Blue Whale Facts: 23 facts about the Blue Whale

Here are 23 facts about the blue whale to help gain a better understanding of this wonderful mammal known as the largest creature to have ever lived.

Synopsis

23. The blue whale is a marine mammal belonging to the baleen whales.

22. It's scientific name is Balaenoptera musculus

21. The blue whale is the largest creature to have ever lived on earth measuring 30 metres or 98 ft in length and weighing in at 170 tonnes

20. The tongue alone weighs as much as an elephant and it's heart as much as a car.

19. Blue whales have long slender bodies which can be various shades of bluish-grey dorsally and have lighter underparts.

18. There are at least three subspecies of blue whale.

17. The blue whale enjoys a diet of tiny krill which are shrimp like sea creatures. In fact a blue whale is able to take in 3,6000kg of krill per day.

16. Blue whales prey on their food by descending to depths of around 500m.

15, The mouth of the blue whale has a row of plates which are fringed with bristles that enable it to filter the food that enters it. It will then force the water out of its mouth and retain the prey.

14. The blue whale is a mammal and so must come up to the waters surface in order to breathe.

13. The blue whale breathes by exhaling air out of a blowhole in a cloud of pressurised water vapour which will climb up to 9 meters high.

12. Blue whales will usually swim alone or in pairs, however occasionally they will be found in groups and are known to form close attachments to other whales.

11. Blue whales can swim very gracefully and can travel at speeds of over 30km/h.

10. Blue whales communicate with each other with series of low frequency pulses, groans, and moans and are known one of the loudest animals on earth.

9. Blue whales are able to hear each over distances of up to 1,600km.

8. Blue whales use their communication and hearing to sonar-navigate the vast dark oceans

7. Female blue whales will breed only once every three years. They have a gestation period of between 11-12 months and will bear only one young.

6. Their young will be born weighing up to 2,7000kg and measure up to 8m long.

5. Young blue whales whales are encouraged to the surface of the ocean by their mothers and are often are nudged by other female blue whales to take their first breath.

4. Young blue whales suckle more than 600 litres of milk each day and increase their weight 90kg each day for the first year of their lives.

3. Although they don't have many predators, blue whales have been known to be attacked by sharks and killer whales. However many whales are injured or killed by colliding with large ships that sail the oceans.

2. Blue whales have are known to be emotive mammals.

1. There is estimated that only 10,000-25,000 blue whales now exist to this day.