![]() They’re often found in groups, and like to breach and play on the surface, which historically made them easier targets for hunters. One gross fact about right whales is that those patches are white because they’re covered in whale lice. These patches, called callosities, are unique, and help researchers who study them identify individual animals. Right whales have distinctive rough white patches like giant warts on their heads and bodies. The largest species-the North Pacific right whale-weighs up to 220,000 pounds, or 110 tons. The right whale is a truly hefty creature. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) estimates that there are about 10,000 of these whales left. “Ivory and stone harpoon heads last used in the late 1800s have been recovered from five bowheads harvested in the last 25 years,” says Quakenbush. They winter in subarctic regions in the Atlantic and Pacific but move north into the Arctic over the summer to feed.īowheads might be some of the longest living animals on Earth, possibly living to 150 or 200 years. Indigenous hunters report seeing bowhead whales break through ice up to 2 feet thick with their giant heads.Īlthough they swim very slowly, they cover a lot of distance in their yearly travels. They use their extremely large heads for breaking through ice so they can breathe. They’re specially adapted for cold water living, and sport an insulating layer of blubber 1.5 feet thick, according to Lori Quakenbush of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. The bowhead whale is enormous, reaching 60 feet long and weighing upwards of 120,000 pounds, or 60 tons. ![]() They were killed extensively by commercial whalers in the 19 th and 20 th centuries, most famously in Herman Melville’s novel, Moby Dick. The National Wildlife Federation suggests they number around 300,000. Sperm whales are an endangered species, like all the whales on this list. We do know that they form close-knit social groups, much like humans and elephants. This makes it difficult for scientists to learn about their movements and migration patterns. They rarely come into coastal waters, though, and spend their time on the open seas. These whales are found in all the major oceans. Their favourite food, however, says WDC, is the giant squid. They can “dive to depths of up to 3km and hold their breath for an incredible 2 hours.” Sperm whales echolocate when they hunt, searching for octopus, fish and sharks. Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC) tells us that aside from their intimidating teeth, sperm whales have impressive diving powers to help them hunt for their food. These teeth can be almost 8 inches long and weigh over 2 pounds a piece. Unlike the other whales on this list, sperm whales have teeth instead of baleen. Their heads take up about a third of their body length. In addition to being one of the largest animals on Earth, sperm whales also have the largest brains on the planet. Sperm whales can grow over 50 feet in length and weigh up to 90,000 pounds, or 45 tons.
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