Exhibition hall: Diversity of Life The Largest Basking Shark Specimen in Japan Display Location: The Biodiversity Room This specimen was caught off of Waita, Wakamatsu Ward, Kitakyushu on 12 March 1993. Basking sharks are docile plankton feeders and the second largest fish in the world. This 8.3 meter specimen is the largest in Japan and the second largest in the world. Though once common, their numbers have been decreasing in recent years.