Cartopédie › Animals › Families
Own every animal of the family Balaenopteridae.
Rorquals are baleen whales found in every ocean. Long skin pleats under the throat expand when they gulp a huge mouthful of water full of prey. They then strain the water out through their baleen plates. Their bodies are long and streamlined. They are among the largest animals on Earth.
The start of their anecdote. The album's other cards are for you to discover in the game.
Balaenopteridae
Megaptera novaeangliae · Least concern
The male's song, lasting 4 to 33 minutes, has made the humpback famous. It is also an inventive hunter: it blows curtains of bubbles in upward spirals or double loops around a shoal of krill or fish, then surges through the middle with its mouth wide open, a technique considered a form of tool use.
Photo: Dr. Louis M. Herman. (Public domain)
Balaenopteridae
Balaenoptera acutorostrata · Least concern
Whalers first ignored the common minke whale, the smallest rorqual, for its size and low oil yield. As larger whales declined, it became a main target. In Japan it is called 'little sardine whale', and in Norway 'bay whale'.
Photo: National Marine Sanctuaries (Public domain)
Balaenopteridae
Balaenoptera bonaerensis · Near threatened
The Antarctic minke whale was long mistaken for its northern cousin: although described in the mid-19th century, it was only recognised as a separate species in the 1990s. Its small size and low oil yield once made whalers ignore it, so it kept a large population into the 21st century.
Photo: Carina Gsottbauer (CC BY-SA 4.0)
One account, every theme. Free, no ads.
