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1. Whales are the largest animals in the entire world!
I’m sure everyone is aware of the fact that whales are extremely large. Most experts agree that the blue whale is the largest mammal that has been on Earth… they even say its the loudest. The dwarf sperm whale is only 8 feet long and is the smallest whale. The average whale can be up to 105 feet long.
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2. Despite their massive-ness, they don’t have to eat every day.
For being such huge animals, whales go about half of the year eating nothing at all. During their time in the nutrient-rich cold water near the poles they feast, but once they migrate closer to the equator for mating they don’t eat at all. The reason? The gorgeous, clear water around the middle of the world actually lacks nutrients.
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3. Not only are whales highly intelligent, they are emotional creatures as well.
Whale babies are born with exceptionally large heads that come with big, complex brains. Their large brains indicate a level of intelligence uncommon within most of the animal kingdom. Alongside being smart whales have been shown to have the same neurons that allow humans to feel complex emotions. This level of intelligence and social awareness is what allows humpback whales to coordinate an elaborate feeding method.
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4. The Ancient Greeks believed whales were sea monsters.
Cetaces, the generic term for whales, comes from the Greek word keto. In Greek Mythology, Keto was the goddess of sea monsters and when the Greeks saw the cresting backs of a group of whales they believed them to be all part of one giant sea serpent.
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5. When asleep, whales rest half of their brains.
Since whales cannot breathe underwater this means they need to be awake all the time in order to come up to breathe when they need to. So how do whales rest? Well, they “sleep” by resting one half of their brain at a time while the other half of the brain stays awake to make the whales breathes and stays alert to any danger in its environment.