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blue whale
blue whale a baleen whale , Balaenoptera musculus. Also called the sulphur-bottom whale and Sibbald's rorqual, it is the largest animal that has ever lived. Blue whales have been known to reach a length of 100 ft (30.5 m) and to weigh as much as 120 tons; average length is about 75 ft (23 m). The blue whale is slate blue in color and has a dorsal fin. It is toothless and has fringed baleen, or whalebone, plates in its mouth, which act as a food strainer. As water is expelled from the whale's mouth, plankton is trapped behind the strainer. The neck of the blue whale has 80 to 100 conspicuous furrows called ventral grooves, which alternately expand and contract as the animal takes in and expels water. The blue whale is cosmopolitan in distribution. In summer it inhabits polar seas, feeding in the water of melting icepacks; in winter it migrates to warmer latitudes, occasionally reaching the equator. Mating occurs at the end of winter, with a single calf born every second or third year, after a gestation period of 10 to 11 months. The calf is nursed for 6 months and reaches puberty in about 3 years. Blue whales may live 100 years or more. Because of extensive whaling , their numbers have been reduced from an estimated 400,000 to about 12,000, and they are listed as endangered. They are classified in the phylum Chordata , subphylum Vertebrata, class Mammalia, order Cetacea, family Balaenopteridae.
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"blue whale." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "blue whale." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 12, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-bluewhal.html "blue whale." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 12, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-bluewhal.html |
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blue whale
blue whale Baleen whale, related to the rorquals. The blue whale is the largest animal that has ever lived, reaching up to 30m (100ft) in length and weighing as much as 120 tonnes. In summer it lives in polar seas. Mating occurs at the end of winter and the whales migrate to warmer latitudes to give birth. A single calf is born every two or three years, after a 10–11 month gestation period. They live up to 50 years. Overhunting has led to threat of extinction. Species Balaenoptera musculus.
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"blue whale." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "blue whale." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (February 12, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-bluewhale.html "blue whale." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved February 12, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-bluewhale.html |
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blue whale
blue whale • n. a migratory, mottled bluish-gray rorqual (Balaenoptera musculus), found in all oceans of the world. Known to grow as long as 110 feet (33 m) and weigh as much as 150 tons (136,000 kg), it is the largest animal ever to inhabit the earth. |
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"blue whale." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "blue whale." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (February 12, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-bluewhale.html "blue whale." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved February 12, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-bluewhale.html |
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blue whale
blue whale (Sibbalds's rorqual, Balaenoptera musculus) See BALAENOPTERIDAE.
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MICHAEL ALLABY. "blue whale." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MICHAEL ALLABY. "blue whale." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. (February 12, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O8-bluewhale.html MICHAEL ALLABY. "blue whale." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Retrieved February 12, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O8-bluewhale.html |
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