Whale sharks do have teeth in their mouth, but they are not used for chewing or biting like the teeth of other sharks. Unlike the sharp, pointed teeth of predatory sharks, the teeth of a whale shark are very small and numerous. In fact, they are so tiny that they are almost invisible to the naked eye.
Whale sharks are filter feeders, which means they primarily eat small organisms like plankton, fish eggs, and shrimp. Their diet consists of tiny prey that cannot be caught by biting or chewing. Instead, whale sharks have adapted to feed by using their gill rakers as a suction filter.
Gill rakers are long, slender structures located inside the gills of the whale shark. They are made up of numerous thin filaments that form a sieve-like structure. As the whale shark swims with its mouth open, water enters through the large gill slits and passes over the gill rakers.
The tiny teeth of the whale shark play a vital role in this process. They act as a mesh or net, allowing only small particles of food to pass through while preventing larger items from entering the throat. This filtering mechanism ensures that the whale shark only consumes the small prey it intends to eat.
The design of the gill rakers and the small teeth of the whale shark enable it to effectively filter large volumes of water. It can open its mouth wide, stretching up to four feet in width, to create a powerful suction force. This allows the water to flow into its mouth and over the gill rakers, where the small prey gets trapped and is then swallowed.
The teeth of a whale shark are not used for tearing or chewing food like the teeth of carnivorous sharks. Instead, they serve a crucial role in the filtration process, ensuring that only the appropriate-sized prey is consumed.
While whale sharks do have teeth in their mouth, these teeth are tiny and not used for biting or tearing prey. The teeth, along with the gill rakers, are essential for the whale shark’s feeding strategy as they enable it to filter and consume small shrimp, fish, and plankton.