![]() Because of this yellow color, the early whalers gave it the name "sulfur bottom." Fins and Fluke The blue whale acquires microorganisms called diatoms in the cold waters of the Antarctic and North Pacific and North Atlantic which give the underside of its body a yellowish green caste. The underside of its flippers may be a lighter color or white, while the ventral (underside) of the fluke is dark. The blue whale is blue-gray in color, but often with lighter gray mottling on a darker background (or with darker spots on a lighter background). There are 55-68 ventral grooves or pleats extending from the lower jaw to near the navel. Its body is smooth and relatively free of parasites, but a few barnacles attach themselves to the edge of the fluke and occasionally to the tips of the flippers and to the dorsal fin. Its blowholes are contained in a large, raised "splash guard", and the blow is tall and straight and over 20 feet (6 meters) high. Its rostrum (upper part of the head) is very broad and flat and almost U-shaped, with a single ridge that extends just forward of the blowholes to the tip of the snout. Its body is long, somewhat tapered, and streamlined, with the head making up less than one-fourth of its total body length. The blue whale is the largest mammal, possibly the largest animal, to ever inhabit the earth. These low-frequency sounds travel long distances through water, allowing blue whales to communicate with each other over hundreds of miles of ocean. The blue whale makes deep and rumbling sounds which can be felt as much as heard. This, plus the availability of a large food supply, have made it possible for the blue whale to reach such an enormous size. Because its body is supported by water, as a sea animal, the need for heavy bones to support its weight disappeared. On land an animal the size of a blue whale would be crushed by its own weight without the support of large heavy bones. The largest blue whale recorded was a 108-foot female who was caught in Antarctic by a whaling ship.The blue whale is one of the rorquals, a family that also includes the humpback whale, fin whale, Bryde's whale, sei whale, and minke whale. ![]() The blue whales in the Southern Hemisphere are larger than blue whales in the Northern Hemisphere and are closer to 90-100 feet in length. The bond between a mother and calf is very close and the pair can be seen swimming very close together.įemales are larger than males. Blue whale calves are able to gain 200 pounds (91 kg) a day, which is the equivalent to 8 pounds (3.6 kg) per hour. They weigh around 23 tons (20,900 kg) and consume 100 gallons (379 liters) of mother’s milk every day. The calf will nurse for 7-8 months and are weaned when they reach around 52 feet (16m) in length. The females are around 79 feet (24 m) and males around 74 feet (23 m) when they start to mate.įemales have a gestation period of around 11 months and give birth every 2-4 years. Blue whales become sexually mature between 5-10 years of age. The dorsal fin is around one foot (30 cm) in length and their flippers are relatively short, compared to overall body length, only 12% of body length. Their dorsal fin is small, triangular and located in the last fourth of their body, further back than most whales. Early whalers called them “sulfur bottom” due to this yellowish color.ĭorsal Fin. While in the waters of the Antarctic or North Pacific/Atlantic they acquire diatoms, microorganisms, which give the body a yellowish color. The underside of the fluke is dark, while the underside of the flippers are white. This color pattern can be used to identify individuals. They are blue/gray in color and some spots of light gray. Their rostrum is broad, flat and in a U-shape that almost extends all the way to the blowhole.Ĭoloration. Blue whales have a very long, streamlined body with a smaller head than most whales.
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