What are some adaptations of a whale’s body to an aquatic environment?
Streamlined bodies for moving through the water Forelimbs have become flippers, to move them through the water Hindlimbs are almost gone – pelvic bone is tiny, their femur is just a little ball! Broadened tail that moves up and down, not side to side like a fish No hair, are insulated with blubber instead (except some lip hair, perhaps 4 on their upper lip, and 40 on their lower). Nose is on top of their head Senses are adapted to the ocean – they have fantastic hearing (they can hear much lower frequencies than we can). Population, Conservation, Distribution Where are blue whales found? How many are there? They are found in every ocean of the world, and there used to be hundreds of thousands of them. They are fast swimmers (able to reach a top speed of 50 kph when spooked), and for a long time they were too fast and elusive for the whalers to catch. People have been hunting whales for their oil, blubber, baleen, and meat since prehistory. Blue whales were quick enough to outrun most w
