Facts about Whales
Sea mammals need to swim constantly to surface to take deep breath. Horizontal flipper makes easier whale emersion to surface and allows this creatures to handle blowhole over the surface. Their blowhole is located in upper part of the head. Whales can be found in all oceans all over the world and even in fresh waters. Majority of biggest species constantly migrate from ocean to ocean while the seasons change. After birth blue whale run up to 7 meters in length. After 13 years it reaches a point of maturity and becoming 30 meters length and weigh near 150 tons. Heart of blue whale weights 0.5 tons and pumps 8 tons of blood, developing 10 horse-powers! The best gauge of whale’s age serves consecutive layers on their teeth and in ear taps.A layer would appear every year, however some scientists believe that it takes a bit more than a year for a layer to appear. Scientists have discovered that fin whale live 80-90 years on average. Toothed whales feed on fish and cephalopods. To this group belong cachalot – it tooth weight over 300 grammas. Orca whales feed by eating fish, penguins, seals, sharks and dolphins. Other whales feed on tiny plankton. In a 24 hours whales eat several tons of food. Blue whale whose length is 30 meters can swim at speed near 23.0 MPH. Dolphins can reach speed of 28.0 MPH. Whales feed on plankton do not need to dive deeper 100 meters, because their food is concentrated in upper oceanic layers. Toothed whales hunting their preys dive much deeper. Sometimes whales entangled in bottom cables and this fact allow do determine exact diving depth. The record on such depths is 1110 meters. Toothed whales can swiftly dive on depths near 1 kilometer, experiencing pressure fall amount about 100 atmospheres. But unlike human scuba diver breathing high pressure mixed gas, whale inhale air on the surface and dive holding his breath. These way only small amounts of nitrogen dissolve in creature blood and tissues. Whales are mammals, that why they need at regular intervals float to the surface and inhale fresh air. Also they need to maintain certain lung volume to ensure floatation of their huge bodies. That’s why whales do not sleep as deep as humans. Narcotized to put in sleep, whale sink or stop breathing and then perish. Whiskered whales do not have teeth but they have a special plates hanging from upper mandible, through which it filter sea water to collect plankton. This solid and flexible plates in the past where used to produce corsets. This substance form in cachalot bowels and two pounds of ambergris cost from $70 to $400. Ambergris look like a black stone. Cachalot vomits it from his stomach and then ambergris is found on beach, but commonly it is harvested from harpooned creatures. Ambergris mainly used in perfumery while producing expensive perfumes. Chunks of this organic material weight from few grams to 400 kilogram’s. |
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