The Shadow
Having dropped from an estimated 125,000 to an estimated 3,000 of its kind during the 20th Century, the blue whale is making a comeback although still being listed on the endangered species list.
In fact, the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) reported seeing a pod of 55 blue whales in the waters off South Georgia Island in 2018.
The Antarctic blue whale has been known to have a heart the size of a Volkswagon and weigh as much as 400,000 lbs.
Measuring up to 110’ in length, the blue whale has a blueish-gray back and longitudinal grooves along its throat and belly. It is also known as a “sulphur-bottom.”
Described as being nine times bigger than an elephant, the blue whale has a unique ability to produce a low-frequency whistle that can be heard 100 miles underwater from where the sound originates.
Scientists believe that the far-ranging whistle is used to attract other blue whales.
The way the blue whale feeds is to open its mouth and gulp a huge amount of seawater by expanding its pleated skin on its throat and belly and then using its tongue, which can be as huge as an elephant, to force the water out through overlapping baleen plates, trapping thousands of krill on which it feeds.
Oceanographers estimate that a blue whale can devour 7,936 lbs. of krill per day.
Not only is the blue whale the largest known animal on Earth, but it is the loudest animal on Earth, having the capability of producing sounds that measure 188 decibels, a number higher than a jet engine produces.
The reason for the blue whale becoming an endangered species has been attributed to the whaling industry of the 20th Century. From 1904 to 1972, the number of blue whales decreased dramatically.
However, in the 1960s, the International Whaling Commission effectively reduced the number of blue whales being harvested by whalers. Most countries have outlawed whaling, but Japan, Norway and Iceland continue participating in the whaling industry that produces ingredients for pharmaceuticals and health supplements.
The whale’s blubber may be rendered as animal feed and in some cases, as a fuel supplement for whaling vessels. Also, oil, blubber and cartilage along with baleen and ambergris come from the harvesting of whales.
Scientists estimate that there are between 10,000 and 25,000 blue whales today, an increase from the previous low estimate of 3,000.
The Marine Mammal Protection Act was passed in the U.S. in 1972, outlawing whaling, and in 1973, the Endangered Species Act was passed in the U.S. as well.
Herman Melville’s classic novel, “Moby Dick,” was published in London in 1851, and the novel’s protagonist, Ishmael, signs as a deck hand on a whaling ship that is destined to encounter, Moby Dick, the great white whale that has left Captain Ahab with only one leg after a previous encounter. Ishmael, the narrator, describes the whaling methods of the day with great detail as he reveals the saga of Captain Ahab’s obsessive pursuit of vengeance.
