All About Whales

What do you know about whales? Here are some facts about these majestic creatures that you might be surprised to learn.

Whales are large animals that live in oceans and seas all over the world. Whales may look like fish, but they are mammals, meaning that they breathe air and produce milk for their young. Whales are part of an order, or large group of animals, called Cetacea (which also includes dolphins and porpoises). There are two basic kinds of whale: baleen and toothed.

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Whales make many sounds – including whistles, barks, and screams – to communicate with other whales. Toothed whales also make special sounds to locate objects they cannot see. These sounds bounce off solid surfaces and travel back to the whale's sensitive ears. This process is called echolocation. Listen to some whale songs here!

Baleen Whales versus Toothed Whales    

Instead of having teeth, baleen whales have blade-shaped plates hanging from the roof of their mouth. These plates are called baleen. The baleen have bristles on the inside that collect and trap food as the whale feeds, either by swimming with its mouth open or by gulping water. The baleen filters out water but keeps the food, which includes small fish, shrimps, and other creatures.

As you might guess, toothed whales have sharp teeth and catch their food by actively hunting fish and other sea creatures.

Types of Baleen Whales

Blue whales: The largest creature to have ever lived on Earth, the blue whale can grow to be 98 feet long and live to be 80-90 years old. The blue whale is a mottled gray-blue color, with lighter coloring on the underside of its body. Despite its huge size, it eats mostly krill (small shrimp-like crustaceans that are about 3.5 cm long, about the size of an ordinary paper clip!).

Blue whale

Humpback whales: Humpback whales grow to a length of 46-56 feet. They eat mostly krill and small fish, and migrate up to 9,900 miles each year. Humpbacks are a dark gray to black color on top, and whitish underneath. They have distinctive ridges running from the tip of their lower jaw to their navels and have bumps on their heads.

Humpback whale

Right whales: Right whales are migratory baleen whales that tend to stay close to coastlines and feed mostly on copepods (small crustaceans), but also eat krill. Right whales grow to lengths between 43 and 56 feet. Right whales generally have black skin with white patches and a higher proportion of blubber than other whale species, causing them to float.

Right whale

Types of Toothed Whales

Sperm whales: Sperm whales are the largest type of toothed whale, growing to an average length of 52 feet for males and 36 feet for females. The sperm whale has a large blocky head and wrinkly skin. Its blowhole is shifted to the left of the whale's head, which is unusual. Sperm whales mainly eat squid, but also eat octopus, sharks, and other species of fish.

Sperm whale

Narwhals: Narwhals live in the arctic. The males have a distinctive long tusk protruding from their heads, thought to be used as a weapon or tool for feeding. Narwhals grow to lengths of anywhere from 9.8 to 18 feet, and eat mostly fish, particularly cod, and squid. Narwhals make sounds-like clicks, whistles, and knocks-to navigate and hunt for food.

Narwhals

Orcas: Also known as killer whales, orcas are actually the largest of the dolphins. They are highly recognizable because of their black-and-white patterned body. Orcas are highly social and are apex predators (a predator at the top of a food chain that is not preyed upon by any other animal), feeding on fish, sharks, rays, and seals.

Orcas