What is difference between shark and whale?
Matthew Underwood
Updated on May 24, 2026
Similarly, you may ask, which is bigger shark or whale?
The largest living mammal species in the world is the blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus), reaching some 33.5 m (110 ft) and weighing a staggering 150 tonnes. Conversely, whale sharks attain a maximum length of about 21m (68 ft) and can weigh an impressive, but paltry by comparison, 36 tonnes or so.
Additionally, is shark and blue whale same? Unlike whales, sharks are not mammals but belong to a group of cartilaginous fishes. Just as the blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) is the largest living mammal*, the whale shark is the largest species of any fish, known to reach more than 40 feet in length.
Consequently, what are the similarities and differences of sharks and whales?
Other traits that they share include filter-feeding frenzies; whales mostly eat krill, while Whale Sharks eat krill and other plankton as well as fish eggs and small fishes. They both live for quite a long time; sharks can live to be 50 and even 100 years old, while whales can live 60 to one-hundred years.
What killed the Megalodon?
We know that megalodon had become extinct by the end of the Pliocene (2.6 million years ago), when the planet entered a phase of global cooling. It may also have resulted in the megalodon's prey either going extinct or adapting to the cooler waters and moving to where the sharks could not follow.
Related Question Answers
What is the biggest shark that ever lived?
Carcharocles megalodonHas a whale shark ever eaten a human?
A whale shark has never eaten a person Whale sharks rarely even notice humans, let alone eat us. They don't eat anything larger than small fish. While they do have 300 rows of teeth in their giant mouths, whale sharks don't use them for eating. Whale sharks are filter feeders, like baleen whales.Do Megalodons still exist?
Megalodon is NOT alive today, it went extinct around 3.5 million years ago. Go to the Megalodon Shark Page to learn the real facts about the largest shark to ever live, including the actual research about it's extinction.What is the heaviest fish in the world?
Largest extant fish| Rank | Animal | Known maximum mass [tonnes] |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Whale shark | 21.5 |
| 2 | Basking shark | 5.2 (16 unconfirmed) |
| 3 | Great white shark | 3.324 |
| 4 | Tiger shark | 3.11 |