Landwhale: On Turning Insults Into Nicknames, Why Body Image Is Hard, and How Diets Can Kiss My Ass

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Blue whales generally reach sexual maturity at 8–10 years. In the Northern Hemisphere, the length at which they reach maturity is 21–23 meters (69–75ft) for females and 20–21 meters (66–69ft) for males. In the Southern Hemisphere, the length of maturity is 23–24 meters (75–79ft) and 22 meters (72ft) for females and males respectively. [78] Male pygmy blue whales average 18.7 meters (61.4ft) at sexual maturity. [79] [80] Female pygmy blue whales are 21.0–21.7 meters (68.9–71.2ft) in length [46] and roughly 10 years old at the age of sexual maturity. [46] [47] [81] Little is known about mating behavior, or breeding and birthing areas. [39] [78] Blue whales appear to be polygynous, with males competing for females. [78] [82] A male blue whale typically trails a female and will fight off potential rivals. [83] The species mates from fall to winter. [39] [78] Which countries are still whaling". International Fund for Animal Welfare . Retrieved 29 August 2015. Gendron, D.; De La Cruz, U.; Winn, H. E. (2012). "A new classification method to simplify blue whale photo-identification technique". Journal of Cetacean Research and Management. 13 (1): 79–84. Barlow, D. R.; Torres, L. G.; Hodge, K. B.; Steel, D.; Baker, C. S.; Chandler, T. E.; Bott, N.; Constantine, R.; Double, M. C.; Gill, P.; Glasgow, D.; Hamner, R. M.; Lilley, C.; Ogle, M.; Olson, P. A. (2018). "Documentation of a New Zealand blue whale population based on multiple lines of evidence". Endangered Species Research. 36: 27–40. doi: 10.3354/esr00891. Palumbi, S. R.; Cipriano, F. (1998). "Species identification using genetic tools: the value of nuclear and mitochondrial gene sequences in whale conservation". Journal of Heredity. 89 (5): 459–464. doi: 10.1093/jhered/89.5.459. PMID 9768497.

Most baleen whales reside at the poles. So, to prevent the unborn baleen whale calves from dying of frostbite, the baleen mother must migrate to warmer calving/mating grounds. They will then stay there for a matter of months until the calf has developed enough blubber to survive the bitter temperatures of the poles. Until then, the baleen calves will feed on the mother's fatty milk. [69]

Coloring and appearance

Stevens, C. Edward; Hume, Ian D. (1995). Comparative Physiology of the Vertebrate Digestive System. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-44418-7. Blue whales are known to interbreed with fin whales. The earliest description of a possible hybrid between a blue and fin whale was a 20-meter (65ft) anomalous female whale with the features of both the blue and the fin whales taken in the North Pacific. [16] A whale captured off northwestern Spain in 1984, was found to have been the product of a blue whale mother and a fin whale father. [17] Reidenberg, Joy S. (2007). "Anatomical adaptations of aquatic mammals". The Anatomical Record. 290 (6): 507–513. doi: 10.1002/ar.20541. PMID 17516440. S2CID 42133705.

Kennedy, Robert; Perrin, W.F.; Wursig, B.; Thewissen, J. G. M. (2008). "Right whales ( E. glacialis, E. japonica, and E. australis". Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals. ISBN 978-0-12-373553-9. Hazen, E. L.; Friedlaender, A. S.; Goldbogen, J. A. (2015). "Blue whales ("Balaenoptera musculus") optimize foraging efficiency by balancing oxygen use and energy gain as a function of prey density". Science Advances. 1 (9): e1500469. Bibcode: 2015SciA....1E0469H. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.1500469. PMC 4646804. PMID 26601290. North Atlantic Right Whale ( Eubalaena glacialis) Source Document for the Critical Habitat Designation: A review of information pertaining to the definition of "critical habitat" " (PDF). National Marine Fisheries Service. July 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 September 2015.Cooke JG (2020) [errata version of 2020 assessment]. " Eubalaena glacialis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020. e.T41712A178589687. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T41712A178589687.en. Fujiwara, Yoshihiro; etal. (16 February 2007). "Three-year investigations into sperm whale-fall ecosystems in Japan". Marine Ecology. 28 (1): 219–230. Bibcode: 2007MarEc..28..219F. doi: 10.1111/j.1439-0485.2007.00150.x. Bebej, R. M.; ul-Haq, M.; Zalmout, I. S.; Gingerich, P. D. (June 2012). "Morphology and Function of the Vertebral Column in Remingtonocetus domandaensis (Mammalia, cetacea) from the Middle Eocene Domanda Formation of Pakistan". Journal of Mammalian Evolution. 19 (2): 77–104. doi: 10.1007/S10914-011-9184-8. S2CID 17810850. The main difference between each family of mysticete is in their feeding adaptations and subsequent behaviour.