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Is this the world's biggest shark steak?
Last updated at 16:22pm on 22.03.07It's no longer a secret how five loaves and two fish managed to feed the five thousand - especially if the sea-dwelling delicacies in question were as big as this mammoth fish.
A crowd watches as the fishermen cut the giant whale shark into pieces
More likely to eat than be eaten, this giant whale shark was caught off the coast of China by hardcore fishermen who managed to harness the ten-metre, eight-tonne whopper.
Whale sharks are the world's largest living fish
Whale sharks are the world's largest living fish, it is estimated that they can reach an 18 metre length. They live in warm water along the coast and open seas and spend most of their time near the surface.
The prize whale shark's hefty load took over an hour to be hoisted in an industrial crane back on to dry land, where it was sliced into relatively smaller pieces for fish-lovers everywhere to enjoy.
Reader views (14)
Untill more is learned about this rare fish,we best study them before we harvest them to eat them. Regards this particular fish,I hope the biologists were invited to study it as it was being cut up for food.
- Joe Hughes, Birmingham,Al.--USA
You can walk to the store to get anything you like. You think these people eat like you do? These are not the rich businessmen who eat shark fin soup, let alone that even being the same type of shark, so that point is irrelevant, and these people did not kill the shark to remove a threat or get a trophy. These are fishermen in poor villages. What is more important? Feeding your entire village for a month or more or killing one fish? Yes, it is endangered, I would like to see more of these magnificent fish in the wild, but the fact is, the life of an animal should not be placed over a person. Try to see this event from the eyes of someone who does not have it as easy as you do.
Professional Culinarian and Anthropologist
- Br, WA, USA
Absolutely horrendous! I bet these men were proud of this terrible crime. A peaceful endangered creature that feeds on plankton. Horrific!
- Scott Fischer, Chicago, IL
Unbelievable! Those people and the fishermen should be arrested for killing this gentle giant. They are an endangered species. How long did it take for this whale shark to grow to this size? They should catch smaller fish that will replace themselves in a couple of years. There should be a world-wide ban on killing whale sharks, as well as banning shark finning.
- Suz, California, USA
The shark fin trade that feeds the Oriental market results in some 75,000,000 sharks being killed annually. This can only destabilise marine ecosystems.
Celebrating the ignorance and myopia of fishermen who slaughter an animal listed on the IUCN Red List as Vulnerable to Extinction is hardly - if the pun be allowed - cutting edge journalism.
- Jsd, London, UK
This is disgusting. These gentle creatures harm no one because they feed on plankton. They are rare, endangered, and may soon be extinct.
- Al Thompson, Mason, Texas
Awesome! I'd love to know how they cooked such a huge piece of meat.
- Paul, London
Please everybody reading this article don't just let it be another sad story. Without everybodies voice being heard, without action nothing will change.
- Julie Page, Utila, Honduras
Yet another example of how sophisticated and evolved we are.
- Trevor Roll, London
This is a shameful event - whale sharks are very rare and as plankton eaters are not going to eat anyone. They were the first shark species to be protected by CITES back in 2002 due to a huge population decline.
- John, London
This is such a sad sight. It makes me sick to think of such an amazing creature, of which there are so few, being caught and cut-up like this. Need a greater call to action for banning shark + whale fishing worldwide.
- Jimmy, Glasgow, Scotland
The picture of the fish being cut up turned my stomach. What a predatory species we are who have no thought for creatures living in the sea other than how they can be used and eaten by us. What a sad sight!
- Paul Wilson, London, UK
This event should not be celebrated - it's prized as a gastronomic treat because there are so few of these creatures left alive today (whale shark global population status is listed as vulnerable by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature) so to see this incredible creator end up on somebody's plate is wrong.
- Fly, London
It is a disgrace that such a magnificent and gentle creature was killed.
- Naomi, Manchester
