A question that stumped me every time I walked by the giant blue whale hanging up at the Natural History Museum in New York City was, “Why are whales so huge?!” Years and years later, I have found the answer. Using the research paper entitled “Energetic Tradeoffs Control the Size Distribution of Aquatic Mammals,” published last month by leading scientist, professor William Gearty, as well as news article based off of his discoveries, the solution to my childhood puzzlement has been revealed. The biggest species to ever live on the planet is Balaenoptera musculus, colloquially known as the blue whale (Viegas). The species is extant, meaning these whales are still alive today. Blue whales grow up to thirty-three meters long and weigh an average of two hundred thousand kilograms (Viegas). Not only …show more content…
The orders of terrestrial mammals they used were Caniformia (dog-like), Artiodactyla (even toed ungulates), Afrotheria (African), and Musteloidea (similar skull and teeth shapes), and the aquatic mammal orders studied were Sirenia (sea cow), Pinnipedia (seals), Odontoceti, (toothed whales) and Mysticeti (baleen whales) (Gearty, McClain, Payne). Gearty explains the reason they choose these two types of evidence, "the tree of ancestral relationships allows us to build models based on data from modern species to predict what the ancestors' body sizes would have been and see what evolutionary trajectories best fit with what we see in the modern day" (Why are whales so big?). The process from land to water is a gradual one, but according to the fossil record, mammals have gone back and forth six times (Viegas). Their data included seventy percent extant species and thirty percent extinct species
Robert L. Pitman. "Whalewatcher: Killer Whale: The top, top Predator ." Journal of the American Cetacean Society (2011): 2. Journal.
Scientists had some idea to the evolutionary process of whales. “It has always been clear that aquatic cetaceans must have evolved from terrestrial mammals and returned to the water, and the forelimbs of recent cetaceans still have the same general pattern as that of land mammals.” (Walking with Whales) It was known fact that land mammals and whales were related. However, the change from ancient whales to modern whales is drastic.
“… building a tank the size of Rhode Island wouldn’t be large enough for a six-ton male killer whale such as Tilikum, an animal capable of swimming 100 miles a day,” states an anonymous whale expert. Whales have been in captivity since 1861 when P.T. Barnum displayed the first live whale that was captured in Canada. However, Barnum had no idea how to care for the mammal and it died after only a week in captivity. (Animal Legal and Historical Center, 2014) Being up close with killer whales could give us some clues about how they interact with each other, including physical behavior, their dialect, and how their pods work together as a family unit. However, what we are finding is that whales who belong in the wild are suffering in captivity. Killer whales have no record of ever harming a human being in the wild. In captivity, there have been many incidents of killer whales harming or even killing their trainers. What would cause them to do this in captivity, but not in the wild? They have been known to resort to aggression toward themselves and each other, in what scientist believe to be a stress induced behavior. (Animal Legal and Historical Center, 2014) Evidence against having these wild animals in captivity is increasing and we need reevaluate the value of capturing and holding killer whales for our educational purposes, enjoyment, and profit.
To fight is to stand up for what is right, break through the walls of what is acceptable, and to have the fire blazing in the eyes of a warrior. Throughout life society has taught humanity to form into a definite way that should not ever change, but through life there has been a small population who are immune from societies spell. The outcasts that must battle to stand up for what they believe is right. In the novels Antigone, Anthem, and in the movie Whale Rider, the main characters fight for what they believe is right by standing up to society's norms the society has deemed acceptable.
The Killer Whale is a part of the toothed whale (odontoceti) suborder. The toothed whale suborder is consisted exclusively of porpoises, whales and dolphins that are born with teeth, instead of baleen plates. The Killer Whale is the largest animal in the dolphin family and is the only known to attack sharks, whales and other marine mammals.
Shirihai, H. and B. Jarrett (2006). Whales, Dolphins and Other Marine Mammals of the World. Princeton, Princeton University Press. p.185-188.
Whales living in captivity become aggravated and have been known to take out anger on themselves by self harming. In the pools they live in, metal bars are placed in between the pools to prevent the killer whales from swimming to another pool. On several occurrences, the whales have attempted to bite and break the metal bars. This leaves the whales with broken teeth and a risk of infection. Infections in killer whales can lead to death in many cases. If a whale gets an infection, they have to be taken out of the pool and placed into another pool by themselves to prevent any problems with other killer whales they live with. In many cases, whales with infections need serious care from whale specialists.
In this research report I will discuss the Killer Whales unique characteristics; complex migratory patterns, how and why it is endangered, and most importantly how we can help them.
...ould estimate where they spent most of their time. By the length of the other skeletal bones, the size and shape of the animals could be determined, which also shared insight to its behavior. The largest primitive whales could indeed walk on land, but only did so for short periods because their legs could not take so much weight for long amounts of time. These behaviors allow scientists and paleontologists to understand even more as to how these fascinating and mysterious animals went from ruling on land to taking over the sea.
Blue whales, also known as (Balaenoptera musculus), are considered one of the largest animals today (NOAA). A blue whale can grow up to “80- 100 feet in length and may weigh up to 200 tons” (World Wild Life).
That “prehistoric” whales had the jaw of a wolf (a fifty million year old wolf to be exact) and the ear of a whale. I think that all of our semiaquatic mammals play a big part in the evolution of land mammals to water mammals. Like at some point of say an otter’s life, nature told it to stop evolving so that it wouldn’t become completely marine, but semiaquatic as we named it. How did it know when to stop evolving? Was it changes in the environment? Or the need for survival? Which brings around another question, how did we go from a planet of just rock and magma, to a planet thriving with
A hero is someone who will attempt everything in their power to help others and risk everything they have to help others. In the movie, The Whale Rider, you can clearly see all the elements of The Hero’s Journey. A young girl named Paula Apirana, is living in a small village with her grandparents. Paika’s dad, who is living in Spain, returns to see Paula and proposes that she should come live with him. She declines the offer and decided to stay with her grandparents. Paula then secretly tries to learn the important ritual, that only males are allowed to learn. Her grandpa, Paka, gets extremely angry at her until he realizes that she is the “chosen one” to perform the ritual. Paika goes through many difficult challenges, however she manages
Orcas, or killer whales are majestic giants of the sea. They are actually the largest type of dolphin. They have long black bodies with distinct white patches near their eyes. A killer whale can be up to 32 feet or more in length, and weigh up to 12,000 pounds. Females are a bit smaller, but live longer (Gorman). The name “killer whale” apparently came not because it is a vicious whale, but because it preys on whales. They do not have any natural predators, and they are considered the “top dog” of the ocean. Not even the great white shark stands a chance against these superb killers. “Unlike sharks, killer whales are cautious hunters, sometimes spending hours harassing a 1,000-pound sea lion so it can easily be drowned” (Francis). Orcas use many hunting tactics that are unique to their species, which is what makes them invincible.
is, without a doubt, the largest inhabitant of the globe; the most formidable of all whales to encounter;
Rowat, D., and K. S. Brooks. 2012. A review of the biology, fisheries and conservation of the whale shark Rhincodon typus. Jour. Of. Fish. Bio. 80:1019-1056. (DOI:10.1111/j.1095-8649.2012.03252.x).