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Whales are the largest animals on the earth living in the ocean. The largest of whales is the blue whale which, like the humpback whale, belongs to the group of fin whales (27 to 30 meters in length). This whale is larger than diplodocus (26 meters long), a dinosaur that existed in ancient times and, therefore, it can be said that the blue whale is the largest animal known to have lived on the earth. |
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Mammals returned to the ocean. Billions of years ago, vertebrate
animals living in the sea landed ashore and, then, after repeated evolution,
the mammals were born. Afterwards, some of the mammals went back to the
sea. They are the ancestors of whales and dolphins. Biologically, whales
and dolphins belong to the same group. Whales below 4 to 5 meters in size
are generally called dolphins. |
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A giant fish told about in the Bible. The Bible tells a story
as the prophecy of the Hebrews that Yona was swallowed by a whale in the
sea but was regurgitated three days later. Similar accidents happened where
a man fell in and was swallowed by a whale actually occur in reality, but
it is too late for a man to be alive when he is rescued from the whale's
body. Despite its cavernous mouth, its throat is too narrow to swallow a
whole human body. |
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Whales feed on the smallest life in the ocean. A whale eats
about one ton of food in one mouthful. In order to sustain its huge body,
a whale requires as much food as 3 to 4 percent of its total body weight
per day. Planktons, shellfish and other small fish are the main food. In
summer, plankton is in huge quantities around the Arctic and Antarctic Oceans
and the whales migrate to these oceans seeking food. |
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Love runs around the world. After having their fill of food
in the cold seas of the high latitudes and saving sufficient subcutaneous
fat in summer, the whales set out on the journey to seek love in winter.
Warmer waters best suit the whales for mating, delivering and breeding.
During the journey or at the breeding ground, they do not generally eat.
When mating season is over and they start on their journey back to the north
seas again, they weigh 30 to 40 percent less. |
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A singer of the sea who sings love songs.
A whale utters various sounds up and down the music scales. Different from
those of man, although the whale does not have vocal cords it is not yet
determined if the sound is let out of the throat organs. Low frequency sounds
identifies an individual whale, in a certain position confirming its emotion.
During the breeding season, male humpback whales occasionally cry uttering
certain phrases. This is said to be expression of courtship. |
