Blue Whale

The Blue Whale

By: Emily Duncan

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Description

The blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) is the largest animal to have ever lived on Earth. They can reach a length of 108 ft and weigh more than 330,000 lbs (Environmental Conservation Online System, 1998, p.2). The blue whale's heart reaches the size of a Volkswagen Beetle and the aorta 

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is big enough for a human to crawl through (AFSC, n.d., p.1). Compared to other whales, their bodies are long and slender. They got the name “blue whales” because of their skin. When looked at from above the surface, their gray skin appears light blue from the reflection of the water. Compared to other whales, their dorsal fin is also smaller and placed farther back on its body. As a baleen whale, the blue whale feeds by sucking in large amounts of water and filtering out zooplankton which it then swallows (Environmental Conservation Online System, 1998, p.2). The whale expels excess water through its blowhole; this water is called a spout. These spouts can reach up to 30 ft (AFSC, n.d., p.1).

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Geography and Listings

Blue whales are found all around the world! They live in every corner of the world and migrate seasonally. As a result, these big animals breed near the equator. Over the decades, the decline in their populations has been due to whaling. The blue whale was put on the Endangered Species List on July 28th, 1998. 

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The species is in “plan stage F” and is listed as “endangered.” The Endangered Species Act defines “endangered” as, “any species which is in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range” (Environmental Conservation Online System, 1998, p.2). Besides whaling, humans have had a big hand in putting the blue whale on the Endangered Species List in other ways. Blue whales all around the world have had to deal with “vessel interactions, entrapment and entanglement in fishing gear, habitat degradation, military operations and hunting” (Environmental Conservation Online System, 1998, p. iii, iv). It was reported that, “at least 9 percent of the whales in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada have injuries or scars attributed to contact with ships; another estimate has been provided of 25 percent of the blue whales in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada bearing vessel contact scars” (Environmental Conservation Online System, 1998, p.8).

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Recovery Plan

The development and implementation of a recovery plan was greatly needed when the population of blue whales started declining. One of the first conservation efforts that took place was the banning of whaling. Blue whales were added to the list of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife because there was a threat that the whales might start being hunted again if they weren’t on the list (Environmental Conservation Online System, 1998, p.17). Another form of conservation that was implemented was the regulation of whale watching. Because of the high percentage of blue whales with scars from boats, this regulation especially took place in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada. As a result, “whale watching guidelines have been issued by the National Marine Fisheries Service for other endangered species and there are general prohibitions on harassment of marine mammals” (Environmental Conservation Online System, 1998, p.17).

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Goals

For any endangered species, the main goal is to remove them from the Endangered Species List completely. However, that takes a lot of time, effort and money. Before they can be taken off the list, the blue whales have to go from endangered to threatened and if their numbers keep improving, they will be taken off the Endangered and Threatened Wildlife list (Environmental Conservation Online System, 1998, p.17). This is definitely not something that will happen over night but hopefully our blue whales will be able to come back. Blue whales are magnificent creatures and, with the distinction of being the largest animal to have ever lived, one of the most unique species on our planet. 



Work Cited

Alaska Fisheries Science Center “AFSC” (n.d.). Blue Whales.

         Retrieved from: 
         http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/nmml/education/cetaceans/blue.php

Eco Media Center (2008). A blue whale fluke rises out of the water.

         Retrieved from:
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Environmental Conservation Online System (1998). Recovery Plan For The Blue Whale.

         Retrieved from: 
         http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/recovery_plan/whale_blue.pdf 

Lets Go On A Knowledge Drive (2013). A Whale’s Heart.
        
         Retrieved from:
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National Geographic Kids (n.d.). Blue Whale

         Retrieved from:
         http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/content/dam/kids/photos/animals/Mammals/A-G/blue-whale-map.GIF 

Pete Thomas Outdoors (2013). ‘Jack’ the blue whale.

         Retrieved from:                http://petethomas.typepad.com/.a/6a0120a77b966b970b01901dde7466970b-pi

Spirit of Sri Lanka (n.d.). Helping to save the Blue Whale.

         Retrieved form:
         http://srilanka.holidays4.me/assets/images/blue-whale-comparison.jpg

WallpaperChimp (2015). Blue Whale 5.

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