| explanatory text | The normal size for males is 3.5 to 4 meters long, and 4 to 4.5 meters long for females, but there are also larger individuals that exceed 6 meters in length. Since its muscles contain a vascular network of arteries and veins known as a "rete mirabile", its body temperature can be kept higher than that of the water. So, the temperature of its stomach is maintained at 10 to 14℃, even in cold water. Its gestation period is from 15 to 18 months long, and from May to August it gives birth to 1.2 to 1.6 meter long larval fish. In the waters near Japan, births take place from Wakayama Prefecture on the Pacific coast of the Ryukyu Islands in spring. The total length of the taxidermy specimen exhibited at this museum is 3.5 meters.
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