🐋 All About Whales
Whales are the largest animals that have ever lived on our planet — and among the most intelligent. They sing complex songs, form close social bonds, mourn their dead and travel thousands of kilometres every year. Whales were nearly hunted to extinction in the 20th century, but a global ban has allowed some populations to slowly recover. Understanding whales is essential to protecting them.
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Blue Whale
- The largest animal ever to live on Earth — bigger than any dinosaur
- Up to 33 metres long and weighing up to 200 tonnes
- Its heart is the size of a small car and can be heard 3 km away
- A blue whale calf gains 90 kg per day in its first year
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Humpback Whale
- Humpbacks sing incredibly complex songs lasting up to 20 minutes
- All male humpbacks in the same ocean sing the same song, which slowly evolves over time
- They travel up to 25,000 km per year on migration
- Humpbacks leap completely out of the water — a behaviour called breaching
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Sperm Whale
- The largest toothed predator on Earth, growing up to 20 metres
- Can dive to 3,000 metres and hold its breath for over 90 minutes
- Hunts giant squid in total darkness using echolocation
- Has the largest brain of any animal ever to have lived
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Narwhal
- The narwhal’s ‘horn’ is actually a left tooth that can grow to 3 metres
- Only males have tusks — female narwhals occasionally grow one too
- Narwhals live in Arctic waters year-round, even under sea ice
- The tusk has millions of nerve endings — it may detect temperature and salinity
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How Whales Communicate
- Whales produce sound using no vocal cords — instead they move air through nasal passages
- Blue whale calls reach 188 decibels — louder than a jet engine
- Sperm whales use clicks (echolocation) to find prey in total darkness
- Whale calls can travel thousands of kilometres through the ocean
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Whales Need Protection
- Commercial whaling in the 20th century killed over 2 million whales
- A global whaling moratorium was introduced in 1986
- Threats today: ship strikes, entanglement in fishing nets, plastic and noise pollution
- Blue whale numbers have partially recovered but remain Endangered
✨ Amazing Whale Facts
🐋 A blue whale’s tongue weighs as much as an elephant — about 2.7 tonnes.
🐌 Humpback whale songs were recorded on a vinyl record, ‘Songs of the Humpback Whale’, in 1970 — it became one of the best-selling nature recordings ever and helped spark the ‘Save the Whales’ movement.
👀 Whales are descended from land mammals — their ancient ancestors walked on four legs about 50 million years ago.
🐘 Sperm whales sleep vertically, floating head-up near the surface in groups, completely motionless for up to 20 minutes at a time.
⚫ The narwhal is sometimes called the ‘unicorn of the sea’ — medieval Europeans who traded its tusk believed they were selling unicorn horn.
🐋 Blue whales eat almost exclusively krill — tiny shrimp-like creatures. They consume up to 4 tonnes per day.
🤔 Whale Quiz
Click each answer to check it instantly!
Question 1 of 6
What is the largest animal ever to live on Earth?
- The Tyrannosaurus rex
- The blue whale
- The African elephant
- The sperm whale
Question 2 of 6
What is special about humpback whale songs?
- All males in the same ocean sing the same evolving song
- Each whale has its own unique song
- Songs are too high-pitched for humans to hear
- Only female humpbacks sing
Question 3 of 6
How deep can a sperm whale dive?
- About 800 metres
- About 3,000 metres
- About 200 metres
- About 10,000 metres
Question 4 of 6
What is the narwhal's 'horn' actually?
- A left canine tooth that can grow to 3 metres
- Compressed cartilage like a rhino horn
- A modified dorsal fin
- A bone from the forehead
Question 5 of 6
How loud is a blue whale's call?
- About 150 decibels — like thunder
- About 120 decibels — like a concert
- About 188 decibels — louder than a jet engine
- About 90 decibels — like a lawnmower
Question 6 of 6
When was the global commercial whaling ban introduced?
📚 Key Words
echolocation
Using sound waves and their echoes to locate objects. Sperm and toothed whales use echolocation to hunt in darkness.
breaching
When a whale leaps completely or partially out of the water and crashes back down. Humpback whales breach frequently.
baleen
Comb-like plates in the mouths of some whales (including blue whales) used to filter krill and small fish from water.
moratorium
A temporary ban on an activity. The 1986 commercial whaling moratorium halted most large-scale whale hunting.
migration
A regular seasonal journey between feeding and breeding areas. Humpbacks travel up to 25,000 km per year.
toothed whale
Whales that have teeth rather than baleen plates, including sperm whales, dolphins and narwhals.
pod
A social group of whales. Pods vary from just a few individuals to hundreds, depending on species.
blowhole
The nostril of a whale or dolphin, located on top of the head. Blue whales have two; toothed whales have one.
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