Humpback Whale Humpback Whale By: Eli Canseco

Scientific Name The full scientific name for the Humpback Whale is Megaptera Novaeangliae. The Humpback Whale’s scientific name means “big wing of New England”, this is because of their large front flippers.

Morphology Humpback Whales have large pectoral fins, which can be as large as 15 feet or 4.6m, pectoral fins are used for steering. The Humpback Whale has two blowholes located on the top portion of the whale, one blowhole is used for breathing air above the ocean surface, while the second blow hole is used to expel or take another breath of air. The Humpback Whales eyes are quite unique because there two eyes are used to see both underwater and underwater. Humpback Whales also have a rostrum, which is shaped like a gigantic beak ,which is platform-like top part of the whale's head or jaw. Humpback Whales also have throat groves which are located under the throat and extend as far as the pectoral fins, throat groves are folds of skin and blubber , which are expanded during feeding. Humpback Whales , believe it or not, have ears like other mammals, but in contrast to other mammals the Humpback Whale’s ears aren’t quite visible, due to the fact that their ear canal is shut close by a wax plug, which keeps water out. Humpback Whales have a dorsal fin located on the whale’s back or dorsal side, the function for the dorsal fin is to keep the whale stable.

Morphology(cont.) Humpback Whales also have a fluke which is its tail, all whales have two mirror imaged shaped flukes, on a Humpback Whale the fluke’s ventral, which is the bottom portion, have a unique pattern, which can range from all white to all black, these patterns or markings are used to scientist to identify a certain humpback whale. Humpback Whales also have a median notch, where the two flukes meet and form an indenture. Humpback Whales also have a dorsal ridge, which is located in back of the whale in place of the dorsal fin, the dorsal ridge has a knuckle-like structure. Humpback Whales also have baleen, which is located inside their mouth and are long hair-like plates.

Adaptations Adaptations Humpback Whales have are there adaptations to hearing and seeing underwater, since sound and light travels in a different way through water in contrast to the way it travels on the surface. They way they hear is by depending on there nose, hears, and eyes. The Humpback Whales eyes are well adapted to the extreme pressure underwater, their eyes are quiet small to withstand the pressure. Another important adaptation factor is that Humpback Whales have internal sensory and reproductive organs to simplify the process of swimming. Another adaptation would be their characteristic or the way they care for their born Humpback Whales have adapted into a parental behavior, which allows them to take care of their young in the cold , frigid, and dangerous ocean , which is full with various predators and threats. A very important adaptation in which helps prevent hunger is their physiological and behavioral characteristic which allows the Humpback Whales to get enough food to eat, this adaption also helps Humpback Whales utilize different food types. A quite unique adaption in Humpback Whales, also found in other baleen whales, is that they have baleen instead of teeth, since Humpback Whales opened there mouth and swallow a huge quantity of water and fish, the baleen helps filter the water and help it expel it out of its mouth.

Adaptations(cont.) Another adaption in Humpback Whales is their distinctive color, which blends with the water to help it avoid a few predators. A very important adaptation found in Humpback Whales is there flipper-like fore limps, which help it maneuver through water. A very important adaptation Humpback Whales have, which is useful during their migration is thick blubber, which helps it keep warm, through the harsh and extreme weather.

Habitat/Ecosystem Well Humpback Whales don’t really have a specific habitat, due to the fact that they are found throughout the world’s oceans. To be exact when they are breeding or feeding they prefer to be at near-shore areas. The main habitats for Humpback Whales ranges from tropical to polar waters. During the winters Humpback Whales migrate from their frigid polar areas to more tropical areas, for example to Hawaii. The Humpback Whale’s Ecosystem is the Marine Ecosystem where it lives with an abundance of other sea creatures.

Habitat/Ecosystem(cont.) Here are some animals and plants found in the Humpback Whale’s habitat and Ecosystem. Killer Whale Walrus Harbor Seal Seaweed Red Algae

Human Use The human use for Humpback Whales is Whaling, which is the hunting of whales. Humans used to hunt down Humpback Whales for ,whale bone, meat or there abundance of oil. They also used the Humpback Whales whale bone, which is made from keratin. The oil obtained from the Humpback Whale was used for oil lamps as well as to make candles. Humpback Whale oil was also manufactured into lubricating oil s for other industries. A shocking use for Humpback Whale oil was that it was used to produce soaps , varnish, and cosmetics, which are like lipsticks, lotions, creams, make, and so on. The Humpback Whale’s baleen was used in Buggy whips, Carriage springs, Corset stays, Fishing rods, Hoops for women's skirts, Umbrella ribs, and many other appliances where today plastic and steel is used. Now in recent years whaling is illegal of many of these products can scarcely be found. Another human use for Humpback Whales is for entertainment and research. Many people go whale watching on cruises or ships to catch sight of Humpback Whales. Scientists also study Humpback Whales by keeping track of them by their unique flukes. That’s all of the human use for Humpback Whales, due to them being close to extinction.

Interesting Facts Humpback Whales eat an average of 800 pounds o f food each day. The size for male Humpback Whales is 40-48 feet in contrast to female Humpback Whales, whom grow larger at an average of 45-50 the size of a school bus. feet they can weigh at a range of 25-40 tons (50,000-80,000 pounds) Calf’s drink as much as 120 gallons of milk daily. When Humpback Whales are born, they weigh 2 tons or 4,000 pounds and be as long as 12 feet. Humpback Whales have about 270-400 baleen plates in their mouth. The Humpback Whale’s head occupies one third of its body. Humpback Whales have a special technique for feeding called “bubble netting" in which up to 22 whales surround a school of krill or fish and circle around them, and create a net of bubbles which makes the krill or fish sustain in the center. Then a few of the Humpback Whales of the group lunge onto the center to feed upon the fish or krill. Humpback Whales have a very interesting whale song which the male sings when mating and lasts twenty minutes and can be heard as far as twenty miles away. Humpback Whales migrate as far as 16,000 miles (25,000 kilometers) from polar regions to tropical regions like Hawaii.

Food Web

Food Web (cont.) Surprisingly Humpback Whales are carnivores that eat seasonally, they feed upon krill , tiny crustaceans, plankton, and small fish, including, herring, mackerel, capelin, and , sandeel and squids in the ocean. Even though they do not have any teeth they consume their meal whole, swallowing it. Instead of teeth they have long hairs in there mouth known as baleen, the baleen helps filter the tiny critters. Due to the Humpback Whale’s enormous size it has a few predators, excluding humans. The main predator other than humans the Humpback Whale fears is the killer whale. Killer whales are also a type of whale, but in contrast killer whales are toothed whales, meaning they have teeth, which posses a great threat to the Humpback Whale which scarcely ahs any defense and is mostly protecting their young.

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