Fishes of the Western North Atlantic 189 



Cetorhinus Poey, An. Soc. csp. Hist. n.it., 5, 1876: 184 (380) ; for C. maximus Poey (Cuba), which equals 



Rhincodon tyfus Smith, 1829; not Cetorhinus Blainville, 1816. 

 5«/(j^/i« Thomas, Cannibals and Convicts West Pacif., 1887: 38; ior S . maxima Thoma.$ (New Guinea), which 



equals Rhincodon tyfus Smith, 1829; not Selache Cuvier, 1817. 



Generic Characters. Those of the family (p. 187). 



Range. Tropical belts of all oceans. 



Species. One species only, R. typus Smith, 1829. 



Rhincodon typus Smith, 1829 



Whale Shark 



Figure 30 



Study Material. Excellent mounted specimen, 17 feet 4^4 inches long, from Aca- 

 pulco, Mexico (Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist.) j dried skin and dental plates of 18-foot specimen 

 from Ormond, Florida (U.S.Nat. Mus., No. 27618)5 also photographs of a newly caught 

 Cuban specimen from Luis Howell-Rivero. 



Distinctive Characters. Distinguished from all other sharks by its enormous size, 

 spotted color pattern, lunate tail, very wide gill openings, unique gill apparatus (see p. 

 188), and mouth at tip of snout. 



Description. Proportional dimensions in per cent of total length from mounted speci- 

 men; female, 5,302 mm. (17 ft. 4% in.) from Acapulco, west coast of Mexico (Amer. 

 Mus. Nat. Hist., New York). 



Trunk at origin of pectoral: breadth 18.5; height 14.2. 



Snout length in front of: outer nostrils l.O ; mouth 0.5. 



Eye: horizontal diameter 0.5. 



Mouth :hr&'a.dth. 16.3; height O. 



Nostrils: distance between inner ends 10.8. 



Gill opening lengths: ist 8.8; 2nd 9.3; 3rd 8.9; 4th 8.0; 5th 6.6. 



First dorsal fin: vertical height 6.9; length of base 8.5. 



Second dorsal fin: vertical height 2.8 ; length of base 3.2. 



Anal fin: vertical height 2.7; length of base 2.7. 



Caudal fin: upper margin 26.4; lower anterior margin 1 1.8. 



Pectoral fin: outer margin 15.9; inner margin 4.4; distal margin 14.4. 



Distance from snout to: ist dorsal 39.7; 2nd dorsal 62.1 ; upper caudal 73.6; pec- 

 toral 18.O; pelvics 46. 1; anal 63.O. 



Interspace between: ist and 2nd dorsals 13.9; 2nd dorsal and caudal 8.3; anal and 



caudal lo.o. 



Distance from origin to origin of: pectoral and pelvics 28.3 ; pelvics and anal 16.8. 



Trunk moderately stout, each side with 2 prominent dermal ridges originating close 

 together high on the shoulders, the lower one extending backward the whole length of 

 trunk and as a keel out onto anterior part of caudal, the upper one dividing anterior to the 



