|
| |
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
EDRANGE HOMEWORK
HELPER
Facts about whales |
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
Facts
about whales |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
Easy to read facts
about whales to help with school projects
|
- blue whale - bowhead whale - fin
whale - gray whale - humpback whale - sperm whale -
|
| |
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
BLUE WHALE
(Balaenoptera musculus) |
| Class |
Mammalia |
| Order |
Cetacea |
| Suborder |
Mysticeti |
| Family |
Balaenopteridae |
| Genus |
Balaenoptera |
| Species |
Balaenoptera
musculus |
| Length |
Approx
23 to 24.5 m |
| Weight |
Approx
99 800 kg |
| Colour |
Blue-gray
in colour |
| Diet |
-
Euphausiids or krill (small, shrimp-like creatures)
- During the summer feeding season can consume 4 tons of krill or more
each day |
| Distribution |
Worldwide
Winter months - mate and calve in tropical-to-temperate waters
Summer months - Arctic and Antarctic |
|
BOWHEAD WHALE
(Balaena mysticetus) |
| Class |
Mammalia |
| Order |
Cetacea |
| Suborder |
Mysticeti |
| Family |
Balaenidae |
| Genus |
Balaena |
| Species |
Balaena mysticetus |
| Length |
15
m |
| Weight |
60 tons |
| Colour |
-
Blue-black in color
- Variable amount of white on
the lower jaw
|
| Diet |
Planktonic organisms
- copepods, amphipods, uphausiids and other crustaceans
Consumes about 2 tons
of food a day |
| Distribution |
Near
the Arctic icepack
Seasonal migration
- Winter (Bering Sea)
- Summer (Beaufort Sea/ Arctic Ocean) |
|
GRAY WHALE
(Balaenoptera physalus)
|
| Class |
Mammalia |
| Order |
Cetacea |
| Suborder |
Mysticeti |
| Family |
Balaenopteridae |
| Genus |
Balaenoptera |
| Species |
Balaenoptera physalus |
| Length |
24
- 26.8 m |
| Weight |
50-70 tons |
| Colour |
Light
grey to brownish-black on its back and sides |
| Diet |
Schooling
fish, euphausiids or krill (small, shrimp-like creatures) |
| Distribution |
Worldwide
Winter months - mate/calve in subtropical waters
Summer months - Arctic and Antarctic |
FIN WHALE
(Balaenoptera physalus)
|
| Class |
Mammalia |
| Order |
Cetacea |
| Suborder |
Mysticeti |
| Family |
Eschrichtiidae |
| Genus |
Eschrichtius |
| Species |
Eschrichtius robustus |
| Length |
13.7
- 15 m |
| Weight |
30-40 tons |
| Colour |
Gray patches and white mottling on its
dark skin |
| Diet |
Small crustaceans
- amphipods and tube worms
Feed primarily during the summer months |
HUMPBACK WHALE
(Megaptera novaeangliae)
|
| Class |
Mammalia |
| Order |
Cetacea |
| Suborder |
Mysticeti |
| Family |
Balaenopteridae |
| Genus |
Megaptera |
| Species |
Megaptera novaeangliae |
| Length |
13.7-15.2
m |
| Weight |
25 to 40 tons |
| Colour |
-
Black on the dorsal (upper) side
- Mottled black and white on the
ventral (under) side |
| Diet |
-
Krill (shrimp-like creatures) and small fish
- Eats 1.5 tons of food a day |
|
SPERM WHALE
(Physeter macrocephalus)
|
| Class |
Mammalia |
| Order |
Cetacea |
| Suborder |
Odontoceti |
| Family |
Physeteridae |
| Genus |
Physeter |
| Species |
Physeter macrocephalus |
| Length |
15-18
m |
| Weight |
35-45 tons |
| Colour |
-
Dark, brownish grey
- Light streaks, spots and scratches
- White skin around the mouth |
| Diet |
-
Fish, squid, octopus and skate
- Eats 1ton of food a day |
COPYRIGHT EDRANGE
PUBLICATIONS 2002
RETURN TO ANIMAL
INFORMATION SHEET INDEX
|
