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Balaenoptera physalus (Linnaeus, 1758)Fin Whale; Balaena physalus |
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Balaenoptera physalus
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By David L. Fox
The fin whale is global in distribution but is not common in tropical seas and polar seas with ice.
Biogeographic Regions:
arctic ocean
(
native
); indian ocean (
native
);
atlantic ocean
(
native
);
pacific ocean
(
native
).
Fin whales are a pelagic and nearshore species, sometimes occuring in water as shallow as 30 meters..
Aquatic Biomes:
coastal
.
Fin whales are brownish grey above and white below. The color pattern is asymmetrical: the lower jaw is white on the right side and dark on the left. Fin whales are second only to blue whales in length but are more slightly built. The dorsal fin is strongly curved and is about 60 cm high. Fin whales have an average of 85 throat grooves that extend to the navel. Each side of the upper jaw bears 350-400 baleen plates. At physical maturity, males and females average 19 and 20 meters in length, respectively. Adults have not been weighed, but calculations suggest that a 25 m animal could weigh as much as 70,000 kg.
Some key physical features:
endothermic
;
bilateral symmetry
.
Fin whales may be monogamous, as they are often seen in pairs.
Mating systems:
monogamous
.
Mating occurs in warm, low latitude seas during the winter, and calving usually occurs 12 months later when the populations return again to low latitude. As many as 6 fetuses have been reported, but single births are the norm.
Females probably reach sexual maturity between 3 and 12 years old and will reproduce every 2 or 3 years thereafter. Full physical maturity is not attained until between 25 and 30 years.
Key reproductive features:
iteroparous
;
seasonal breeding
; gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate);
sexual
;
viviparous
.
Newborns are about 6.5 m in length and weigh 1800 kg. The young are weaned at 6 or 7 months when they are 11 or 12 m in length. Weaned calves travel with their mothers to the winter feeding grounds.
Parental investment:
pre-fertilization (provisioning, protecting: female); pre-hatching/birth (provisioning: female, protecting: female); pre-weaning/fledging (provisioning: female, protecting: female); pre-independence (protecting: female); post-independence association with parents; extended period of juvenile learning.
Fin whales are variably gregarious. The usual pod size is 6 or 7 individuals, but groups as large as 300 have been observed migrating together. Fin whales are migratory. In general, the spring and early summer are spent in cold, high latitude feeding waters. In the fall populations tend to return to low latitudes for the winter breeding season, though may remain in residence in their high latitude ranges if food resources remain plentiful. Because of the alternation of seasons in the two hemispheres, northern and southern populations never meet in equatorial waters. The fin whale is among the fastest cetaceans and can sustain speeds of 37 km/hr. They can reach depths of 230 m with ease and remain under for up to 15 minutes. Fin whales are known to leap completely out of the water. The spout is vertical and narrow and can reach heights of 6 m. Fin whales produce a wide variety of low frequency sounds and may also produce high frequency pulses.
Key behaviors:
natatorial
;
motile
;
migratory
;
social
.
Fin whales eat a variety of planktonic animals, including crustacea, squid, and fish. In the Antarctic Sea the crustacean Schizopoda constitutes a large part of the diet.
Primary Diet:
planktivore
.
Animal Foods:
zooplankton
.
Foraging Behaviors:
filter-feeding
.
Fin whales were heavily hunted for their blubber, oil and baleen.
The fin whale is listed as endangered by the USDI and is on Appendix 1 of CITES; it is only listed as vulnerable by the IUCN. Fin whales were heavily hunted over the last century. Harvests from 1946-1965 exceeded 10,000 animals per year. International Whaling Commission quotas were lowered in the mid '70s and were reduced to zero by 1985, with the exception of a small (e.g., 10 in 1987) aboriginal catch and catches for "research" purposes. However, these restrictions may have come too late. Southern ocean populations are currently estimated to be no more than 5,000 individuals and probably only 2-3000. As with the blue whale, it is not certain that the fin whale has been saved from extinction by wanton overhunting.
Find Balaenoptera physalus information at
David L. Fox (author), University of Michigan.
To cite this page: Fox, D. 2001. "Balaenoptera physalus" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed February 09, 2010 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Balaenoptera_physalus.html.
Disclaimer: The Animal Diversity Web is an educational resource written largely by and for college students . ADW doesn't cover all species in the world, nor does it include all the latest scientific information about organisms we describe. Though we edit our accounts for accuracy, we cannot guarantee all information in those accounts. While ADW staff and contributors provide references to books and websites that we believe are reputable, we cannot necessarily endorse the contents of references beyond our control.
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Sponsored in part by the Interagency Education Research Initiative,
the Homeland Foundation and the
University of Michigan
Museum of Zoology
.
This material is based upon work supported by the
National Science Foundation
under Grants DUE-0633095 and DRL-0628151.
The ADW Team gratefully acknowledges their support.
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