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Basking shark



Basking shark (Cetorhinus maximus), one of the largest living sharks, reaching a length of 45 ft (14 m). Found chiefly in temperate waters, the basking shark feeds only on plankton. The liver, a valuable source of oil, may account for a tenth of the total weight of the fish and provides the buoyancy that enables the shark to bask, motionless, on the surface.



See also: Shark.

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21st Century Webster's Family Encyclopedia21st Century Webster's Family Encyclopedia - Barley to Bellows, George Wesley