The Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals has offered up another interesting tale, that of the basilosaurids, a now extinct family of whales. Like all ancient whales, basilosaurids are a type of archaeocetes, the common name for the oldest whales that now only exist in fossil form. (Check out my previous post on archaeocetes if you want… [read more]
Barnacles: living on a whale
Barnacles seem to have quite the life indeed. These crustaceans represent a diverse group that includes more than 1,000 species. Some of these barnacles have adapted to living on marine mammals and tend to hang out on some of the baleen whales. My guess is that it’s easier to live and stay attached to a… [read more]
5 fun facts about baleen whales
1. The blue whale is the largest animal to ever live on earth, larger than the dinosaurs! 2. The bowhead whale lives in the most specialized habitat of all the baleen whales, the shallow seas of the Arctic. 3. The gray whale is the only baleen whale that sucks in ocean sediment to filter gammarid… [read more]
Baleen whales: an introduction
Baleen whales belong to the scientific suborder Mysticeti and include some of the largest animals to ever live on earth. This impressive group of whales encompass a broad range of preferred types of habits, habitats, migration patterns, food, communication and lifestyles. But they are all united by the same feeding strategy of using a “highly-specialized… [read more]
Top 5 reasons baleen is cool
1. It’s like having a mustache in your mouth. 2. No need for a fancy sonicare toothbrush. 3. No need for a salad spinner, just filter excess water out. 4. It constantly grows just like hair and finger nails. 5. It’s in a whale’s mouth and everything about a whale is cool.
Baleen: what some whales use instead of teeth
There are two types of whales: baleen whales (Mysticeti) and toothed whales (Odontoceti). And you might have deduced from this statement that baleen is what some whales use instead of teeth. Baleen is made of keratin, the same protein found in human hair and fingernails. And just like our hair and fingernails, baleen is constantly… [read more]
Balance: the inner ear of whales
Everyone is talking about balance these days, work/life balance, nutritional balance, balance balls, the need for more balance in day to day life, but little is mentioned about the very important vital sense organ that keeps you truly balanced: the inner ear. Without a functioning inner ear your world would be spinning out of control… [read more]
Baiji: Yangtze River dolphin RIP
Drawing of the extinct Yangtze River dolphin The “B” section of the Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals has taken us to a very sad place. The baiji, also referred to as the Yangtze River dolphin, is extinct. Now this isn’t a prehistoric dolphin that died out thousands of years ago, this freshwater dolphin lived to see… [read more]
Australian Snubfin Dolphin
The Australian snubfin dolphin or Orcaella heinsohni is a curious creature indeed. According to the Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals, this dolphin used to be considered an irrawady dolphin, but after much analysis and noticeable differences in color, skull shapes and body shapes scientists determined that the Australian snubfin dolphin is a separate species and was officially declared… [read more]
Atlantic White-sided Dolphin
The Atlantic white-sided dolphin or Lagenorhynchus acutus hangs out in the cold water of the north Atlantic Ocean. According to the Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals, this dolphin has been spotted as far south as Cape Cod, as far north as southern Iceland and as far east as the Norwegian Sea. Considered to be one of the most… [read more]