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The whale shark is a animate being of many mysteries . Now , researchers hope to do a few by sequence the terminated genome of the globe ’s bombastic Pisces .
Researchers at Emory University and the Georgia Aquarium are working to make a thoroughgoing library of whale shark DNA , sequence the genomes of the fish tank ’s enwrapped shark , which issue forth from Taiwan , and compare them with wildwhale shark in Mexico .
The whale shark’s mouth can be up to 5 feet (1.5 m) wide, lots of room for scooping up ocean snacks.
" map out the genome is like an encyclopedia of animation — it gives scientist the power to take questions , " report leader Tim Read of Emory enunciate in a statement . " In the architecture of the genome , it ’s a bit like archeology . We can see the history of the whale shark in its tissue . "
Thegenome sequencing projectwill take month to complete , but when it ’s done , researchers hope it will help them answer interrogative about the whale sharks’little - understood modus vivendi . No one knows , for example , what factor are responsible for for the whale shark ’s enormous size of it , which can top out at 40 feet ( 12 meters ) long . The study may also aid researchers understand where the giant filter feeders fit into the entire family of sharks , according to the Georgia Aquarium .
In increase to sequence the animal ’s genome , other grouping of scientist hope to examine some singular behaviors to find answers to whale - shark questions . Anodd feed frenzyin the water off the Yucatan Peninsula has long puzzle marine scientists . Every year for the preceding few years , the blue , plankton - plenteous waters have become an all - you - can - eat harbor for 100 of giant whale sharks , an annual event do it as " afuera . "
notice there have already shed visible radiation on the shark ' eating habits : The afuera occurs where a type of tuna called the small tunny spawns . The whale shark scoop up the eggs that rise to the water ’s surface , researcher say .
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