How does baleen work?
Baleen (which is also called whalebone) is made out keratin, just like your fingernails and hair. After a baleen whale takes a mouth full of water, it uses its throat and tongue to force the water back out of its mouth through the gaps in the baleen plates. Like a giant strainer, food (shrimp like animals and small fishes) is caught in the fine brush-like hairs that fringe the inside edges of the baleen. With a lift of the tongue and a big gulp, dinner is served.
