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Blue whale | Facts, Habitat, & Pictures | Britannica

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Blue whale, facts and photos

Skip to contentNewslettersSubscribeMenuAnimalsReferenceBlue whale3:41WATCH: Blue Whales 101Blue whales are the largest animals to have ever existed. Learn why they're larger than any land animal and why they were hunted for years.ShareTweetEmailPlease be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.1 / 21 / 2

A blue whale's tongue alone can weigh as much as an elephant—its heart as much as an automobile.

Photograph by Hiroya Minakuchi, Minden Pictures/Nat Geo Image CollectionCommon Name: Blue WhaleScientific Name: Balaenoptera musculusType: MammalsDiet: CarnivoreGroup Name: PodAverage Life Span In The Wild: 80 to 90 yearsSize: 82 to 105 feetWeight: Up to 200 tonsSize relative to a bus: IUCN Red List Status: ? Endangered LCNTVUENCREWEX Least Concern Extinct Current Population Trend: IncreasingWhat is the blue whale?Blue whales are the largest animals ever known to have lived on Earth. These magnificent marine mammals rule the oceans at up to 100 feet long and upwards of 200 tons. Their tongues alone can weigh as much as an elephant. Their hearts, as much as an automobile.Diet of krillBlue whales reach these mind-boggling dimensions on a diet composed nearly exclusively of tiny shrimplike animals called krill. During certain times of the year, a single adult blue whale consumes about 4 tons of krill a day.Blue whales are baleen whales, which means they have fringed plates of fingernail-like material, called baleen, attached to their upper jaws. The giant animals feed by first gulping an enormous mouthful of water, expanding the pleated skin on their throat and belly to take it in. Then the whale's massive tongue forces the water out through the thin, overlapping baleen plates. Thousands of krill are left behind—and then swallowed.Coloring and appearanceBlue whales look true blue underwater, but on the surface their coloring is more a mottled blue-gray. Their underbellies take on a yellowish hue from the millions of microorganisms that take up residence in their skin. The blue whale has a broad, flat head and a long, tapered body that ends in wide, triangular flukes.Vocalization and behaviorBlue whales live in all the world's oceans, except the Arctic, occasionally swimming in small groups but usually alone or in pairs. They often spend summers feeding in polar waters and undertake lengthy migrations towards the Equator as winter arrives.These graceful swimmers cruise the ocean at more than five miles an hour, but accelerate to more than 20 miles an hour when they are agitated. Blue whales are among the loudest animals on the planet. They emit a series of pulses, groans, and moans, and it’s thought that, in good conditions, blue whales can hear each other up to 1,000 miles away. Scientists think they use these vocalizations not only to communicate, but, along with their excellent hearing, to sonar-navigate the lightless ocean depths.Blue whale calvesCalves enter the world already ranking among the planet's largest creatures. After about a year inside its mother's womb, a baby blue whale emerges weighing up to 3 tons and stretching to 25 feet. It gorges on nothing but mother's milk and gains about 200 pounds every day for its first year.LongevityBlue whales are among Earth's longest-lived animals. Scientists have discovered that by counting the layers of a deceased whale's waxlike earplugs, they can get a close estimate of the animal's age. The oldest blue whale found using this method was determined to be around 110 years old. Average lifespan is estimated at around 80 to 90 years.ConservationAggressive hunting in the 1900s by whalers seeking whale oil drove them to the brink of extinction. Between 1900 and the mid-1960s, some 360,000 blue whales were slaughtered. They finally came under protection with the 1966 International Whaling Commission, but they've managed only a minor recovery since then.Blue whales have few predators but are known to fall victim to attacks by sharks and killer whales, and many are injured or die each year from impacts with large ships.Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.1 / 51 / 5This photo was submitted to Your Shot, our photo community on Instagram. Follow us on Instagram at @natgeoyourshot or visit us at natgeo.com/yourshot for the latest submissions and news about the community.This photo was submitted to Your Shot, our photo community on Instagram. Follow us on Instagram at @natgeoyourshot or visit us at natgeo.com/yourshot for the latest submissions and news about the community.Photograph by Dilum Alagiyawanna, National Geographic Your ShotShareTweetEmailGo FurtherAnimalsResort flamingos are being returned to the wildAnimalsResort flamingos are being returned to the wildHow an ‘extinct’ cicada was rediscovered 100 years laterAnimalsHow an ‘extinct’ cicada was rediscovered 100 years laterThe mystery of the Coast Salish woolly dogAnimalsThe mystery of the Coast Salish woolly dogSingle orca seen killing great white shark for first time everAnimalsSingle orca seen killing great white shark for first time everFirst-ever photos show male humpback whales matingAnimalsFirst-ever photos show male humpback whales matingMeet the newest ‘walking’ fishAnimalsMeet the newest ‘walking’ fishEnvironmentHow animals are adapting to the rise of wildfiresEnvironmentHow animals are adapting to the rise of wildfiresFast fashion goes to die in this Chilean desertEnvironmentFast fashion goes to die in this Chilean desertThis is where ‘forever chemicals’ are hiding in your kitchenEnvironmentThis is where ‘forever chemicals’ are hiding in your kitchenYou're not imagining it—winters are getting warmerEnvironmentYou're not imagining it—winters are getting warmerMexico is treating corn from the U.S. as a threat. 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11 Facts About Blue Whales, the Largest Animals Ever on Earth

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11 Facts About Blue Whales, the Largest Animals Ever on Earth

The planet's largest animal ever is also incredibly loud, long-lived, and endangered.

Melissa Breyer

Former Senior Editorial Director

Hunter College

F.I.T., State University of New York

Cornell University

Melissa Breyer is Treehugger’s former senior editorial director. She is a sustainability expert and author whose work has been published by the New York Times and National Geographic, among others.

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Updated June 14, 2023

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Picture in your mind a 10-story-tall animal walking down the street, and you probably start channeling images of Godzilla or King Kong. But if you imagine it as a marine mammal and place it on its side, swimming? Now you’ve got a blue whale.

Balaenoptera musculus, the blue whale, is the largest animal ever known to have lived on the planet, including all dinosaurs. Even at birth, it's larger than adults from most other animal species. The planet is covered with amazing, fascinating creatures, but the blue whale is in a league of its own. Consider the following.

1. Blue Whales Can Grow More Than 100 Feet Long

They are gigantic, generally ranging in length from 80 to 100 feet (24 to 30 meters). The longest, accurately measured blue whale is a female who was measured at 97 feet (23.5 meters)—but there are reports of blue whales that reached 108 feet (33 meters) in length. Just how big is that? Imagine three school buses back to back.

2. They Can Weigh as Much as 30 Elephants

The average weight for these gentle giants is 200,000 to 300,000 pounds (90,000 to 136,000 kilograms), or about 100 to 150 tons. Some can weigh as much as 441,000 pounds (200,000 kilograms) or 220 tons. For comparison, an adult African bush elephant weighs up to 6 tons, so it may take 30 or more elephants to equal the weight of one blue whale.

3. They Have Big Hearts

The heart of a blue whale may only beat twice per minute while diving.

eco2drew / Getty Images

The blue whale's heart is huge. It's the largest heart in the animal kingdom, weighing about 400 pounds (180 kilograms)—about the same weight as a gorilla and roughly the size of a bumper car. As a blue whale dives to feed, its giant heart may only beat twice per minute.

4. They Have Big Tongues, Too

A blue whale’s tongue alone can weigh as much as an elephant.

5. They Have the Biggest Babies on Earth

Blue whale calves are the biggest babies on Earth, easily, and at birth already rank among the largest full-grown animals. They pop out at around 8,800 pounds (4,000 kg) with a length of some 26 feet (8 meters). They gain 200 pounds (90 kg) a day! Their growth rate is likely one of the fastest in the animal world, with a several billion-fold increase in tissue in the 18 months from conception to weaning.

6. They’re Unusually Loud

Blue whales, in fact, are the loudest animals on the planet. A jet engine registers at 140 decibels; the call of a blue whale reaches 180. Their language of pulses, groans, and moans can be heard by others up to 1,000 miles (1,600 kilometers) away.

7. They Eat a Lot of Krill

Blue whales feast on krill; their stomachs can hold 2,200 pounds (1,000 kilograms) of the tiny crustaceans at a time. They require almost 9,000 pounds (4,000 kilograms) of the little guys a day and around 40 million krill daily during the summer feeding season.

What Are Krill?

Krill, the food of choice for blue whales, is the overall name for 82 species of crustaceans from the order Euphausiacea. They belong to the same class of animals as crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, and woodlice. Reaching up to two inches in length, they live in the open sea and gather in dense swarms of more than 10,000 individuals per cubic meter of water.

8. They're Pretty Fast

Blue whales can swim at speeds up to 20 mph, but they usually travel more slowly.

NOAA / CC BY 2.0

Blue whales travel a lot, spending summers feeding in polar regions and making the long trip to the equator as winter comes along. While they have a cruising speed of 5 mph (8 kph), they can accelerate up to 20 mph (32 kph) when needed.

9. They Have Long Life Spans

Blue whales are among the planet’s longest-lived animals. Kind of like counting tree rings, scientists count layers of wax in the ears and can determine a ballpark age. The oldest blue whale they’ve discovered this way was calculated to be around 100 years old, though the average life is thought to be around 80 to 90 years.

10. They Once Were Abundant

Before whalers discovered the treasure trove of oil that a blue whale could provide, the species was plentiful. But with the advent of 20th-century whaling fleets, their population plummeted until finally receiving worldwide protection in 1967. From 1904 to 1967, more than 350,000 blue whales were killed in the Southern Hemisphere, according to the World Wildlife Fund. In 1931, during the heyday of whaling, an astounding 29,000 blue whales were killed in a single season.

11. Their Future Remains Uncertain

While commercial whaling is no longer a threat, recovery has been slow and new threats plague blue whales, like ship strikes and the impact of climate change. There is one population of around 2,000 blue whales off the coast of California, but all told there are only around 10,000 to 25,000 individuals left. The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists the species as endangered. Hopefully with time, the planet’s largest gentle giants will again roam the seas aplenty.

Save the Blue Whale

Look for seafood certified by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), which can help reduce the prevalence of fishing gear known to entangle blue whales.If you ever see a blue whale, keep your distance — for its safety and yours.Watch your speed and keep a sharp lookout if you're ever on a watercraft in potential blue whale habitat. Boat collisions can seriously injure blue whales.

View Article Sources

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "blue whale" Encyclopedia Britannica, 5 Jan. 2023.

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Blue Whale | NOAA Fisheries

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The blue whale is the largest animal on Earth. Learn about the conservation and management of these endangered animals.

Blue Whale

Balaenoptera musculus

Protected Status

ESA Endangered

Throughout Its Range

MMPA Protected

Throughout Its Range

MMPA Depleted

Throughout Its Range

CITES Appendix II

Throughout Its Range

SPAW Annex II

Throughout the Wider Caribbean Region

Quick Facts

Weight

Up to 330,000 pounds

Length

Up to 110 feet

Lifespan

Estimated at around 80 to 90 years

Threats

Entanglement in fishing gear,

Ocean noise,

Vessel strikes

Region

Alaska,

New England/Mid-Atlantic,

Pacific Islands,

Southeast,

West Coast

Blue whale swimming in the ocean. Credit: NOAA Fisheries

About the Species

Blue whale swimming in the ocean. Credit: NOAA Fisheries

Blue whales are the largest animals ever to live on our planet. They feed almost exclusively on krill, straining huge volumes of ocean water through their baleen plates (which hang from the roof of the mouth and work like a sieve). Some of the biggest individuals may eat up to 6 tons of krill a day.

Blue whales are found in all oceans except the Arctic Ocean. There are five currently recognized subspecies of blue whales.

The number of blue whales today is only a small fraction of what it was before modern commercial whaling significantly reduced their numbers during the early 1900s, but populations are increasing globally. The primary threats blue whales currently face are vessel strikes and entanglements in fishing gear.

NOAA Fisheries and its partners are dedicated to conserving and rebuilding blue whale populations worldwide. We use a variety of innovative techniques to study, protect, and rescue these endangered animals. We engage our partners as we develop regulations and management plans that foster healthy fisheries and reduce the risk of entanglements, create whale-safe shipping practices, and reduce ocean noise.

Population Status

Blue whales were significantly depleted by commercial whaling activities worldwide. Today, blue whales are listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act and protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The latest stock assessment reports of blue whales include data for various stocks, including areas of the North Pacific and western North Atlantic Oceans.

Appearance

Blue whales have a long body and generally slender shape. Their mottled blue-gray color appears light blue under water—hence their name, the blue whale. The mottling pattern is variable and can be used to identify individuals.

Antarctic blue whales are generally larger than other blue whale subspecies. For example, in the North Atlantic and North Pacific, blue whales can grow up to about 90 feet and are over 100,000 pounds, but in the Antarctic, they can reach up to about 110 feet and weigh more than 330,000 pounds. Like many other baleen whales, female blue whales are generally larger than males.

Behavior and Diet

Blue whales sometimes swim in small groups but are more often found alone or in pairs. They generally spend summers feeding in polar waters and undertake lengthy migrations towards the equatorial waters as winter arrives.

Blue whales typically swim at about 5 miles an hour while they are feeding and traveling, but can accelerate to more than 20 miles an hour for short bursts. They are among the loudest animals on the planet, emitting a series of pulses, groans, and moans, and it is thought that in the right oceanographic conditions, sounds emitted by blue whales can be heard by other whales up to 1,000 miles away. Scientists think they use these vocalizations to communicate and—along with their excellent hearing—perhaps to sonar-navigate the dark ocean depths.

The primary diet of blue whales is krill—tiny shrimp-like animals, but fish and copepods (tiny crustaceans) may occasionally be part of the blue whale’s diet. When blue whales hunt for food, they filter feed by swimming toward large schools of krill with their mouth open and closing their mouths around the krill while inflating their throat pleats. Once closed, blue whales then push the trapped water out of their mouth with their tongue and use their baleen plates to keep the krill trapped inside.

Where They Live

Blue whales are found in all oceans except the Arctic. They generally migrate seasonally between summer feeding grounds and winter breeding grounds, but some evidence suggests that individuals in certain areas might not migrate at all. Information about distribution and movement varies with location, and migratory routes are not well known. In general, distribution is driven largely by food availability—they occur in waters where krill are concentrated.

In the North Atlantic Ocean, their range extends from the subtropics to the Greenland Sea. Blue whales have been sighted in the waters off eastern Canada and in the shelf waters of the eastern United States.

Along the West Coast of the United States, eastern North Pacific blue whales are believed to spend winters off of Mexico and Central America. They likely feed during summer off the U.S. West Coast and, to a lesser extent, in the Gulf of Alaska and central North Pacific waters.

Blue whales with young calves are regularly observed in the Gulf of California (Sea of Cortez) from December through March. It is believed that this area is an important calving and nursing area for the species.

In the northern Indian Ocean, there is a "resident" population. Blue whale sightings, strandings, and acoustic detections have been reported from the Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea, and across the Bay of Bengal. The migratory movements of these whales are largely unknown but may be driven by oceanographic changes associated with monsoons.

In the Southern Hemisphere, Antarctic blue whales occur mainly in relatively high latitude waters south of the "Antarctic Convergence" and close to the ice edge in summer. They generally migrate to middle and low latitudes in winter, although not all whales migrate each year. Pygmy blue whales (Balaenoptera musculus brevicauda)—a subspecies—are typically distributed north of the Antarctic Convergence and are most abundant in waters off Australia, Madagascar, and New Zealand. An unnamed subspecies of blue whale is found in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, particularly in the Chiloense Ecoregion, and migrates to lower latitude areas, including the Galapagos Islands and the eastern tropical Pacific.

World map providing approximate representation of the blue whale's range.

Lifespan & Reproduction

Blue whales’ average lifespan is estimated at around 80 to 90 years. Scientists can estimate the age of whales by counting the layers of wax-like earplugs collected from deceased animals.

Scientists know little about the life history of the blue whale. The best available science suggests the gestation period is approximately 10 to 12 months. Weaning probably occurs at around 6 to 7 months on, or en route to, summer feeding areas. The age of sexual maturity is thought to be 5 to 15 years. Most reproductive activity, including births and mating, takes place during the winter. The average calving interval is probably 2 to 3 years.

Threats

Vessel Strikes

Vessel strikes can injure or kill blue whales. Vessel strikes have killed blue whales throughout their range, but the risk is much higher in some coastal areas with heavy vessel traffic, like ports and in shipping lanes, and from larger vessels and vessels traveling at high speeds.

Entanglement in Fishing Gear

Blue whales can become entangled in fishing gear, either swimming off with the gear attached or becoming anchored. Blue whales can become entangled in many different gear types, including traps, pots, and nets. Once entangled, whales may drag the attached gear for long distances, ultimately resulting in fatigue, compromised feeding ability, or severe injury, which may lead to reduced reproductive success and death.

Additional Threats

Additional possible threats to blue whales that are less understood include ocean noise, habitat degradation, pollution, vessel disturbance, and climate change.

Scientific Classification

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Mammalia

Order

Cetartiodactyla

Family

Balaenopteridae

Genus

Balaenoptera

Species

musculus

Last updated by NOAA Fisheries on 09/28/2023

What We Do

Conservation & Management

All blue whales are protected under the MMPA and ESA. Our work strives to protect blue whales by:

Reducing vessel strikes

Responding to dead, injured, or entangled blue whales

Reducing the effects from ocean noise

Learn more about our conservation efforts

Science

Our research projects have helped us better understand blue whales and the challenges they face. Our work includes:

Stock assessments

Environmental modeling to predict where blue whales are in near-real time

Studying whales’ habitat preferences and feeding ecology

Conducting photographic and genetic identification

Researching the acoustic environment of blue whales

Learn more about our research

How You Can Help

Keep Your Distance

Be responsible when viewing marine life in the wild. Observe all small whales from a safe distance of at least 100 yards by sea or land.

In Washington State inland waters, it is illegal to approach a killer whale within 200 yards. Please visit Be Whale Wise for more specific instructions.

Learn more about our marine life viewing guidelines

Report Marine Life in Distress

Report a sick, injured, entangled, stranded, or dead animal to make sure professional responders and scientists know about it and can take appropriate action. Numerous organizations around the country are trained and ready to respond. Never approach or try to save an injured or entangled animal yourself—it can be dangerous to both the animal and you.

Learn who you should contact when you encounter a stranded or injured marine animal

Reduce Speed and Be on the Lookout

Vessel collisions are a major cause of injury and death for whales. Here are some tips to avoid collisions:

Be Whale Aware. Know where whales occur (habitat).

Watch your speed in areas of known marine mammal occurrence. Keep speeds to 10 knots or less to reduce potential for injury.

Keep a sharp lookout. Look for blows, dorsal fins, tail flukes, etc. However, be aware that most captains report never seeing a whale prior to colliding with it.

Protect your boat, protect your passengers. Boats can be heavily damaged and even "totalled" after colliding with a large whale. Collisions can also injure passengers.

Keep your distance. Stay at least 100 yards away.

Stop immediately if within 100 yards. Slowly distance your vessel from the whale.

Learn more about vessel strikes

Report a Violation

Call the NOAA Fisheries Enforcement Hotline at (800) 853-1964 to report a federal marine resource violation. This hotline is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for anyone in the United States.

You may also contact your closest NOAA Office of Law Enforcement field office during regular business hours.

Blue Whale - Description, Habitat, Image, Diet, and Interesting Facts

HomeAnimal IndexComplete List of AnimalsA – GAnimals that start with AAnimals that start with BAnimals that start with CAnimals that start with DAnimals that start with EAnimals that start with FAnimals that start with GH – NAnimals that start with HAnimals that start with IAnimals that start with JAnimals that start with KAnimals that start with LAnimals that start with MAnimals that start with NO – TAnimals that start with OAnimals that start with PAnimals that start with QAnimals that start with RAnimals that start with SAnimals that start with TU – ZAnimals that start with UAnimals that start with VAnimals that start with WAnimals that start with XAnimals that start with YAnimals that start with ZDogsParks and ZoosCitationContact Us Search HomeAnimal IndexComplete List of AnimalsA – GAnimals that start with AAnimals that start with BAnimals that start with CAnimals that start with DAnimals that start with EAnimals that start with FAnimals that start with GH – NAnimals that start with HAnimals that start with IAnimals that start with JAnimals that start with KAnimals that start with LAnimals that start with MAnimals that start with NO – TAnimals that start with OAnimals that start with PAnimals that start with QAnimals that start with RAnimals that start with SAnimals that start with TU – ZAnimals that start with UAnimals that start with VAnimals that start with WAnimals that start with XAnimals that start with YAnimals that start with ZDogsParks and ZoosCitationContact Us Animals Network HomeAnimal IndexComplete List of AnimalsA – GAnimals that start with AAnimals that start with BAnimals that start with CAnimals that start with DAnimals that start with EAnimals that start with FAnimals that start with GH – NAnimals that start with HAnimals that start with IAnimals that start with JAnimals that start with KAnimals that start with LAnimals that start with MAnimals that start with NO – TAnimals that start with OAnimals that start with PAnimals that start with QAnimals that start with RAnimals that start with SAnimals that start with TU – ZAnimals that start with UAnimals that start with VAnimals that start with WAnimals that start with XAnimals that start with YAnimals that start with ZDogsParks and ZoosCitationContact Us MammaliaArtiodactylaBalaenopteridaeBalaenopteraBalaenoptera musculusChordataBlue WhaleBy Animals Network TeamThe largest animal to have ever lived, need we say more? No bird, fish, mammal, reptile – no dinosaur – has ever been larger than an adult blue whale. Read on to learn about the blue whale. Description of the Blue WhaleBig, giant, massive, immense, enormous whale! The blue whale is an extremely large marine mammal, with a long, torpedo-shaped body. They have blue-gray colored skin, with a slightly lighter colored underside; they have two pectoral fins, a small dorsal fin on their backs, and a large fluke. The fluke, or “tail fin,” is moved in an up-down motion to push the animal forward. The pectoral fins on either side of the whale are used to steer.Interesting Facts About the Blue Whale This whale is one of the most unique species on the planet. They have a number of distinctive characteristics that set them apart from other animals, other marine mammals, and even other whales.Blue Whales are the Largest Animal … Ever – The blue whale is the largest animal to ever roam the Earth. These whales can grow up to 105 ft. long! The largest dinosaur ever discovered, the Argentinosaurus, weighed a measly 100 tons (about 220,000 lbs.). Argentinosaurus simply doesn’t measure up, because blue whales can weigh up to 200 tons!Blue Whales Eat Krill – This massive animal feeds almost exclusively on tiny shrimp-like creatures called krill. They feed by opening their huge mouths, swimming forward, and then filtering out the water through a structure called “baleen.” Baleen are plates made of keratin – the same material that your hair and fingernails are made of. The sheets of baleen are similar to very stiff hair, and when the whale pushes the water out of it’s mouth through the baleen, the shrimp are left behind.Whales Can be Identified by Their Spouts – Many whale species can be identified by the water spouts created when they surface to breathe. The blowhole on a whale’s back expels water when it surfaces, creating a misty “spout” before they breathe in fresh air. On a blue whale, this spout is shaped like an exclamation point (!) without the dot, and is 30 feet tall.Habitat of the Blue WhaleThe blue whale lives in every ocean in the world, this means it inhabits every aquatic habitat. They have been found in the Arctic, Tropical, Subtropical, and Temperate seas.Distribution of the Blue WhaleThis whale species is located in every ocean across the world.Diet of the Blue WhaleAlthough this whale is massive, it feeds almost exclusively on krill. Krill is a small, shrimp-like crustacean, and the blue whale can eat up to four tons of krill per day.Blue Whale and Human InteractionThis particular whale is considered Endangered under the IUCN red list. They were pushed to the brink of extinction due to whaling during the 1900s, at which time many whale species were hunted aggressively for whale oil. Now that they are a protected species, the main threats to blue whales are ship strikes by large boats.DomesticationThe blue whale has not been domesticated in any way.Does the Blue Whale Make a Good PetIt would be quite difficult to build a tank large enough for such a huge whale so… no it does not make a good pet.Blue Whale CareBecause of its immense size, this whale species has never been kept in human care. If they were kept in aquariums, they would require extremely intensive care.Behavior of the Blue WhaleThese whales spend their summers in the cooler waters of the Arctic or Antarctic oceans, and their winters in the tropical waters near the equator. The older whales, and pregnant whales, begin their migration first. Groups generally migrate according to age, and sex, with the youngest animals migrating last. During the migration,they eat virtually nothing, and survive on their fat stores.Reproduction of the Blue WhaleOnce the whales reach tropical waters, they give birth and breed. These whales has a calf every 2-3 years, and carries the baby for about 1 year. After a year-long gestation, the whale gives birth to a baby called a calf, which is about 23 feet long at birth, and weighs between 5,000 and 6,000 pounds.TAGSblue whalewhaleCydni Oldham RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR ArtiodactylaRed Angus ChordataPaint Horse ActinopterygiiBlack Sole Expert Recommendations Dog CareBest Retractable Dog Leash Dog CareBest Dog Raincoat Dog CareBest Dog Backpack Dog CareBest Wet Dog Food Dog CareBest Dog Shampoo for Itchy Skin Dog CareBest Dog Beds for Large Dogs Dog CareBest Dog Seat Cover Dog CareBest Dog GPS Tracker Expert RecommendationBest Self Cleaning Litter Box Dog CareBest Dog DNA TestAnimals.NET aim to promote interest in nature and animals among children, as well as raise their awareness in conservation and environmental protection. All photos used are royalty-free, and credits are included in the Alt tag of each image.EVEN MORE NEWSRed AngusPaint HorseHouse SpiderPOPULAR CATEGORYChordata694Mammalia247Aves197Dog Breeds184Actinopterygii121Reptilia87Carnivora72Privacy PolicyContact UsAbout UsTerms and Conditions © Animals.NET 2018

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Stage two of the Gray Whale Rangewide Review.

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Launch of the global Whale Watching Handbook

Statement on Government of Japan withdrawal from the IWC

Multi-faceted approach to protecting endangered southern right whales in the eastern South Pacific.

Scientific Committee workshop: western North Pacific common minke whales

IWC Workshop: Locating Ship Strike Hotspots

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Collaboration at the heart of the first Bycatch Mitigation Initiative workshop

Annual Scientific Committee begins in Nairobi

IWC entanglement response training for Kenya

Whale Song Library and Satellite Tagging Guidelines amongst wide-ranging recommendations of the 2019 Scientific Committee

Expanding entanglement response capability for endangered Southern right whales in the western South Atlantic.

Annual IWC-POWER Cruise sets sail from Alaska

Small Cetaceans Task Team workshop: South Asian River Dolphins

IWC attends Whaling Captains’ Convention, Utqiaġvik, Alaska

Bycatch Mitigation in the Indian Ocean: IWC workshop report published

Latest Entanglement Response trainees complete an action-packed apprenticeship in Cape Cod.

IWC hosts international biodiversity group

Entanglement response training in Scottish Highlands

Conservation Management Plans: raising awareness at every level

Guiana dolphin workshop gets underway in Brazil

Next steps in work to understand and mitigate the threat to cetaceans from marine debris

New Tagging Guidelines to protect whales and their observers

Review of the IWC’s Pacific Ocean Whale and Ecosystem Research Programme (IWC-POWER)

Workshop: status of the Franciscana dolphin

Indian Ocean's whale watching aims for gold standard in sustainability

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Species of the Week

Whale of the week 2020

IN THIS SECTION

Blue whale

Bottlenose dolphin

Bowhead whale

Bryde's whale

Common dolphin

Dusky dolphin

False killer whale

Fin whale

Gray whale

Humpback dolphin

Humpback whale

Irrawaddy dolphin

Killer whale

Minke whale

Pilot whale

Right whale

Sei whale

Sperm whale

Spinner dolphin

Spotted dolphin

Striped dolphin

IN THIS SECTION

IWC | International Whaling Commission

About Whales

Species

Blue whale

Balaenoptera musculus

The largest animals ever to have lived on the planet (surpassing even dinosaurs), blue whales inspire awe and wonder with all the records they break: The largest blue whale ever recorded was 33 m long; a blue whale’s heart is the size of a small car; a child could crawl through a blue whale’s arteries; and blue whales produce the loudest sound on earth – even if it is too low in frequency for humans to hear it. There are at least five recognized sub-species of blue whale that occur in different ocean basins.

Blue whale surfacing

Blue whale lifting its tail flukes. Photo courtesy of Paula Olson.

There are at least five recognized sub-species of blue whale that occur in different ocean basins. These are

B. m. musculus, Northern blue whale

B. m. intermedia, Antarctic blue whale

B. m. indica, Northern Indian Ocean blue whale

B. m. brevicauda, Pygmy blue whale

B. m. un-named subsp., Chilean blue whale.

Pygmy blue whale in Western Australia. Photo courtesy of Chris Johnson

Pygmy blue whales are smaller and are generally restricted to the Southern Hemisphere including the Indian Ocean. “True” blue whales refer to the larger musculus, intermedia, and indica subspecies. Antarctic blue whales (intermedia) are the largest of the species, but have been severely depleted after decades of whaling. Blue whales are usually found offshore, and their seasonal migrations and breeding and feeding grounds are generally poorly understood. However, there are a few places where they can be seen with some regularity during whale watching trips, such as the Gulf of California in Mexico, the Gulf of St. Lawrence in Canada, the California coast of the United States, and Sri Lanka.

Download Blue Whale Factsheet

Enlarge this image

Blue whale global distribution. Adapted by Nina Lisowski from Jefferson, T.A., Webber, M.A. and Pitman, R.L. (2015). “Marine Mammals of the World: A Comprehensive Guide to Their Identification,” 2nd ed. Elsevier, San Diego, CA. Copyright Elsevier: www.elsevier.com

Distribution

Blue whales occur worldwide in all major oceans except the Arctic1,2. They are also absent from some regional seas such as the Mediterranean, Okhotsk and Bering seas. They are almost never seen off of eastern South America or eastern Australia. Despite their wide distribution the blue whales are not often encountered, partly due to their reduced numbers, and party because they generally occur in offshore waters, with only a few known coastal breeding and feeding areas.

Native to the following countries: Angola; Argentina; Australia; Bahamas; Bangladesh; Benin; Bermuda; Brazil; Cameroon; Canada; Cape Verde; Chile; China; Cocos (Keeling) Islands; Colombia; Comoros; Cook Islands; Costa Rica; Côte d'Ivoire; Djibouti; Ecuador; El Salvador; Equatorial Guinea; Eritrea; Falkland Islands (Malvinas); Faroe Islands; France; French Southern Territories; Gabon; Ghana; Gibraltar; Greece; Greenland; Grenada; Guatemala; Iceland; India; Indonesia; Iran, Islamic Republic of; Iraq; Ireland; Japan; Kenya; Madagascar; Malaysia; Maldives; Marshall Islands; Mauritania; Mauritius; Mexico; Morocco; Mozambique; Myanmar; Namibia; New Caledonia; New Zealand; Nicaragua; Nigeria; Northern Mariana Islands; Norway; Oman; Pakistan; Palau; Panama; Peru; Philippines; Pitcairn; Portugal; Russian Federation; Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha (Tristan da Cunha); Saint Pierre and Miquelon; Sao Tomé and Principe; Senegal; Seychelles; Somalia; South Africa; South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; Spain; Sri Lanka; Taiwan, Province of China; Tanzania, United Republic of; Thailand; Timor-Leste; Togo; United Kingdom; United States; Uruguay; Western Sahara; Yemen.

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Antarctic Krill, Photo credit: https://commons.wikimedia.org

Biology and Ecology

Feeding

Throughout their range, blue whales feed predominantly on small shrimp-like crustaceans called krill. While the species of krill may differ from one ocean basin to another, the manner in which the whales feed is the same: usually lunge feeding through large swarms of prey, either by coming up directly underneath them with open mouths and throat pleats expanded, or by swimming on their sides with open mouths. While doing this, blue whales can engulf more than 100 tons of water and krill, then close their mouths and contract their throat pleats, thus forcing water out of their mouths and straining the krill through their baleen plates.

Social structure, reproduction and growth

Blue whale and whale-watching vessel, Loreto Bay, Mexico. Photo courtesy of Diane Gendron.

Research, threats and conservation status

Individual blue whales can be recognized by the pattern of mottling on their flanks or sides. Researchers build up catalogues of individual whales, like those in Loreto Bay, Mexico, that have been monitored for over 25 years3, and to generate population estimates as has been done for blue whales off the coast of California4 and Chile. Blue whales are also studied through the attachment of satellite tags to track their movements over time and determine which areas are important for them. This approach helped to identify an overlap in blue whale habitat and shipping lanes off the coast of California5,6.

Natural Predators

The only known natural predator of blue whales is the killer whale7. A National Geographic documentary in 1978 showed the hunt and predation of a blue whale calf, but such events are rare: blue whales can usually outswim killer whales and escape any danger.

Human induced threats

While accidental entanglement in fishing gear poses the greatest threat to most other species of whale and dolphin, blue whales, with their great size and strength may be able to break free of gear more easily than other species. Reports of lethal entanglements for this species are rare, although 12% of blue whales found in eastern Canadian waters carry scarring consistent with fishing gear interaction1. Ship strike is thought to present a greater risk to blue whales, especially in areas where their habitat overlaps with shipping lanes, as it does off the coast of California and Sri Lanka5,6,8,9. Commercial exploitation of krill and climate change affecting the distribution of krill in various ocean basins could also have a negative impact on blue whales10.

Conservation status

Because a single blue whale yielded so much oil, it was highly prized by whalers, but until the advent of mechanized harpoons and factory ships that were fast enough and large enough to chase down and process blue whales, they had been relatively inaccessible. The greatest number of blue whales was taken in the first half of the 20th century, with nearly 30,000 whales killed in the 1930-31 season alone. Over 300,000 blue whales were killed in the Southern Hemisphere alone, and a further 20,000 in the North Atlantic and North Pacific combined.

Blue whales have been protected from hunting by the IWC since 1966, and today some populations appear to be recovering at rates of up to 7% per year11. But many populations appear to still be small, and others are difficult to study due to their diffuse distribution in offshore waters. Globally, the species is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and under Appendix 1 on the Convention on Migratory Species CMS. The Antarctic subspecies is listed as Critically Endangered due to the fact that the current estimated population is still less than 1% of its original pre-whaling size12. Pygmy blue whales are considered data deficient on the IUCN Red List, and Northern Indian Ocean blue whales have not been separately assessed, but would most likely also be considered data deficient.

Blue whales and whale watching

Please see the IWC Whalewatching Handbook

References

Show / Hide References

Sears, R. & Perrin, W. F. in Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals (eds W. Perrin, B. Wursig, & J.G.M. Thewissen) 121-124 (Elsevier, 2009).

Branch, T. A. et al. Past and present distribution, densities and movements of blue whales Balaenoptera musculus in the Southern Hemisphere and northern Indian Ocean. Mammal Review 37, 116-175 (2007).

Gendron, D. Population Ecology of the Blue Whales, Balaenoptera musculus, of the Baja California Peninsula PhD thesis, (2002).

Calambokidis, J. & Barlow, J. Abundance of blue and humpback whales in the Eastern North Pacific estimated by capture-recpature and line-transect methods. Marine Mammal Science 20, 63-85, doi:10.1111/j.1748-7692.2004.tb01141.x (2004).

Redfern, J. et al. Assessing the Risk of Ships Striking Large Whales in Marine Spatial Planning. Conservation Biology 27, 292-302 (2013).

Redfern, J. V. et al. Predicting cetacean distributions in data-poor marine ecosystems. Diversity and Distributions, n/a-n/a, doi:10.1111/ddi.12537 (2017).

Jefferson, T. A., Webber, M. A. & Pitman, R. L. Marine Mammals of the World: a Comprehensive Guide to their Identification. Second Edition. (San Diego: Academic Press, 2015).

de Vos, A., Brownell, R., Tershy, B. & Croll, D. Anthropogenic Threats and Conservation Needs of Blue Whales, Balaenoptera musculus indica, around Sri Lanka. Journal of Marine Biology 2016 (2016).

McKenna, M. F., Calambokidis, J., Oleson, E. M., Laist, D. W. & Goldbogen, J. A. Simultaneous tracking of blue whales and large ships demonstrates limited behavioral responses for avoiding collision. Endangered Species Research 27, 219-232 (2015).

Thomas, P. O., Reeves, R. R. & Brownell, R. L. Status of the world's baleen whales. Marine Mammal Science, doi:10.1111/mms.12281 (2015).

Branch, T. A., Matsuoka, K. & Miyashita, T. Evidence for increases in Antarctic blue whales based on Bayesian modelling Marine Mammal Science 20, 726-754, doi:10.1111/j.1748-7692.2004.tb01190.x.

Branch, T. A., Matsuoka, K. & Miyashita, T. Evidence for increases in Antarctic blue whales based on Bayesian modelling. Marine Mammal Science 20, 726-754 (2004).

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Blue Whale Facts: Complete Guide To The Largest Animal That Has Ever Lived

lue Whale Facts: Complete Guide To The Largest Animal That Has Ever Lived Skip to content Menu AnimalsAnimals: The Ultimate GuideTypes Of AnimalsA to Z AnimalsEndangered AnimalsWeird AnimalsUltimate GuidesBookstoreFree Printable WorksheetsExplore Active WildAnimal HabitatsFreshwater AnimalsOcean AnimalsRainforest AnimalsForest AnimalsTaiga AnimalsDesert AnimalsMountain AnimalsGrassland AnimalsAnimals Around The WorldAfrican AnimalsAntarctic AnimalsArctic AnimalsAsian AnimalsAustralian AnimalsEuropean AnimalsNorth American AnimalsSouth American AnimalsDinosaursTriassic DinosaursJurassic DinosaursCretaceous DinosaursTypes of DinosaursThe Triassic PeriodThe Jurassic PeriodThe Cretaceous PeriodCool DinosaursFamous DinosaursNature NewsAbout Active WildActive Wild BooksContactPrivacyTerms Of Service Blue Whale Facts: Complete Guide To The Largest Animal That Has Ever Lived July 27, 2023July 27, 2023 by Active Wild AdminThe blue whale is not just the world’s largest living animal; it’s also the largest animal ever to have lived. This huge marine mammal is bigger than the biggest dinosaurs!On this page is a complete guide to the blue whale. Meet The Blue WhaleThe blue whale (scientific name Balaenoptera musculus) holds the distinction of being the largest known animal ever to have lived on Earth, with individuals reaching up to 100 feet (30 meters) in length and weighing as much as 200 tons. The species is characterized by a mottled bluish-grey body and a broad, flat head.Despite its enormous size, the blue whale feeds predominantly on small, shrimp-like crustaceans called krill, consuming several tons per day during peak feeding season.Usually found either alone or in small groups, the blue whale keeps in touch with others with extraordinarily loud and low-pitched vocalizations.Found in every ocean around the world except the Arctic, the blue whale’s long-distance migration patterns take it from feeding grounds in high-latitude, nutrient-rich waters to warmer breeding and calving areas.Despite conservation efforts following severe population decline due to whaling in the 20th century, the blue whale remains an endangered species.Read on for an in-depth guide to the world’s largest animal…Page IndexBlue Whale Fun Facts & StatisticsWhat Is A Blue Whale?How Big Is A Blue Whale?What Does A Blue Whale Look Like?What Does The Blue Whale Eat?How Do Blue Whales Communicate?Where Are Blue Whales Found?Blue Whale Life CycleIs The Blue Whale Endangered?Discover More With Active WildRelated PagesSee every whale species on this page: Types of WhalesLove whales? See an awesome selection of gifts for whale lovers: Whale GiftsSee every dolphin species on this page: Types of DolphinsVisit our main animal page: AnimalsBlue Whale Fun FactsThe blue whale is larger than any known dinosaur.A blue whale’s spout can be up to 30 feet (roughly 9 meters) in height.The maximum speed of a blue whale is around 18.6 mph / 30 km/hThe deepest recorded dive of a blue whale was 315 meters (1,033 ft). The longest recorded dive lasted just over 15 minutes.Blue whales can live up to 90 years old.Blue whales lack teeth, and feed by filtering food from the water using comb-like baleen plates in their mouths.A nursing blue whale produces over 50 US gallons / 189.271 Liters of milk a day, and has the largest mammary glands of all mammals. The milk is between 35 and 50 % fat.Blue whales are among the fastest growing animals on earth.Female whales give birth to a single calf every 2-3 years.The heart of a blue whale weighs about 400 pounds (approximately 180 kilograms) – roughly the size of a small piano – and is large enough for a human to crawl through some of its arteries.A blue whale's tongue can weigh as much as an elephant - around 2.7 metric tons (about 5,952 pounds). The blue whale's mouth is so large that 50 people could stand inside it, and its tongue is so expansive that multiple people could lie down on it.Watch a video of a blue whale below: Blue Whale StatisticsScientific Name: Balaenoptera musculusOrder: ArtiodactylaFamily: BalaenopteridaeLength: Up to 30 meters (98 feet)Weight: Up to 200,000 kg (440,925 lb)Where Found: All the world's oceans, except the Arctic, with specific distribution depending on feeding and breeding seasonsIUCN Conservation Status: EndangeredWhat Is A Blue Whale?The blue whale uses incredibly loud and deep vocalizations to communicate over large distances.The blue whale is a marine mammal. Like all mammals, it is warm-blooded, breathes air, and gives birth to live young, which are fed by milk produced by the mammary glands of the female.You can find out more about mammals on these pages:Mammals – A Complete Guide To MammalsTypes of MammalsWhales belong to the infraorder Cetacea, a group of marine mammals whose members are known as cetaceans. Cetacea is home to all whales, dolphins and porpoises.Cetaceans evolved from terrestrial mammals around 50 million years ago, with their ancestors believed to be similar to present-day ungulates, or hoofed mammals. (The living land mammal most closely related to cetaceans is the hippo.)Cetacea is divided into two main groups: the baleen whales of parvorder Mysticeti, and the toothed whales of parvorder Odontoceti.What Type Of Whale Is The Blue Whale?The blue whale is a baleen whale in the rorqual whale family, BalaenopteridaeThe blue whale is a baleen whale. Baleen whales are characterized by their baleen plates, which they use to filter small prey like krill and plankton from seawater, and typically have two blowholes.(In contrast, toothed whales have teeth for capturing and eating larger prey, such as fish and squid, and possess a single blowhole.)Within Mysticeti, the blue whale is a member of the rorqual family (Balaenopteridae), which includes other large whales such as the humpback and the fin whale.The blue whale is further classified into three subspecies: B. m. musculus in the North Atlantic and North Pacific, B. m. intermedia in the Southern Ocean, and B. m. brevicauda (also known as the pygmy blue whale) in the Indian Ocean and South Pacific Ocean.Back to page indexHow Big Is A Blue Whale?The tail flukes of a blue whale are around 25 feet / 7.6 meters across!Blue whales are the largest animals ever to have lived on our planet, even out-sizing the largest dinosaurs. They can reach lengths of up to 100 feet (approximately 30 meters).The heaviest recorded blue whale weighed in at an astonishing 199 tons (approximately 180 metric tonnes), although their typical weight is around 100 to 150 tons (90-136 metric tonnes).Females are generally larger than males, a phenomenon seen in several whale species.Why Is The Blue Whale So Big?The blue whale evolved to its extraordinary size likely driven by an abundance of food (krill) and the lack of evolutionary pressures to remain small, such as predation or habitat constraints. However, the specific factors that led to the blue whale's exceptional size are still a subject of scientific research.What Does A Blue Whale Look Like?The body of a blue whale is long and slender, culminating in a broad, flat head that makes up about a quarter of the animal’s total length. The whale’s streamlined shape allows it to travel quickly and efficiently through the water.The whale’s mouth is equipped with plates of baleen instead of teeth. These comb-like structures are used to filter the whale’s primary food, krill, from the water.The blue whale’s skin is primarily a mottled bluish-grey, though it can appear different colors in different lighting or when viewed from different angles. The blue whale gets its name from its blue appearance when in the water.The blue whale has a relatively small dorsal fin set far back on its body and flippers that are around one-seventh of its body length.The whale’s tail fin, or fluke, can span up to 25 feet (7.6 meters) across and is used to propel the massive creature through the water.Blue Whale SpoutA blue whale's blow, or spout, can reach impressive heights due to the whale's large size and powerful lungs. The spout is the result of the whale exhaling air through its blowhole upon surfacing. The exhaled air and water vapor can shoot up to about 30 feet (roughly 9 meters) in the air, creating a distinctive tall, straight column that's visible from a distance. It's an iconic sight and often the first sign for whale watchers that a blue whale is present.Back to page indexWhat Does The Blue Whale Eat?Krill. These small crustaceans form the bulk of the diets of some of the largest animals on Earth, including the blue whale.The blue whale’s diet consists almost entirely of krill – shrimp-like crustaceans around 1-2cm in length. An adult whale can eat up to 40 million / 8,000 lbs (3628.74 kg) of krill a day.The whale can only eat small prey because it has a very narrow oesophagus (throat).When feeding, the blue whale employs a strategy known as "lunge feeding," in which it accelerates towards a dense swarm of krill, open its mouth widely, and takes in a huge volume of water and krill. The whale then uses its massive tongue to push the water out through the baleen plates, which act as a sieve, trapping the krill inside, which are then swallowed whole.Back to page indexHow Do Blue Whales Communicate?Blue whales are renowned for their powerful and far-traveling vocalizations, which are among the loudest and lowest frequency sounds made by any animal.Their vocalizations can reach up to 188 decibels – louder than a jet engine – and their low frequency calls, some as deep as 10 Hz, can travel vast distances across the ocean, potentially up to hundreds of miles under ideal conditions.The whales produce a variety of sounds, including pulses, buzzes, and rasps, but are most well-known for their haunting, melodic songs, primarily produced by males, whose purpose is thought to be related to communication and mate attraction.Blue whale songs are highly structured and evolve over time, with each population exhibiting unique vocal patterns.Where Are Blue Whales Found?Blue whales are found in all the world's oceans, except the Arctic, with a wide global distribution. They typically inhabit vast, open waters, and their specific range depends largely on the time of year and availability of their preferred prey, krill.During feeding seasons, blue whales are found in high-latitude, nutrient-rich waters such as the North Atlantic and North Pacific Oceans and the Southern Ocean surrounding Antarctica.In winter, blue whales migrate to warmer, tropical and subtropical waters to breed and give birth, including along the coasts of Mexico and Costa Rica in the Pacific, the Indian Ocean near Sri Lanka, and the Atlantic Ocean near the Canary Islands.Notably, blue whales exhibit high fidelity to their feeding and breeding areas, traveling thousands of miles between to the same locations year after year.The global blue whale population is fragmented and varies regionally, with some areas showing signs of slow recovery since the end of commercial whaling, while others remain critically low.Back to page indexBlue Whale Life CycleMating occurs typically in warmer, tropical waters. The gestation period lasts approximately 11 to 12 months. Following this, a single calf is born, which can measure up to 8 meters (26 feet) in length and weigh as much as 3 tons.The newborn is nurtured with its mother's fat-rich milk, which helps it gain about 90 kilograms (200 pounds) each day during the first year of life.Weaning occurs between 6 to 7 months of age, after which the young whale starts to feed on krill. Blue whales reach sexual maturity at around 5 to 10 years of age, with females tending to mature slightly earlier than males. The breeding frequency for blue whales is every two to three years.Adult blue whales have few predators, with only some reports of orca pods attacking the very young or weak individuals. However, humans have historically been their most significant threat, hunting them nearly to extinction during the 20th century. Natural lifespan of a blue whale is thought to be around 70 to 90 years, although there are records of individuals living over 100 years.Is The Blue Whale Endangered?The blue whale is an endangered species. This is largely due to the extensive commercial whaling during the 19th and 20th centuries that drastically reduced global blue whale populations.Although commercial whaling was banned by the International Whaling Commission in 1986, blue whale populations have been slow to recover.Today, blue whales continue to face threats from ship strikes, entanglement in fishing gear and ocean noise pollution, which can interfere with their communication and navigation. Conservation efforts are ongoing to protect and help recover blue whale populations.Back to page indexDiscover More With Active WildSee every whale species on this page: Types of WhalesLove whales? See an awesome selection of gifts for whale lovers: Whale GiftsSee every dolphin species on this page: Types of DolphinsVisit our main animal page: Animals Categories Species Profile: MammalFin Whale Facts & Pictures: The World’s Second Largest AnimalSpinner Dolphin Facts, Pictures, Complete Species GuideLeave a Comment Cancel replyCommentName Email Website SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter and get a FREE Animal Kingdom Fact Sheet. Click here or on the image to join up, or click here for more information.Active Wild News and facts on animals, natural history and science.Click the picture above for more details & to view free sample pages!Download Active Wild Apps!Search Active WildSearchLove Natural History? Subscribe To Our FREE NewsletterJoin the thousands of Active Wild subscribers who receive free wildlife and science news & info direct to their inboxes!Click the link below to find out more and to sign up! 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Blue Whale

Skip to contentSearchShopGamesPuzzlesActionFunny Fill-InVideosAmazing AnimalsWeird But True!Party AnimalsTry This!AnimalsMammalsBirdsPrehistoricReptilesAmphibiansInvertebratesFishExplore MoreMagazinehistoryScienceSpaceU.S. StatesWeird But True!SubscribemenuPlease be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.1 / 61 / 6Since each fluke (tail fin) is unique, like a human fingerprint, scientists use flukes to monitor the habits and migrations of individual whales.Since each fluke (tail fin) is unique, like a human fingerprint, scientists use flukes to monitor the habits and migrations of individual whales.Photograph by Richard Fitzer, ShutterstockAnimalsMammalsBlue WhaleThe blue whale is the largest mammal in the world.Common Name: Blue WhaleScientific Name: Balaenoptera musculusType: MammalsDiet: CarnivoreGroup Name: PodAverage Life Span In The Wild: 80 to 90 yearsSize: 82 to 105 feetWeight: Up to 200 tonsBlue whales are able to breathe air, but they are very comfortable in the ocean waters where buoyancy helps to support their incredible bulk. These mammals are found in all the world's oceans and often swim in small groups or alone.A blue whale calf weighs two tons (1,814 kilograms) at birth and gains an extra 200 pounds (91 kilograms) each day of its first year. These giant creatures feed on tiny shrimplike animals called krill.Check out where blue whales live.National Geographic MapsPlease be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.Only a few thousand blue whales are believed to swim the world's oceans. They were hunted for many years for their blubber and oil, and they were almost hunted to extinction. They were protected under the 1966 International Whaling Convention and are now considered to be an endangered species.1:15Blue WhaleA blue whale's heart is the size of a small car! Learn more amazing facts about these amazing creatures with National Geographic Kids.LegalTerms of UsePrivacy PolicyYour California Privacy RightsChildren's Online Privacy PolicyInterest-Based AdsAbout Nielsen MeasurementDo Not Sell My InfoOur SitesNational GeographicNational Geographic EducationShop Nat GeoCustomer ServiceJoin UsSubscribeManage Your Subscription Copyright © 1996-2015 National Geographic SocietyCopyright © 2015-2024 National Geographic Partners, LLC. All rights reserved

Blue Whale | The Canadian Encyclopedia

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MLA 8TH EDITION

Serralheiro-O'Neill, Benjamin. "Blue Whale". The Canadian Encyclopedia, 23 March 2021, Historica Canada. www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/blue-whale. Accessed 07 March 2024.

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Serralheiro-O'Neill, B. (2021). Blue Whale. In The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/blue-whale

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Serralheiro-O'Neill, Benjamin. "Blue Whale." The Canadian Encyclopedia. Historica Canada. Article published March 23, 2021; Last Edited March 23, 2021.

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article

Blue Whale

Article by

Benjamin Serralheiro-O'Neill

Published Online

March 23, 2021

Last Edited

March 23, 2021

The blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) is the largest animal known to have ever lived on Earth. It is a difficult whale to study because of its low numbers and its preference for deep, offshore waters. Within Balaenoptera musculus,

authorities recognize between three and five subspecies. Blue whales live in oceans throughout the world, including off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts

of Canada. Although blue whale sightings are rare, experts believe that about 250 mature individuals live off each coast.

Physical Description

Blue whales are light to blue grey, with light and dark patches on most of their bodies. Their dorsal fins are relatively small. They have broad heads, which look U-shaped from above and flattened from the side. At birth, a blue whale calf is already

6–7 m long and weighs 2–3 tonnes. Later, it will grow to be 23–30 m long — about the length of three school buses — and weigh 50–150 tonnes. Females tend to be slightly larger than males, and some subspecies are larger than others. For example, blue

whales in the southern hemisphere — especially the Antarctic — are usually larger than their northern cousins. When a blue whale is resting, it tends to sink because its body has negative buoyancy. This makes it easier to dive and also means that a blue

whale sinks to the ocean floor when it dies.

Geographic Distribution and Habitat

Blue whales are found in oceans almost anywhere on Earth. When feeding, they can be seen in estuaries and shallow coastal areas. Otherwise, they usually stay far offshore. Some individuals migrate seasonally between higher and lower latitudes. Experts

estimate that there are between 10,000 and 25,000 blue whales alive today, including between 1,000 and 3,000 in the North Atlantic Ocean and between 2,000 and 5,000

in the Pacific Ocean.

Lifespan and Reproduction

Similar to how a tree’s age can be read from its growth rings, a blue whale’s age can be estimated from the waxy accumulation in its ears. From this, scientists know that blue whales can live for 70–90 years — and possibly longer. Females reach sexual

maturity around 10 years old, and males 12 years old. From this age, females can give birth to single calves once every two or three years. Calves are born after a 10–12-month gestation period and begin to grow quickly right away. From birth to between

six and eight months of age, calves drink up to 200 litres of their mother’s thick, 30–40 per cent fat milk each day, growing up to 100 kg daily. Blue whales usually mate with each other, but scientists have occasionally observed cross-breeding, notably

with fin whales.

Diet and Behaviour

Blue whales do not stay long at the surface of the ocean, instead diving for between 5 and 15 minutes at a time.

The blue whale’s favourite food is krill, a small shrimp-like crustacean. An adult whale can eat up to four tonnes a day. To do this, it lunges forward and takes large quantities of water and prey into its mouth. It then partly shuts its mouth and presses

its tongue against its upper jaw, straining the water out through baleen plates and eating what’s left behind.

In addition to being the world’s largest animal, the blue whale is one of the loudest. Its songs, sung at up to 188 decibels, can be heard hundreds of kilometres away. For comparison, a rocket launch is about 180 decibels. However, the blue whale’s songs

are generally infrasonic, meaning that they are made at such low frequencies that they are inaudible to the human ear.

Blue whales are usually found alone or in small groups of two to four. They do not stay long at the surface and instead dive for 5–15 minutes at a time. Scientists have also recorded dives exceeding 30 minutes.

Relationship to Humans

Though blue whales were hunted to near extinction in the 20th century, their populations are slowly increasing in most areas. Still, today’s population is only about 3–11 per cent of what it was before large-scale hunting began. Before 1868, the blue

whale was too fast and too strong to be caught. Then the invention of the exploding harpoon gun ushered in 110 years of blue whale catches. These hunts began in the North Atlantic but spread elsewhere once stocks dwindled. Overall, the main contribution to population loss was in the Antarctic, where the largest group of blue whales previously lived. The last recorded catches were in 1978. Blue whales continue to be monitored and

studied using satellite tags and acoustic detectors.

ThreatsNowadays, the only known natural predator to the blue whale is the killer whale, although it is generally a minor threat. Other sources of blue whale injury and mortality include

ice entrapment, fishnet entanglement, ship strikes, noise and water pollution, prey depletion and disruption from whale watching activities. Ship strikes may be the largest threat. For example, about 16 per cent of blue whales found in the Gulf of St. Lawrence bear

deep wounds and scars that are likely due to such events. When blue whales are exposed to noise pollution, such as seismic exploration and military sonar, they tend to stop feeding. Water pollution can be from agricultural run-off, oil spills and plastics.

Studies show that, because of ocean currents and fronts, ocean-borne plastics tend to concentrate in areas where whales feed. Prey depletion is also a growing problem. In some cases, krill may be heavily harvested by humans, which decreases the amount

available to blue whales. Climate change is also making oceans warmer and more acidic, which will likely lead to a further decline in krill.

Conservation

Since 1966, blue whales have been protected globally by the International Whaling Commission. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora lists the species as endangered and forbids any commercial trade of its products.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) considers the blue whale endangered and the Antarctic subspecies critically endangered. This subspecies has lost almost all of its members and deserves special attention. However, there are encouraging

trends. The IUCN and several researchers have confirmed that many blue whale populations are slowly increasing.

In Canada, both Atlantic and Pacific populations are considered endangered by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada and the Species at Risk Act. Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s long-term recovery strategy aims for the blue

whale population in Canada to eventually reach at least 1,000 mature individuals. (See also Endangered Animals in Canada.)

Blue Whale Taxonomy

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Mammalia

Order

Cetacea

Family

Balaenopteridae

Genus

Balaenoptera

Species

Balaenoptera musculus

endangered species

wildlife

whale

External Links

Species At Risk Learn more about the blue whale from the Government of Canada’s Species at Risk Public Registry.

ICUN Red List The Red List of Threatened Species, maintained by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, includes the blue whale. Find out more about the species from their website.

Recommended

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Northern Bottlenose Whale

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Pacific Ocean and Canada

Article

Endangered Animals in Canada

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