The Biggest Great White Shark - Largest Predatory Fish in the Ocean

The great white shark is fabled for its enormous size and deadly killing ability. While it isn't the largest member of the shark family, it is the most massive predatory fish in the entirety of the Earth's oceans, which means it is always a force to be reckoned with. There have been many reports of huge great whites, with some people claiming sizes up to 25 feet long. This would be a truly massive beast, but there are no verified specimens of this size.

While the great white is the largest predator fish, there are a few other sharks that approach its size. The great hammerhead shark may actually surpass the great white in overall length, but it is significantly lighter than the great white and shorter on average - its average length is about 11.5 feet long, although there have been significantly larger specimens. The Greenland shark may also reach greater lengths, at about 24 feet long, but it is only capable of reaching about one-third the weight of the great white shark.

The enormous length-to-size ratio of the great white really cements its status as the biggest and most powerful predator shark in the ocean. The only species known to habitually hunt great whites is the orca, which is a very large member of the dolphin family. Great whites possess enormous strength and power, allowing them to hunt very large prey and take several pounds of meat in a single bite.

So how heavy was the biggest great white? Well, according to my sources it weighed in at about 7,330 pounds and had a length of 21ft. While there have been several sharks of this length caught, this is by far the most massive. It seems to indicate that the upper limit for a great white's length is about 23 feet long, after which point it will continue to grow in size but will not gain any more length. This claim, however, is not scientifically verified.

While the great white shark is the largest extant predatory fish in the ocean, the true size crown belongs to the megalodon. This enormous fish could reach lengths of up to sixty feet long, making it not only the largest fish, but also the largest predatory fish. Most scientists agree that it hunted large marine mammals, including whales.

Source:
Stuart Bowling, "The Great White Shark." Great White