(Image credit: Asif Hassan/AFP/Getty Images)

Big catch is an understatement!

A 40-foot long whale shark was found dead near Karachi, Pakistan, the Express Tribune, a Pakistani newspaper reports. Mehmood Khan, the owner of the Charai Fishery, said the whale shark was spotted unconscious 10 days ago in waters about 150 kilometers (93 miles) from the fishery.

Curious onlookers swarmed the pier while two cranes attempted to lift the shark, approximately 40 to 50-feet long and six-feet wide, out of the water. After failing to reel in the fish, more cranes, capable of lifting heavier weights, were called in for the task. The shark was finally lifted from the sea after several hours of efforts and sold for 1.7 million Rupees ($18,750).

The whale shark is found deep in warm oceans and munches primarily on plankton. The largest confirmed whale shark was 41 ft long.

                                                                      (Image credit: Asif Hassan/AFP/Getty Images)

                                                                     (Image credit: Asif Hassan/AFP/Getty Images)

                                                                       (Image credit: Asif Hassan/AFP/Getty Images)