Blue Whale
Balaenoptera musculus
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Cetartiodactyla
- Family
- Balaenopteridae
- Genus
- Balaenoptera
- Species
- Balaenoptera musculus
The blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) is the largest animal known to have existed, reaching well over 25 m. It has a long, streamlined, mottled blue-grey body, a broad flat head, a tiny dorsal fin set far back, and a tall, straight blow that can rise about 9 m.
Blue whales feed almost entirely on krill, lunging through dense swarms and filtering huge volumes of water through their baleen plates. They usually travel alone or in pairs and can cover vast distances between feeding areas.
In the Philippines blue whales are rare, with only occasional records from deep offshore waters, including sightings in the Bohol Sea. The species is listed as Endangered, and any sighting is of real scientific interest.