Top 10 biggest whales in the world

10. Minke minke (length 10.7 m)

Whales with a white belly, a fin and stripes on their heads stay in small groups, only during the seasonal migration of krill, these whales stray into large populations of up to 100 individuals. They spend the summer in temperate latitudes, moving to the tropics for the winter. Found all over the globe.

Tourists love to watch minke whales while hunting: large gray-white animals are very mobile, pirouettes are not worse than dolphins, completely jump out of the water, and then fall into the water with noise, raising fountains of spray. Up to 1,000 whales are mined annually by whaling ships in the North, and Japan accounts for up to 90% of the catch. The rest of the carcasses go to Norway, Iceland.

9. Northern right whale (length 17 m)

The smooth-skinned inhabitants of the Atlantic reach 100 tons of weight. They differ from their relatives in a flat back, it does not have a fin. The average size of individuals is from 13 to 16 meters, females are usually larger than males. The population of northern right whales is small, there are about 300 individuals in the world. Hunting this species of mammals is prohibited.

White spots often grow on the dark blue head and at the tail of slow giants – small crustaceans parasitize on the skin, forming large populations. They form hard growths on whales. The northern whale moves at a speed of up to 8 kilometers per hour, makes high-frequency sounds similar to singing and groans.

8. Humpback whale (length 19.5 m)

The humpback or long-armed minke whale differs from minke whales in its wide mountain-like dorsal fin and narrow side flippers up to 1/3 of the body length. Flexible, agile humpback whales weigh about 50 tons. They have dense, shortened bodies, a flattened head with a protruding jaw. The average length of individuals is up to 17.5 meters.

They live in the subpolar latitudes of the Southern and Northern Hemispheres. The color of humpback whales depends on the habitat, there are brown and dark blue individuals with large black and white spots. The coloration is individual, cubs are born mainly in summer. During feeding, the whales forcefully hit the water with their huge tail, stun the fish, and then collect it with their huge mouth like a scoop.

7. Japanese whale (length 20 m)

Dark mammals are distinguished from other species of right whales by a small dorsal fin shifted towards the tail. The smooth skin becomes covered with callused leathery growths with age. The whale has a small head, a mouth with a curved lower jaw. On average, animals reach 18 meters in length, 80 tons. Dense, even bodies are overgrown with white spots – crustaceans parasitizing on the skin. Females become sexually mature not earlier than 6 years of age, give birth every 3-5 years, not more often.

The population of graceful, leisurely whales is small – up to 400 individuals, animals are found only off the coast of Japan and Mexico. Separately, the Okhotsk population is distinguished, about 100 females come to give birth to the coast of Kamchatka.

6. Southern right whale (length 20.7 m)

The whale does not have a dorsal fin, the huge head is up to 1/3 of the body length. The average length of individuals is up to 18 years, weight is up to 80 tons, cubs are born from 4 to 5.5 meters long, females are slightly larger than males. Southern right whales live in tropical latitudes. Slow animals that live near the coast have received the nickname “correct whales” from English whalers. They became easy prey, the carcasses always remained on the surface, they were easy to tow to the shore.

In the last century, when the hunting of marine mammals was banned, the population of southern right whales increased significantly, there are about 7 thousand animals in the world. The main enemies are killer whales, they hunt clumsy cubs.

5. Sperm Whale (length 21 m)

The largest species of toothed whales lives throughout the world’s oceans. Females are much smaller than males, males grow on average up to 19 meters, reach a weight of up to 50 tons. Unlike other representatives, sperm whales are distinguished by their aggressiveness, they have repeatedly tossed boats and small vessels with their rectangular head. Looking at these mammals, there is confidence in the conclusions of scientists – they consider hippos to be the progenitors of whales.

The whale’s head is up to 1/3 of the body length. The teeth of the sperm whale grow unevenly at the top and bottom. Up to 3 pairs of huge teeth at the top, weighing up to a kilogram. Below are the remaining 26 pairs, they are much smaller than the top ones. Predators do not disdain sharks, turtles, swallow prey whole. In search of food, they dive up to 20 meters.

4. Seiwal (length 21.3 m)

A large baleen whale with a pointed snout grows on average up to 17 meters, reaches 30 tons of weight. A moving whale is often called a torpedo, the animal is able to move at speeds up to 25 kilometers per hour, they live throughout the world’s oceans, with the exception of equatorial waters. The smooth back is often covered with spots – the consequences of injuries, parasitic lesions.

Females are larger than males, give birth every year, mate in winter. Whales keep in small groups up to 5 individuals, cubs are breastfed for up to 7 months. This species is distinguished from other baleen whales by a powerful dorsal fin located in the caudal part of the body, and small pectoral flippers. Mammals are long-lived, on average they live up to 75 years.

3. Bowhead whale (length 22 m)

On average, males grow up to 18 meters, females reach 150 tons. The inhabitants of the cold waters of the Arctic live an average of 40 years, although there are centenarians up to 100 years or more. Bowhead whales are distinguished by good muscle mass. The path among the ice is pierced by a powerful body, throwing itself onto the ice floes.

Every day, each whale eats up to 1.8 tons of plankton, krill, small fish, and filters the prey with a huge curved mouth. An air cavity is clearly visible in the rounded back; whales delight travelers and scientists with powerful fountains. Smooth skin without growths is covered with light or dark spots. The whale is able not to breathe for up to 40 minutes, dives to a depth of 200 meters.

2. Fin whale (length 27 m)

The largest minke whale lives in subpolar latitudes of both hemispheres in small groups of up to 6 individuals. The second name of the whale is herring. The height of the fountain reaches 6 meters. The maximum speed is 50 kilometers per hour. Females give birth to young every year. They often become prey for sharks. The maximum diving depth is 230 meters.

The shape of the whales does not change with age, babies are born a copy of their parents. In proportion, the whale resembles a large fish with an elongated snout. The high dorsal fin adds similarity. Two respiratory canals are clearly visible on the head, the skin is unevenly covered with spots. The mouth of a fin whale is pink or white with 360 plates. When diving, the whale strongly bends its tail, is able not to breathe for up to half an hour.

1. Blue whale (length 33 m)

The blue whale is the largest whale in the world. This large marine mammal is a long-liver, living up to 100 years. They prefer to live in solitude, gathering in small groups only for the mating period. The maximum weight of females is 150 tons.

The animal population is huge, there are about 10 thousand individuals in the world, they feed on shoals of small fish species, plankton, crustaceans. Up to 2.2 tons of feed are swallowed per day. Cubs are born weighing more than two tons, up to 7 meters long, grow at a speed of up to 4 kilograms per hour. By six months, they suck out more than a ton of milk.

The brain of a mammal is small, up to 6 kilograms. Blue whales can hear each other at a distance of 1600 kilometers. The biggest whales and the loudest.