Blue whale comparison. Blue whale: interesting facts about him. What does the whale eat

Blue whale (blue whale) - the largest marine mammal of the cetacean order. The blue whale holds the absolute record for the largest animal in the world, and is also considered the largest animal that ever existed on Earth. For many millions of years of evolution, nature has failed to create an animal larger than a blue whale.
In length, the blue whale can reach more than 33 meters, the average weight is about 130 tons, but there are individuals reaching 190 tons; as a rule, female baleen whales always have more males.

Main features of the blue whale

1. The volume of the lungs is 2.5% of the whale's weight and is close to 3.5 thousand liters.
2. The heart of a blue whale is truly enormous and reaches 700-1000 kg. The heart pumps 10 tons of blood throughout the body, the largest artery of the blue whale is the spinal artery and its diameter is 40 - 45 cm. The heart rate is 5 - 10 beats per minute, it can reach 20 beats.
3. The weight of subcutaneous fat in the blue whale is 27% of the total weight, more than 30 tons in large individuals, the thickness of the fat layer is 30 cm.
4. The tongue of a blue whale weighs 3-4 tons.
5. The liver weighs 1 ton.
6. The stomach of a blue whale can hold 2 tons of food.
7. The area of \u200b\u200bthe whale's mouth is about 25 square meters, but the pharynx is very narrow, like all baleen whales, about 10 cm in diameter.
8. Of the five senses, three are very poorly developed (sense of smell, sight, taste), but hearing and touch in blue whales are at their best.

Blue whale habitats

As befits the largest creature on the planet, the blue whale's habitat is incredibly wide; these giants can be found from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Cold waters are still preferred, but the southern limits are not deprived of the attention of baleen whales. The only place where the fin of a blue whale does not flap is the equator, too warm for a giant clad in an armor of subcutaneous fat.
Appearance
As befits a sea inhabitant, the body of a blue whale is streamlined and proportional; its head is about 1/3 of the body's length and is U-shaped. From the lower jaw and along the belly, whales have skin stripes, which firstly help to stretch the whale's pharynx while swallowing water, and also affects the hydrodynamic capabilities of the whale body. The dorsal fin of the blue whale is the smallest of all the baleen whales, it is displaced far back and does not exceed 30-35 cm in size. The caudal fin reaches a width of about 7.5 m. The lateral fins are narrowed and rather long, about 1/7 of the body length of a whale. The skin of a blue whale is dark gray with a blue tint.

Whalebone

Whalebone - This is a unique filter, which nature replaced the teeth of baleen whales. The blue whale feeds on plankton, small crustaceans and molluscs. The whalebone works on the principle of a filter, it does not allow too large prey contained in huge volumes of water absorbed by the whale to fall into the mouth. After filtration, the blue whale uses its tongue to push the water back out and the whisker turns on again, this time preventing food from penetrating the plates back into the ocean. The whisker of a blue whale is absolutely black, consists of individual plates, the length of which ranges from 90 to 100 cm, width is about 50 cm. The number of plates, depending on the size of the owner, can be from 550 to 800 pieces.
Before the invention of polymers, whalebone was widely used in the manufacture of clothing, in particular women's corsets, which became one of the reasons for the mass extermination of whales.

Blue whale behavior

Blue whales are social animals living in groups of 3 - 5 individuals. Small number groups associated with the large size of the blue giants, tk. It is more difficult for a large group of whales to obtain food in sufficient quantities. An adult whale needs about 1.5 tons of food per day. During the feeding period, the blue whale can dive to a depth of 200 meters for 10 to 20 minutes. The movement speed during feeding does not exceed 10 - 12 km / h, but the blue whale can, if necessary, develop a speed of up to 50 km / h.
Reproduction of blue whales is not a fast process, the female gives birth once every two years, the pregnancy lasts 10 - 12 months. The weight of a newborn blue whale is 2 - 3 tons, and the length is 6 - 10 meters. Feeding lasts 7 months, during which the calf grows up to 16m in length and reaches a mass of 20 tons. At the age of 1.5 years, the weight of a whale reaches 50 tons. Puberty in blue whales, it occurs at the age of 4 - 5 years.

The blue whale in the photo and video below.

Our mysterious planet is inhabited by many species of various animals. They are all completely different in structure, in the way they move, feed, reproduce, in their way of life, and, of course, in size. Not all, and not even half of the animals have very massive bodies. Only a few species are the largest on Earth. As it seems to most people interested in the animal world, these are elephants or bison, bears. No, the largest animals on our planet are whales.

Whales can and do live only in large bodies of water, because their dimensions will not allow them to fully exist in rivers or lakes. The second requirement is salty water... These mammals are of significant benefit to both nature and humans. By filtering the water, they purify it from plankton, which multiplies very quickly. People still mine the so-called whale oil.

By the way, whales filter water with the help of whales. mustache (often found among northern peoples, as a musical instrument), similar to barrier plates. A whale is not a fish, but a mammal, like a dolphin, by the way. Only a dolphin in terms of the volume of its body can not be compared with any species of whale. But what, after all, are the largest whales on Earth?

It reaches 10 meters in length. Lives in the areas of the Southern and Northern Hemisphere. It is intensively mined by Japan. It feeds on small fish, plankton. The fins and belly are white, and the upper body is painted dark gray. It differs from the rest in its characteristic white stripes in the head area.

This whale belongs to another family, the minke whale family. The name of the species comes from appearance dorsal fin. Although he reaches 18 meters long, but its mass is small in comparison with the previous one, - 50 tons.

The pectoral fins are long, the tail fin is very large, so it moves and balances in the water much faster. The species is not endangered and is distributed in almost all waters of the World Ocean. By the way, the Barents Sea, which is located on the territory of the Russian Federation, can be cited as an example of habitats.

Practically, everything is the same as in the Northern Right Whale, only we are talking about the Southern waters. Differs in reduced weight, approximately under 80 tons, brown color added in some areas of the body. The head is enlarged (one third of the entire body), there are growths above the eyes and jaw. The species does not disappear, everything in the world is about 7500 thousand.

Larger in size, but also refers to smooth whales. Can reach 19 meters long, mass in the area 75-80 tons... Black color. The way of feeding is water filtration and plankton absorption. They don't move very quickly.

You can often see them jump out of the water. They breed slowly, the female can give birth to only one cub at three or four years. Habitat: Pacific Ocean, mainly northern zones. At the moment, they are rapidly dying out.

Probably the most known to people whale. In his honor, they will come up with names for weapons and military equipment... They live in flocks. The larval stage is pronounced during the reproduction process.

The shape of the body is very original, its head looks like an expanded large beak. Females and males differ in weight and size: male - 20 meters and 50 tons, and females - 15 meters and no more than 20 tons. They feed on mollusks, plankton, squid. These whales are able to scoop up the ocean floor, filtering out edible food.

It is found in almost all zones of the World Ocean, except for waters where the temperature is very low. Not careful. Then, when wooden ships were still floating, the sperm whale was dangerous for them. One cannot but agree that even an accidental blow to the ship in a collision with the massive head of a sperm whale could cause significant damage to the crew. Of course, such a danger also exists for today's light motor ships and submarines.

A family of minke whales. Total 30 tons in weight, but the length can reach 19-20 meters... It lives and eats in the same way as the sperm whale. Unlike other species, it can live as many years as a person. It moves at a speed of more than 30 kilometers per hour, which is clearly indicated by its appearance, which resembles an elongated torpedo. It is this body shape that allows aquatic inhabitants to easily balance and move quickly, since at the same time, water resistance is minimized.

The name corresponds to the habitat: polar waters near the largest island in the world. Greenland waters are among the coldest waters. The sizes are quite large: up to 23 meters in length and up to 150 tons in weight... Despite the fact that this whale has such dimensions, it can swim at a speed of 20 kilometers per hour. 40 years is his maximum age.

Some individuals were able to survive for over 100 years. The food is similar: it filters and eats. This species can safely dive to a depth of 200 meters and swim even under ice. Situations were very often noticed when the surfacing bowhead whale pierced the ice-covered areas.

Fin whales are second in size and weight. Lives in the Southern and Northern Hemisphere. From a distance you can see, as the color of the back is gray, and the belly is white. 27 meters long... The way of life is solitary, but if necessary, these whales can gather in a small detachment of six or seven individuals. It can swim at speeds in excess of 45 kilometers per hour and dive to a depth of 240 meters. Of course, it is very difficult for a person to get such a whale, so the species is not extinct at the moment.

The largest whale in the world. The blue whale, in case of something, can be washed ashore, committing suicide. He is very moody in relation to, for example, climatic conditions habitat. This species is the oldest. Length - 33 meters... Weight - up to 170 tons.

They prefer to live alone from their relatives. They live for 80 years, but eating schooling fish is added to a similar way of feeding. On the verge of extinction. Drawing the attention of scientists to this situation, one might say, saved blue whales from complete extinction. Now there are about 10,000 individuals.

In our life we \u200b\u200brarely encounter wild animals, so more often than not we simply forget how big they can be. Cats, dogs, birds, less often - cows or horses - against their background, a person can really seem like the king of nature. Tsarcom ...

But as soon as you move away from civilization, everything falls into place: crocodiles, 7 meters long, elephants, sea and land, bears, giraffes, hippos, gorillas ... take off next to it is hard to keep the crown on your head. But still, there is a creature on Earth that will easily plug them all in the belt - a whale.

Underwater giants

These giants live underwater, where the laws of gravity don't work as hard as they do on the surface. This allowed them to grow to such an impressive size that only dinosaurs managed to surpass it, and even then not everyone. And the largest whale in the world is swimming in the seas right now.

This is quite interesting, because most often the creatures that exist today are small copies of those that inhabited the planet earlier. On the other hand, ancient whales were much smaller. To explain this is simple: they were not born waterfowl, but changed their legs for flippers and fins during development. Accordingly, relatively small animals descended under the water, which, having fallen into favorable conditions, began to gradually change their shape to hydrodynamic.

Being the underwater kings, they still breathe air, bear and give birth to young, even have hands and feet, though atrophied. These are only external signs, experts will list a dozen more.

But not all whales can boast of such size, some of them are relatively small. But the greatest interest is still the huge whales. Let's talk about them in more detail.

Blue whale

At the moment, the blue whale is the absolute champion in size. Try to imagine: the length of his body is up to 30-35 meters (remember, 30 meters is the approximate height of a nine-story building). The mass of such a giant can reach 100-150 tons. Of course, most of the species are somewhat smaller, but there were also larger specimens.

For example, a case was documented when a 190-ton female was caught by whalers, there were also smaller ones, for example, a 178-ton specimen and many others.

And that's just the tail ...

Some researchers argue that today's blue whales were shredded, blaming barbaric extermination, which reduced the number of whales from 275 (19th century, before fishing began) to 5,000 (1994). According to the stories and reports of whalers, at the beginning of the fishery, there were also larger specimens, so the longest whale could reach 40 meters, and 37-38 meter individuals were encountered regularly.

Scientists distinguish between three subspecies of blue whales: southern, northern, and dwarf. As it often happens, the southern ones are the largest, the northern ones are slightly smaller. The "dwarf blue whale" sounds the most funny, because on average this "dwarf" is only 3 meters shorter than its larger counterparts.

Finwhal is the second largest. The weight of this whale can reach 40-80 tons, but it strongly depends on the chosen habitat. There are two subspecies of this animal - northern and southern types. Animals that prefer cold northern waters are more compact, their length rarely exceeds 24-25 meters, while their southern counterparts often reach 27 meters.

Finwhals are the closest relatives of the blue whale. In some cases, they even give birth to joint cubs.

Bowhead whale

The third largest bowhead whale prefers cold northern waters. Perhaps, if he had chosen warmer ones, he would have grown even larger, but even a length of 20-22 meters cannot but command respect. Interestingly, the bowhead whale males are somewhat smaller than their beautiful halves, which grow up to 18 meters. But this injustice is common in all cetacean species.

By the way, this large whale can boast not only in size, but also in life expectancy. Research in this area has not been carried out for too long, but already famous representatives a species whose age has passed over a century. There is even mention of a 211 year old male. True, it was determined by an insufficiently accurate method, but even if the error is 20-30%, this whale remains one of the longest-livers.

The only representative of the sperm whale family today, the sperm whale is the largest of the toothed whales. With a fortunate coincidence, males can grow up to 20 meters in length and gain 50 tons, although on average they are somewhat smaller. Interestingly, unlike whales, women of sperm whales are more fragile and miniature. But they can hardly be called inches: 13 meters is an impressive size.

Not as graceful as a blue whale, but does not suffer from it at all

Interestingly, the sperm whale is the only representative of the cetacean order that can swallow a person whole. But in other units, such zhivoglots are also difficult to find. Several similar cases have been recorded. In one of them (highly controversial and refutable), the victim even survived.

Such giants cannot but inspire respect, but they remain in the minority even in their own family. And the smallest whale in comparison with them looks like a real dwarf. For example, a dwarf whale rarely grows longer than 4-5 meters, and a baby sperm whale is even less - 2.4-3 meters in length, weighing up to 250-300 kilograms. Here is such a mini-kit.

We hope that now you know which whale is the largest and which is the smallest. This will help you better understand who should give the crown to.

According to one scientific theory, the modern blue whale is the descendants of ancient mammals that millions of years ago lived not in water, but on land. No matter how strange this assumption may be, the reasons for its existence are quite compelling: one has only to look at the structural features of the skeleton, and also pay attention to the fact that these ocean giants do not have gills.

Moreover, these mammals do not spawn, but give birth to fully formed young, which are fed with mother's milk. So what do whales look like and how long do they live? What are their dimensions and weight? All this in order.

The largest whale in the world: characteristics and species

It is known that this representative mammals - the largest in the world, the dimensions of which really inspire: the length of the blue whale is 34 m, and the weight of the blue whale is about 180 tons. It belongs to mammalian vertebrates.

If we compare with him the rest of the representatives of this detachment, then their size will be significantly inferior:

Many people mistakenly believe that a whale is a giant fish, but this opinion is erroneous, because they have only two features that are similar: body structure and habitat. At the same time, there are big differences here in the circulatory system, in the structure of the skeleton, and even in the skin. The biggest difference between whales and common fish is their reproduction.

About the size of the whale

It's worth starting with the fact that all these sea giants are divided by two suborder - these are mustache and toothed. Baleen whales are peaceful animals that feed on mollusks and plankton, they are filtered out with the help of their special whiskers, which have plates. Such mammals are considered the most major representatives in its own way, the length of their body in adulthood is more than 10 m.

Toothed whales are real predatorsthat hunt other mammals and other fish. Their representatives are very diverse, however, in size they are inferior to their peaceful counterparts: the body length of an adult predator does not exceed 10 m. The predators include river and ocean dolphins, beaked whales and sperm whales.

Now you can consider some of the most famous representatives:

Features of the largest mammal on the planet

First, it's worth talking about how many years the blue whale lives, because this issue causes controversy among scientists. According to general data, on average, such an animal lives for about 80-90 years, but such cases have also been recorded when this representative of mammals lived up to 110 years. However, according to the opinion of other scientists who studied these giants in the Gulf of St.Lawrence, that in Atlantic Ocean off the coast of the United States, these animals can live for a maximum of 40 years.

One more interesting feature - this is what all blue whales communicate with each other using ultrasound, and movement in space occurs due to echolocation. Such mammals have very poor eyesight, taste and smell.

Interestingly, in fact, the skin of this animal is not at all blue and not even blue, but ordinary gray. But if you look at them through the water column, then they really seem to be blue. Actually, that is why they got their name.

Many people wonder if such a huge representative of mammals is dangerous for humans, because it is huge and it seems that it can swallow absolutely any prey. The answer here is unambiguous - no, such mammals are not interested in people, because they prefer a completely different food. The only thing such a giant can do harm is to accidentally turn over the ship, which is not far from it, when surfacing.

These aquatic animals do not have gill openings, which means that they need atmospheric air to breathe. To do this, they float to the surface every 10-15 minutes, and signal their appearance with a characteristic fountain of water.

Several tens of thousands of animal species live on our planet, but only a few of them are of impressive size. Animals live everywhere: on land, in the air, underground, and in water. We will stop at the last place of residence of living beings. From childhood, everyone knows that whales are the largest animals living in the aquatic environment. But few people realize that among them there are also incomparable giants. We present to the attention of the reader information about which are the most big whales in the world.

The smallest whale of the minke family reveals the world's top largest whales. The animal, which feeds on plankton and small fish, has white fins and a belly, and a dark gray upper body color. Distinctive feature minke whales are its white stripes on the back of the head.

It lives in the waters of both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The length of the largest individual reached 10.7 meters.

The leader in the number of annually harvested minke whales is the "Land of the Rising Sun" - Japan. Whaling is about 900 individuals. Norway and Iceland are in second and third places respectively.

The whale's speed is no more than 8 km / h. As a result, it becomes an easy prey for humans. It is currently on the verge of extinction. The number of surviving whales does not exceed 300 individuals.

Another animal of our rating of the largest whales in the world, from the minke family. It got its name from the hump-shaped dorsal fin. The largest individuals of this species of animals reach 17-18 meters in size. Weight does not exceed 50 tons. The whale has a specific body shape and coloration, very long pectoral fins (30% of the entire body), and a large caudal fin. The species is distributed throughout the world's oceans, except for the Arctic. In Russia, it is found only in a small part of the Barents Sea.

Another species of the smooth whale family. Animals, 18 meters in size and weighing up to 80 tons, have a color ranging from dark brown to bluish black. A distinctive feature of southern whales are growths under the jaw and above the eyes. The head is 1/3 the size of the body. Dorsal fin missing. Females of the southern right whale are physically larger than males.

The animals, which are among the largest whales in the world, live in the Southern Ocean (temperate and subpolar latitudes).

For a long time this species was under threat, but, at present, the number of individuals exceeds more than 7,000.

This species of whale is little distinguishable from the smooth North Atlantic, but it is larger. Particularly large individuals reach 19 m in size. The weight of the Japanese whale does not exceed 80 tons. Individuals of black color with a small dorsal fin feed on crustaceans. They swim slowly, but they like to often jump out of the water. The birth rate of the Japanese whale is low. Females give birth to one cub every three to four years. Moreover, they themselves must reach the age of 6-12 years. They live in the North Pacific Ocean, sometimes found off the coast of Mexico. Now the Japanese whale is threatened with extinction. There are 400 individuals of this species of one of the largest animals in the world left on the planet.

Sperm whales live in groups of several dozen individuals. This species of mammal has a pronounced sexual dimorphism, that is, females are smaller, differ in the shape of the body and head. The largest individuals of males reach a length of 20 meters and weigh 50 tons. Females - 15 meters, 20 tons.

The habitat of the sperm whale is distributed throughout the World Ocean, with the exception of the coldest regions.

An individual reaching a length of 20 meters and a mass of 30 tons belongs to the minke whale family. A dark gray whale with a large dorsal fin feeds on molluscs, schooling fish, and crustaceans. Seyval has been living for over 60 years. Puberty occurs at 5-7 years of age. Develops a speed of over 25 km / h. Habitat: the entire World Ocean in places with temperatures above 8 degrees, but below 26. In Russia, this species of one of the largest whales in the world can be found near the Kuril Islands and in the Barents Sea (rarely).

The most seasoned whale in the world lives in the polar regions of the Arctic and off the coast of Greenland. It has a size of 18-22 meters and a body weight of 75 to 150 tons, depending on the sex of the animal. The mammal accelerates to a speed of 20 km / h. It dives to a depth of over 200 meters and can stay there for 40 minutes.

Lives about 40 years. Some individuals can exist for over 100 years. Lifetime record Bowhead whale was 211 years old. The animal, located on the third line of the top of the largest whales in the world, feeds on plankton and crustaceans.

It is the second largest animal in the world and the closest relative of the blue whale. The species that lives in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres belongs to the minke family. Maximum length adult reaches 27 meters. The size of females is larger than the size of males, but their weight is approximately the same - 40-70 tons.

An animal with a dark gray back and a white belly, prefers to live alone. But, sometimes it gets lost in flocks of up to 5-6 individuals. It is considered the fastest whale in the world. Its speed reaches 50 km / h. It dives to a maximum depth of 230 meters.

Blue whales live alone. Sometimes they get lost in small groups, but even in them they swim separately from each other. They inhabit the entire territory of the World Ocean. On average, blue whales live for about 80 years. The oldest officially recorded age of the animal was 110 years. Currently, the blue whale is on the verge of extinction. And in the 60s of the last century it was practically exterminated. Scientists are doing their best to increase the population size. Now the number of mammals is 10,000.