Warning

This information was published in 1966 in An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand, edited by A. H. McLintock. It has not been corrected and will not be updated.

Up-to-date information can be found elsewhere in Te Ara.

SHARK, BASKING

The basking shark, (Cetorhinus maximus), or reremai of the Maoris, is our largest shark, but it is quite harmless, for its teeth are blunt and only ¼ in. in length. Its food consists of small fishes and crustaceans. This shark attains a length of over 30 ft and its most distinctive feature is the extremely long gill slits, which almost sever the head. The reremai occurs both in New Zealand and in Australia.

by Arthur William Baden Powell, Assistant Director, Auckland Institute and Museum.

Co-creator

Arthur William Baden Powell, Assistant Director, Auckland Institute and Museum.