.

Top 10 Largest Sharks

The term "largest sharks" can mean two different things: the longest length, or the biggest overall size. For example, a Thresher shark would be considered one of the longest sharks due to its extremely long tail, but it would be unfair to list it as "larger" than the overall size of a Bull Shark.

As a result, this list of largest sharks is not based on the scientifically recorded length of a shark. Instead, it is based on what you would think of when you think "big sharks!"

  • 1Whale Shark
  • 2Basking Shark
  • 3Great White Shark
  • 4Greenland Shark
  • 5Tiger Shark
  • 6Megamouth Shark
  • 7Great Hammerhead Shark
  • 8Bull Shark
  • 9Sand Tiger Shark
  • 10Mako Shark

Whale Shark

Rhincodon typus

Whale shark is the worlds largest sharkThe Whale Shark, Rhincodon typus, is not only the largest shark but it is also the largest fish in the ocean today. Luckily this massive shark is a filter feeder and feeds on plankton and tiny fish! Whale sharks swim close to the ocean's surface with their enormous mouths wide open to collect these tiny organisms. It is pretty amazing that a shark the size of a school bus is also one of the friendliest fish in the sea.

Length: Up to 40 feet (maybe more)
Weight: Up to 20 tons

The Whale Shark

is the largest fish in the sea!

However, the Whale shark only feeds on microscopic organisms.

Basking Shark

Cetorhinus maximus

Large Basking SharkThe Basking shark, Cetorhinus maximus, is the second largest shark and second biggest fish in the ocean. Like the Whale shark, the Basking shark is another filter feeder that also feeds on microscopic organisms such as plankton and zooplankton. The Basking shark can be seen cruising through coastal waters at the ocean's surface with its massive jaws wide open.

Length: 30 feet or more
Weight: 5 tons

The 2 Largest Sharks

are harmless filter feeders that eat microscopic organisms!

Great White Shark

Carcharodon carcharias

Great White SharkThe Great White shark, Carcharodon carcharias, is the most feared predator in the ocean as well as one of the biggest sharks alive today. While Great Whites might be infamous for their role in the movie "Jaws," they are nowhere close to the monsters they are commonly portrayed as.

In fact, Monterey Bay Aquarium's Great White Shark Exhibit allows people to see Great White sharks for what they really are; beautiful animals that just so happen to be the top predators in the ocean. You can watch the Great White peacefully coexist with its tankmates.

Length: Up to 20 feet (sometimes reported even longer)
Weight: 5,000 lbs (2.5 tons)

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Greenland Shark

Somniosus microcephalus

Greenland SharkThe Greenland shark, Somniosus microcephalus, is a coldwater shark also known as the "Sleeper Shark" due to its sometimes motionless behavior. This shark can be found in the deep artic waters unlike any other common shark.

The Greenland shark has a symbiotic relationship with a parasitic copepod that eats away at the shark's eye tissue. However, the parasitic copepod is bioluminescent which attracts animals that the shark can feed on; its almost like a fishing lure!

Length: 15 feet
Weight: 2,000 lbs

Tiger Shark

Galeocerdo cuvier

Tiger SharkThe Tiger Shark is named after its stripes along its body and is known for its large variety diet and unique set of teeth that are designed to rip through the toughest of all turtleshells. The scavenging Tiger Shark has been found with all sorts of items in its stomach including license plates and other manmade objects. This tropical shark is threatened like many other species of sharks.

Length: Up to 15 feet
Weight: Up to 1,500 lbs

Megamouth Shark

Megachasma pelagios

Megamouth SharkThe Megamouth shark, Megachasma pelagios, gets its name from the large mouth. The Megamouth shark is the 3rd largest filter-feeding shark behind the Whale shark and Basking shark. However, the Megamouth shark is extremely rare with a limited number of sightings since its initial discovery in 1976.

Length: Up to 15 feet
Weight: Up to 2,000 lbs

Great Hammerhead Shark

Sphyrna mokarran

Great Hammerhead SharkThe Great Hammerhead shark, Sphyrna mokarran, is the biggest of all hammerhead species (Smooth Hammerhead, Bonnet Hammerhead, etc). The Hammerhead gets its name from its hammer-shaped head which serves a very important purpose.

The hammerhead shaped head maximizes the surface area of sensory organs known as the Ampullae of Lorenzini which provide a sixth sense to sharks: detection of electrical pulses!

A hammerhead scans its oddly shaped head back and forth over the seafloor like you would scan a metal detector back and forth over the sand. The Ampullae of Lorenzini will pick up the small electrical pulses of an animal hiding underneath the sand for a quick meal. It is also hypothesized that these features help the hammerhead migrate using the earth's magnetic field!

Length: 10-15 feet or more
Weight: Over 500 lbs

Bull Shark

Carcharhinus leucas

Bull SharkThe Bull Shark, Carcharhinus leucas, may not be one of the longest sharks, but it would be unfair not to call the Bull Shark one of the largest sharks. Known as one of the most aggressive sharks in the ocean, the Bull shark is responsible for a high percentage of attacks on humans. Some scientists consider the Bull shark more dangerous than the Great White due to its aggression.

The Bull shark has an extremely unique characteristic that allows it to survive temporarily in feshwater. See Bull Sharks in Rivers for more info.

Length: Up to 12 ft
Weight: Up to 500 lbs

Bull Sharks can temporarily survive in freshwater!

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Sand Tiger Shark

Carcharias taurus

Sand Tiger SharkThe Sand Tiger Shark, Carcharias taurus, is a relatively calm mannered shark despite its ferocious appearance. Its mouthful of sharp dagger-like teeth have earned this shark the nickname "Ragged Tooth Shark." Those long and sharp teeth act like a fork to capture fish. The combination of its scary appearance and calm behavior make the Sand Tiger Shark a popular species for public aquariums.

Length: Up to 10 feet
Weight: Up to 400 lbs

Mako Shark

Isurus oxyrinchus

Mako SharkThe Mako Shark, Isurus oxyrinchus, is the fastest shark as it can maintain a constant speed of over 20 miles per hour with short bursts of over 40 mph! The speed and agility of the Mako shark make it a popular game shark as fishermen have reported the Mako shark jumping over 20 feet in the air out of the water.

Length: 8-12 feet
Weight: 1,000 lbs

The Largest Shark in History

Carcharodon megalodon

Carcharodon megalodon vs Great White Shark

In the visual comparison above, the Great White shark is represented in green versus Carcharodon megalodon represented in red (and of course a human being is represented in blue). You can see how massive of a shark Megalodon was before it went extinct several million years ago. Megalodon is the largest shark to ever live!

Carcharodon megalodon was a prehistoric shark that is estimated to have reached lengths of up to 60 feet or more and weigh up to 50 tons! The body size is estimated based on the size of fossil jaws and teeth (teeth up to 7 inches long!) that have been discovered. Using jaw to body ratios of similar species of sharks, scientists have come up with estimates of up to 80 feet or more! Although 60 feet is a more conservative number.

Scientists debate as to whether or not Megalodon is the ancestor of the Great White sharks that swim in the world's oceans today. Is Carcharodon megalodon still alive?

What do you think about the largest sharks in the ocean?

  • BryanLSC Mar 17, 2012 @ 12:23 pm | delete
    Isn't Greenland sharks larger than a Great White?
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