Rare shark catch a boon to conservation research

What a whopper: An official measuring the giant basking shark that was accidentally picked up by a fishing trawler in the Bass Strait off mainland Australia’s most south-eastern point. — AFP

MELBOURNE: Fishermen off Australia who accidentally caught a whopping 6.3m basking shark have provided scientists with a rare opportunity to study the second-biggest fish on the planet.

Little is known about the species – smaller only than the whale shark – because it does not need to surface for air to survive and so is not often spotted.