Whales Trivia | 30 facts about the sea animal

The whales are considered as some of the most dangerous (and undoubtedly large) animals, that live in the sea.

Let’s find out more about the animal!

1. Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully aquatic placental marine mammals.
2. They are an informal grouping within the infraorder Cetacea, usually excluding dolphins and porpoises.
3. Whales, dolphins and porpoises belong to the order Cetartiodactyla, which consists of even-toed ungulates.
4. Their closest living relatives are the hippopotamuses.
5. They have diverged about 40 million years ago.
6. The two parvorders of whales, baleen whales (Mysticeti) and toothed whales (Odontoceti).
7. They are thought to have split apart around 34 million years ago.
8. Whales consist of eight extant families: Balaenopteridae (the rorquals), Balaenidae (right whales), Cetotheriidae (the pygmy right whale), Eschrichtiidae (the grey whale), Monodontidae (belugas and narwhals), Physeteridae (the sperm whale), Kogiidae (the dwarf and pygmy sperm whale), and Ziphiidae (the beaked whales).
9. Whales are fully aquatic, open ocean creatures, and feed, mate, give birth, suckle and raise their young at sea.
10. Whales range in size from the 2.6 metres (8.5 ft) and 135 kilograms (298 lb) dwarf sperm whale to the 29.9 metres (98 ft) and 190 metric tons (210 short tons) blue whale.
11. The blue whale is the largest known creature that has ever lived.
12. The sperm whale is the largest toothed predator on earth.
13. Several species exhibit sexual dimorphism.
14. In that the females are larger than males.
15. Baleen whales have no teeth.
16. Instead they have plates of baleen, a fringe-like structure used to expel water while retaining the krill and plankton which they feed on.
17. They use their throat pleats to expand the mouth to take in huge gulps of water.
18. Balaenids have heads that can make up 40% of their body mass to take in water.
19. Toothed whales, on the other hand, have conical teeth adapted to catching fish or squid.
20. Baleen whales have a well developed sense of “smell”, whereas toothed whales have well-developed hearing − their hearing, that is adapted for both air and water, is so well developed that some can survive even if they are blind.
21. Some species, such as sperm whales, are well adapted for diving to great depths to catch squid and other favoured prey.
22. The blue whale weighs as 24 elephants ALL TOGETHER.
23. s. Scientists estimate bowhead whales (a baleen whale found in the Arctic) can live for more than 200 years
24. Also, the killer whales (a toothed whale found in various habitats worldwide) can live for more than 100 years.
25. Killier whales are highly social and often travel in groups that are matrifocal—a family unit focused or centered on the mother.
26. Gray whales make one of the longest annual migrations of any mammal: they travel about 10,000 miles (16,000 km) round trip!
27. The term “whale” is sometimes used interchangeably with dolphins and porpoises, acting as a synonym for Cetacea.
28. Six species of dolphins have the word “whale” in their name, collectively known as blackfish: the killer whale, the melon-headed whale, the pygmy killer whale, the false killer whale, and the two species of pilot whales, all of which are classified under the family Delphinidae (oceanic dolphins).
29. Sperm whales were almost driven to extinction by commercial whalers who sought the whales’ blubber and the unique oil derived from the “spermaceti organ” found in their massive heads. The spermaceti organ is a key part of their echolocation system.with ships.
30. The minke whale is the smallest baleen whale in North American waters.