Blue Whale

Tom parfrement

GENERAL DESCRIPTION
 

The blue whale is the largest animal that ever lived on Earth. It is also the loudest animal. These enormous mammals eat tiny organisms, like plankton and kril. They live in pods (small groups).Blue whales have 2 blowholes and a 5-30 cm thick layer of blubber. 

Blue whales are rorqual whales, whales that have pleated throat grooves that allow their throat to expand during the huge intake of water during filter feeding. Blue whales have 50-70 throat grooves that run from the throat to mid-body.

HABITAT 

The blue wales are mostly found in cold waters. Mostly in deep waters in the arctic seas. The blue whale occurs in the Icelandic & Celtic Marine Ecosystems, Southern Caribbean Sea, and Sea of Cortez. Also, approximately 2,000 blue whales live off the California Coast and migrate to Mexico, and Costa Rica. 

Predator Adaptations 

Blue Whales actually have a lot of different adaptations. One is that, instead of teeth, they have small fingernail-like material called baleen on their upper jaws. This allows them to take a big gulp of water, and, using their huge tongue, push out the water and swallow all the Krill that was in it.

They have something called blubber, which is what keeps them from sinking-blubber is less dense than water, so it floats. Blue whales' size actually helps them, as well. They seem quite threatening to predators, and this helps keep quite a few of them away. And that's not all. They can hear and communicate to other whales up to 1,000 miles away. 

COMPARING: Christmas tree worm 

Similarities: Both eat Krill and other sea plants 

Differences: A blue whale is much bigger a they have lungs Christmas Tree Worms do not have lungs. Also Christmas Tree Worms breath underwater and whales breath air.      

symbiotic relationships

The blue whale has a relationship with a Barnacle . This relationship is commensalism. The Blue Whale transports the Barnacle from place to place but is not harmed by the barnacle being there.

Human impact

Blue whales were killed mostly for their oil. Whale meat and blubber are also delicacies in Japan and other countries. 
No blue whales are now being killed. Hunting of blue whales was banned in 1966, and the last illegal hunting (by Russia) was in the 1970s.

RESOURCES