Blue Whale
By Eunice Rivera
Rivera, 2
Blue Whale
Also known as Balaenoptera Musculus, the blue whale is one the largest animals to live in the
world, even larger than the largest dinosaur. Unfortunately, this amazing animal is endangered due to
black markets and pollution of the seas. According to www.whalefacts.org, blue whales help regulate
the food flow by eating approximately 7,000 pounds of krill and small shrimp per day and help offset
400,000 tons of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere when it poops.
Even though it sounds disgusting, these
animals do it without a bad intention, and at the
end, it helps remove some of the green gases on
earth. Among these reasons and more, whales need
to be saved. Because of its immensity in length, this
animal has always caught my attention, not to
mention the fact that this animal feeds on the
smallest sea animals such as krill, shrimp and tiny
crabs.
There are only 9 distinct blue whale populations in the world. The whales in California are
called Eastern North Pacific Blue and they migrate from north to south every year towards warmer
water currents for mating and giving birth. One location where there is tourist activity to see blue
whales is in Santa Barbara Channel, California. Whale watching has attracted many tourists,
increasing the economic growth, making this new hobby the main source of income for some
countries.
During light summer, blue whales swim offshore,
briefly surfacing. Most blue whales from California are
born in the Costa Rica dome, south the American
continent where hot and cold water currents exist,
making the habitat easy for mating and giving birth for
its highly nutritive water. Due to the Costa Rica dome
currents, the cold water ascends while the warm water
goes down. The cold water carries huge amounts of plankton, making it easy for blue whales to eat.
Blue whales are very important for the ecosystem. Without whales, the food flow would not be
regulated.
An adult whale can weigh up to 200 tons, as heavy as 25 fully grown elephants. It takes 5 great
white sharks to be as long as the blue whale. The heart alone is as large as a small car and close to
1,000 pounds. Their tongues can be as heavy one elephant. A blue whale is as long as two city buses.
They make the loudest calls of any animal and special equipment is required in order to hear them.
Blue Whales have a very long body with mottled gray color pattern that appears light blue
when is seen through the water
The torso pattern stays the same throughout their life span. The unique pattern on their back
has helped scientists distinguish them through photographs and identify their offspring since 1986.
Blue whales don’t have teeth, only pleads of skin like nails, which allow whales to expand their
throats to suck krill and tiny crabs.
Because whales have a huge stomach, they have to eat continuously to maintain their energy all
year. Cold water usually carries plankton,
krill, and shrimp, which makes up most
blue whale meals. The largest animal on
the planet feeds on its smallest. It takes
about 2,000 pounds of krill to fill up blue
whale’s stomach and 7,000 pounds of
shrimp every day. Blue whales travel
hundreds of miles south at a speed of 5
miles per hour, or 20 miles an hour if they
are agitated Live longer than humans. It
takes 10 years for a blue whale to reach
maturity and on its way it will have
difficulty surviving (animals.nationalgeographic.com).
Baby whales nurse for about 7
months until they double in size. Blue whale milk is 40% fat and the baby earns 200 pounds every day,
growing one inch per day. When baby blue whales are born, they enter the world already ranking
among the planet's largest creatures. After spending a year in the mother’s womb, baby blues enter the
world with a weigh of approximately 3 ton, the size of 1 and a half of a public bus.
Most blue whale meat appears in foreign
countries. It’s been illegal to hunt blue whales since
1966. At the peak of whaling, “...in the late 1930s
more than 50 000 whales were taken annually”
according
to
thecanadianencyclopedia.com.
Releasing balloons into the atmosphere can cause
serious problems to marine animals. According to
SaveTheWhales.org, “Even balloons released inland can travel incredibly far and end up in the
oceans.” These balloons can cause problems to animals that ingest the rubber and have their airways or
stomachs clogged.
It does not take much effort to help contribute, as long as a lot of people become conscious of
the dangers blue whales face. One way of helping is by asking relatives to give spare money for this
cause and donate it.
Formstack.com is a website where as little as $5 dollars, help support the cause. By using a
credit card, you can donate money to this organization.
Letting people know about the dangers that these whales face every day, will make humans
know that whales exist to regulate the flow of food and diminish carbon dioxide in the air.
Recycling plastic bottles helps the environment. When plastic is not recycled, it ends in the sea,
piling up and confusing blue whales, making
them think its food and therefore eating it.
Tell your friends about the negative impacts and
cruelty of whaling to increase awareness.
Volunteer at an organization that helps whales.
Reducing our dependencies on gasoline
and oil can decrease the number of oil
tankers in the oceans. Blue Whales need
more help than ever because we are their voice
and help regulate the food chain, contributing to
our environment.
Donating a few dollars online to organizations like greenpeace.org, seashepherd.org.au and
wdcs.org can help save these amazing creatures. Blue Whales contribute to the ecosystem, and we
need to help these animals survive. It’s up to humans to unite and care for our environment and avoid
the extinction of precious animals.
Works Cited
"Balloon Alert." Save The Whales. Save The Whales, n.d. Web. 16 June 2013.
http://www.savethewhales.org/balloon.html
"Blue Whale: Balaenoptera Musculus." National Geographic. National Geographic, n.d. Web. 15
Jan. 2013. http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/blue-whale
"Blue Whale (Balaenoptera Musculus)." Blue Whale (Balaenoptera Musculus) - Office of
Protected Resources - NOAA Fisheries. National Oceanic And Atmospheric
Administration, 27 Feb.2013. Web. 15 June 2013.
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/mammals/cetaceans/bluewhale.htm.
FRANCIS, DANIEL. "Whaling." Whaling - The Canadian Encyclopedia. The Canadian
Encyclopedia, n.d. Web. 16 June 2013.
http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/articles/whaling.
Kingdom of the Blue Whale. By Sue Houghton. National Geographic Television, 2009.
Youtube.com. NationalGeographic, 12 Feb. 2012. Web. 15 June 2013.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFFOpM2mxCA