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Main Characteristics of Whales

  • There are about 90 species of whales. They are divided into baleen whales and toothed whales.
  • Baleen are long, horn plates that extend from the upper jaw into the mouth, allowing whales to filter their food from the ocean.
  • Baleen whales include blue whale, humpback whale, gray whale and minke whale.
  • Toothed whales include dolphins, orcas and sperm whales.
  • All whales are carnivores.
  • Whales live in all seas: Atlantic, Pacific, Arctic and Antarctic.
  • Whales live in saltwater, except for river dolphins, which live in freshwater.
  • Whales (and manatees) are the only mammals that spend their entire lives in water.
  • The blue whale is the largest and heaviest animal in the world.
  • The longest-lived whale is the bowhead whale. It lived to be over 200 years old.

Whale Family Tree

Whale Family Tree

Species List


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