World’s Biggest Shark Ever Captured: 40-Feet Long

World’s Biggest Shark Ever Captured: 40-Feet Long in Karachi Pakistan. 

We’ve all heard our share of fish tales, but a few lucky fishermen in Karachi Fish Harbour can now take pride with the fact that the captured the biggest shark in the world! The gigantic was captured on February 7th, 2012, it was 40 feet long and it belongs to a special species of sharks called wale sharks.
Now in all fairness, the fishermen weren’t really all that skilled in fishing to be able to make such a capture, but it’s still one that’s gonna be remembered for a long time. The shark died of unknown causes and it washed ashore, where it gave local Pakistani authorities quite a struggle when it came to getting it out of water. The giant wale shark was so heavy that it had to be lifted out of the water with the aid of two cranes.

Apparently, the shark had been spotted 10 days prior to its washout, drifting unconscious 150 kn off shore, and the causes of its death are still unknown, but scientists have taken samples in hope to discover what killed this giant. The corpse of the dead shark were sold for the amazing sum of 1700 rupees (17,500 Dollars).

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Now, before you get scared and panic that one of these amazing creatures might catch you off guard while you’re enjoying a swim in the ocean, you should know that they’re not called wale sharks simply because they’re enormous. This species of sharks live in tropical waters and despite their scarry apearance and size, the only feed on plankton and occasionally, some small fish.

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The last documented length for a wale shark was 12 feet long, but it is indeed obvious that they can reach grater lengths. Not only do these gentle creatures do not pose any threat to humans, but they’ve actually been known to be quite friendly, and allow divers to swim on their backs. So you shouldn’t find it scary that wale sharks have a mouth that is 5 feet wide and it is fully equipped with up to 350 rows of tiny teeth.

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The person who bought the great giant is a local business man named Haji Qasim, and he declared that: “I have bought the fish, which usually has no significant commercial value, with the help of my friends just to appreciate the efforts of the fishermen who deserve some reward after spending an entire day in the open sea”.

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If you want to see how the local Pakistani authorities fished the giant shark from the water, have a look at the video below.

So we’ve established that this big fellow is the largest shark ever caught, but how big were the previous record holders. Here’s a list of some off the biggest sharks ever caught.

1. 700 lbs Bull Shark

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This big and scarry fellow over here is the biggest bull shark in the world, caught so far. She’s actually a pregnant female, four metres long and weighing almost half a ton. This awesome creature was found 5.5 kms up the Breede River, tagged for follow-up and released back into the wild.

2. World’s largest Shortfin Mako Shark (1,221 lbs)

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This amazing creature is certified as the world’s largest shortfin mako shark (Isurus oxyrinchus). This is a man eating species, and this particular specimen weighted 1,221 pounds when it was captured and killed in 2001.

3. World’s largest Hammerhead Shark (1,280 lbs)

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A man named Clyde “Bucky” Dennis decided that he wants to capture a shark worth being mentioned in the records. The funny thing is that he actually did it, he managed to fish out of the ocean, the world’s largest Hammerhead Shark which was 14 feet long and weighed 1,2280 pounds.

4. World’s largest Sixgilled Shark (1,298 lbs)

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5. World’s Largest Great White (2,664 lb)

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This is the world’s largest great white ever captured. The record was established on April 21, 1959. The tenacious fisherman was named Alf Dean, and he caught the 2,664 pound great white shark off the coast of Ceduna, Australia. No other larger great white has ever been caught since.