Whale | Definition, Types, & Facts

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id="content" class="md-content"> <div class="md-article-container template-desktop"> <div class="infinite-scroll-container article last"> <article class="article-content container-lg qa-content px-0 pt-0 pb-40 py-lg-20 content " data-topic-id="641397"> <div class="grid gx-0"> <div class="col-auto"> <div class="topic-left-rail md-article-drawer position-relative d-flex border-right-sm border-left-sm open"> <div class="drawer d-flex flex-column open"> <div class="left-rail-section-content"> <div class="topic-left-rail-header text-truncate bg-gray-50 position-relative text-right d-flex align-items-center"> <div class="tlr-title px-20 py-15 text-left"> <em class="material-icons text-gray-400 d-lg-none" data-icon="toc"></em> <a class="font-serif font-weight-bold text-black link-blue" href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/whale">whale</a> </div> <button aria-label="Close" class="js-sections-close-button btn-link btn-sm btn d-lg-none position-absolute top-0 p-10 right-0" > <em class="material-icons font-26" data-icon="close"></em> </button> </div> <div class="section-content pl-10 pr-20 pl-sm-50 pr-sm-60 pl-lg-5 pr-lg-10 pt-10 pt-lg-0 bg-gray-50 clear-catfish-ad"> <div class="toc mb-20"> <div class="font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mx-15 mb-15 mt-20"> Table of Contents </div> <span class="toc-extra-link selected link-gray-900 mt-15"> Introduction </span> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/whale/additional-info">References & Edit History</a> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="/facts/whale">Related Topics</a> </div> <div class="tlr-media-slider pb-10 mb-30"> <a class="section-header link-gray-900 font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mb-10 mx-10" href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/whale/images-videos">Images & Videos</a> <div class="slider js-slider position-relative d-inline-flex align-items-center mw-100 "> <div class="slider-container js-slider-container overflow-hidden d-flex overflow-hidden text-nowrap ml-15"> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/37/75637-050-B425E8F1/Killer-whale.jpg" data-href="/media/1/641397/158695" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/37/75637-004-F79AF98E/Killer-whale.jpg" alt="killer whale (Orcinus orca)" height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/55/73255-050-5BD25091/Whales.jpg" data-href="/media/1/641397/67462" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/55/73255-004-9DFBE231/Whales.jpg" alt="species of whales" height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/73/64873-004-4E58F04F/Breeding-grounds-routes-migration-humpback-whale.jpg" data-href="/media/1/641397/109266" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/73/64873-004-4E58F04F/Breeding-grounds-routes-migration-humpback-whale.jpg" alt="breeding grounds and migration routes of the humpback whale" height="50" /> </a> <a href="/video/humpback-whale/195620" data-href="/media/1/641397/195620" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <div class="position-relative --aspect-ratio: 16/9"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/28/180328-138-B8DBFB5D/humpback-whale.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop" alt="Humpback whales: Size, behavior, and threats" class="col-100" /> <div class="btn btn-sm btn-white btn-circle position-absolute shadow" style="top: 50%; left:50%; transform: translate(-50%, -50%)"> <em class="material-icons font-14" data-icon="play_arrow" > </em> </div> </div> </a> <a href="/video/discussion-whales-Science-at-Sea-The-Whale/181038" data-href="/media/1/641397/181038" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <div class="position-relative --aspect-ratio: 16/9"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/19/166619-138-2D4CDACC/discussion-whales-Science-at-Sea-The-Whale.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop" alt="Explore the Whale Museum and the whales around the San Juan Islands" class="col-100" /> <div class="btn btn-sm btn-white btn-circle position-absolute shadow" style="top: 50%; left:50%; transform: translate(-50%, -50%)"> <em class="material-icons font-14" data-icon="play_arrow" > </em> </div> </div> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/23/6423-050-25253FDD/Beluga-white-whale.jpg" data-href="/media/1/641397/4496" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/23/6423-004-BCD65DA7/Beluga-white-whale.jpg" alt="Beluga, or white whale (Delphinapterus leucas)." height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/26/73326-050-5B825ECC/factory-ship-Japanese-slipway-minke-whale-stern-1992.jpg" data-href="/media/1/641397/67473" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/26/73326-004-B5F531EF/factory-ship-Japanese-slipway-minke-whale-stern-1992.jpg" alt="whaling" height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/52/1452-004-BB2C55E0/Whales-animals-humpbacks-sound-waves-ocean-surface.jpg" data-href="/media/1/641397/5997" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/52/1452-004-BB2C55E0/Whales-animals-humpbacks-sound-waves-ocean-surface.jpg" alt="breaching humpback" height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/70/134970-050-DA137561/humpback-whale-ocean-surface-Tofino-BC.jpg" data-href="/media/1/641397/137770" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/70/134970-004-D144C97D/humpback-whale-ocean-surface-Tofino-BC.jpg" alt="A humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) breaching the ocean surface near Tofino, B.C., Can." height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/07/135707-050-1D8BA35A/Humpback-whale-breaching.jpg" data-href="/media/1/641397/158696" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/07/135707-120-C170FC7C/Humpback-whale-breaching.jpg" alt="Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) breaching." height="50" /> </a> </div> <button disabled class="prev-button js-prev-button position-absolute btn btn-circle shadow btn-blue " aria-label="Previous"> <span class="material-icons md-24" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_left"></span> </button> <button disabled class="next-button js-next-button position-absolute btn btn-circle shadow btn-blue " aria-label="Next"> <span class="material-icons md-24" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></span> </button> </div> </div> <div class="mb-30 tlr-student-links"> <div class="text-gray-900 p-5 font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mx-10 mb-10"> For Students </div> <div class="imagelink-with-image-on-the-side card card-horizontal tlr-img-with-side-link ml-15 link-gray-900 mb-10" > <div class="position-relative card-media" style="flex: 0;"> <a class="ilf-image position-relative" href="/summary/whale"> <img loading="lazy" 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line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Related Topics: </dt> <dd><a href="/topic/whaling" topicid="641450">whaling</a></dd> <dd><a href="/science/whale-vocalization" topicid="2254548">whale vocalization</a></dd> <dd><a href="/animal/baleen-whale" topicid="50134">baleen whale</a></dd> <dd><a href="/technology/whale-oil" topicid="641432">whale oil</a></dd> <dd><a href="/animal/toothed-whale" topicid="599507">toothed whale</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> <div class="text-center"> <a class="btn btn-sm btn-link p-0" href="/facts/whale"> See all related content </a> </div> </div> </div> </div><div class="bg-gray-50 p-15 rounded module-spacing recent-news d-flex flex-column float-false"> <div> <h2 class="font-weight-bold font-14 m-0 d-inline"> News <span class="text-gray-600">•</span> </h2> <div class="recent-news-item first-recent-news-item d-inline"> <a class="font-14 gtm-ap-news-link" href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/nov/21/reduce-whale-ship-strikes-ocean-surface-safer-study" rel="nofollow">Reduce whale-ship strikes by making 2.6% of ocean surface safer, study says</a> <span class="font-14 text-gray-600"> <span>•</span> Nov. 22, 2024, 4:42 AM ET (The Guardian) </span> </div> </div> <div class="rest-of-recent-news-items"> <button class="js-toggle-recent-news d-flex btn btn-unstyled font-14 pr-10 rounded-sm mt-10" aria-label="Toggle additional news items"> Show less <em class="material-icons" data-icon="expand_less"></em> </button> </div> </div><span class="marker before-article"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref1"><span class="marker PREMOD1 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies multiple medialist slider js-slider position-relative d-inline-flex align-items-center mw-100" data-type="other"><div class="slider-container js-slider-container overflow-hidden d-flex"><div class="rw-track d-flex align-items-center"><div class="position-relative rw-slide col-100 px-20 "><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="67462" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/55/73255-050-5BD25091/Whales.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/641397/67462"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/55/73255-050-5BD25091/Whales.jpg"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/55/73255-050-5BD25091/Whales.jpg?w=300" alt="species of whales" data-width="2000" data-height="1125" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/55/73255-050-5BD25091/Whales.jpg" data-href="/media/1/641397/67462">species of whales</a><span>Whales (order Cetacea).</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div></div><button disabled="true" class="prev-button js-prev-button position-absolute btn btn-circle shadow btn-lg btn-blue-dark m-20"><span class="material-icons" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_left"></span></button><button disabled="true" class="next-button js-next-button position-absolute btn btn-circle shadow btn-lg btn-blue-dark m-20"><span class="material-icons" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></span></button></div><p class="topic-paragraph"><strong><span id="ref97197"></span>whale</strong>, any of the larger species of aquatic mammals belonging to the order <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/cetacean" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Cetacea</a>. The term <em>whale</em> can be used in reference to any cetacean, including <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/porpoise" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">porpoises</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/dolphin-mammal" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">dolphins</a>, but in general it is applied to those more than 3 metres (10 feet) long. An exception is the 2.7-metre <span id="ref758949"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/dwarf-sperm-whale" class="md-crosslink ">dwarf sperm whale</a> (<em>Kogia simus</em>), so called for its otherwise striking resemblance to its larger namesake. Whales are the heaviest known animals, living or fossil, reaching a maximum size in the <span id="ref97201"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/blue-whale" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">blue whale</a> (<em>Balaenoptera musculus</em>) of perhaps more than 30 metres and 200 metric tons (220 short [U.S.] tons). Large predatory whales, including the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/killer-whale" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">killer whale</a>, are often considered to be the <span id="ref1322344"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/apex-predator" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">apex predators</a> (meaning they have no natural predators or enemies) of their <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/marine-ecosystem" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">marine</a> <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="environments" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/environments" data-type="MW">environments</a>.</p><span class="marker MOD1 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD2 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="109266" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/73/64873-004-4E58F04F/Breeding-grounds-routes-migration-humpback-whale.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/641397/109266"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/73/64873-004-4E58F04F/Breeding-grounds-routes-migration-humpback-whale.jpg"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/73/64873-004-4E58F04F/Breeding-grounds-routes-migration-humpback-whale.jpg?w=300" alt="breeding grounds and migration routes of the humpback whale" data-width="640" data-height="380" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/73/64873-004-4E58F04F/Breeding-grounds-routes-migration-humpback-whale.jpg" data-href="/media/1/641397/109266">breeding grounds and migration routes of the humpback whale</a><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">Whales are distributed throughout the world’s oceans and seas, from the Equator to the polar ice, except for the landlocked Caspian and Aral seas. They are <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/mammal" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">mammals</a>, and they share the defining traits of that group: they breathe air, are warm-blooded, give <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/viviparity" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">live birth</a>, suckle their young on milk, and have hair. All are entirely aquatic, with specialized <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="adaptations" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/adaptations" data-type="MW">adaptations</a> such as flippers and tail flukes for living in water. Whales must surface regularly to breathe, evacuating their lungs more completely than most mammals in an almost explosive breath known as a <span id="ref758952"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/blow-mammalian-reflex" class="md-crosslink ">blow</a>. Blows are visible because water vapour in the whale’s hot breath condenses when the blow is released.</p><span class="marker MOD2 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD3 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Despite living in a medium that has much greater <span id="ref758953"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/thermoregulation" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">thermal conduction</a> characteristics than air, whales, like other mammals, must regulate their body temperature. Hair, however, is restricted to the head, appearing mainly as isolated whiskers (vibrissae) near the mouth and blowhole. <span id="ref758954"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/blubber-anatomy" class="md-crosslink ">Blubber</a> serves as an insulating layer to protect small whales from <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/hypothermia" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">hypothermia</a>. Large whales have the opposite problem in that they can produce too much heat; they possess elaborate thermoregulation mechanisms to prevent overheating.</p><a class="link-module shadow-sm d-block qa-quiz-module" href="/quiz/deadliest-animals-quiz" data-link-module-iframe-link=""> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/54/92754-131-661B61DB/lion-Panthera-leo.jpg" alt="Lion (panthera leo)" class="rounded-sm mr-15" width="70" /> <div class="line-clamp clamp-5"> <div class="module-title bg-green">Britannica Quiz</div> <div class="font-weight-semi-bold mt-5">Deadliest Animals Quiz</div> </div> </a><span class="marker MOD3 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD4 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Because of the restricted utility of vision underwater, whales use <span id="ref97203"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/sound-reception" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">sound</a> to perceive and interpret their <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="environment" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/environment" data-type="MW">environment</a> and to communicate, sometimes over vast distances. Biologists have computed that the 10-hertz sounds of <span id="ref758956"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/fin-whale" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">fin whales</a> (<em>Balaenoptera physalus</em>), for example, can travel over 1,800 km (1,100 miles). <span id="ref97200"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/toothed-whale" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Toothed whales</a> can produce sounds and interpret their reflections via active <span id="ref758957"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/echolocation" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">echolocation</a>. The extent to which <span id="ref97199"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/baleen-whale" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">baleen whales</a> have this ability is unknown.</p><span class="marker MOD4 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD5 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Following internal fertilization, female whales are pregnant for about a year. The young are relatively large when born—one-third to one-half the length of the mother. They are nursed for about six months on extremely rich milk containing almost 50 percent fat. Whales have one pair of nipples located at the rear of the abdomen near the genital opening.</p><span class="marker MOD5 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD6 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="195620" data-asm-type="video"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="video" video-id="180328"><a data-id="180328" class="gtm-assembly-link d-flex justify-content-center" style="--aspect-ratio: 16/9" href="/video/humpback-whale/-195620"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/28/180328-138-B8DBFB5D/humpback-whale.jpg?w=800&h=450&c=crop" alt="Humpback whales: Size, behavior, and threats" loading="lazy"><script type="application/json"> { "sources": [ { "file" : "//content.jwplatform.com/manifests/Vs6Rs439.m3u8" } ], "image": "https://cdn.britannica.com/28/180328-138-B8DBFB5D/humpback-whale.jpg" ,"tracks": [ { "file" : "//assets-jpcust.jwpsrv.com/tracks/yiSOnJqd", "label": "English" } ] ,"adfile": "//content.jwplatform.com/manifests/JfXFOoqm.m3u8" } </script><div class="btn btn-xl btn-white btn-circle position-absolute shadow" style="top: 50%; transform: translateY(-50%)"><em class="material-icons" data-icon="play_arrow"></em></div></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><span class="md-assembly-title font-weight-bold mr-5 d-inline font-sans-serif md-video-caption" video-control="180328">Humpback whales: Size, behavior, and threats</span><span>Learn about the humpback whale.</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div><a class="font-14 mt-10 d-inline-block" href="/animal/whale/images-videos">See all videos for this article</a></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">The first fossil whales are known from rocks approximately 50 million years old (Early <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/Eocene-Epoch" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Eocene Epoch</a>). These members of the extinct suborder <span id="ref97198"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/Archaeoceti" class="md-crosslink ">Archaeoceti</a> are the primitive whales from which modern whales are derived. They show many similarities to terrestrial mammals, including a <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="differentiated" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/differentiated" data-type="MW">differentiated</a> dentition (heterodonty) consisting of incisors, canines, premolars, and molars. Archaeocetes gave rise to the living suborders: the baleen whales (suborder Mysticeti) and the toothed whales (suborder Odontoceti).</p><span class="marker MOD6 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD7 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Mysticetes have baleen plates and take small prey by the mouthful, mainly in the form of drifting (planktonic) <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/crustacean" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">crustaceans</a> such as <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/copepod" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">copepods</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/krill" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">krill</a>, but they also occasionally consume small schooling fish or <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/squid" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">squid</a>. One interesting departure from this pattern is the <span id="ref758959"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/gray-whale" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">gray whale</a> (<em>Eschrichtius robustus</em>), which commonly eats <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/shrimp-crustacean" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">shrimp</a> and other bottom-dwelling creatures: it scoops up mud and strains it through the baleen plates, retaining its food. Odontocetes have simple teeth (homodonty) and pursue individual squid, fish, and other prey. The largest odontocete, the <span id="ref1322340"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/sperm-whale" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">sperm whale</a> (<em>Physeter macrocephalus</em>), occasionally feeds on <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/giant-squid" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">giant squid</a>.</p><div class="module-spacing"> <DIV class="marketing-INLINE_SUBSCRIPTION marketing-content" data-marketing-id="INLINE_SUBSCRIPTION"><style> .student-promo-banner-wrapper { container-type: inline-size; margin-bottom: 15px; } @container (min-width: 475px) { .student-promo-banner { flex-direction: row; } .student-promo-banner-img-wrapper { margin-bottom: 0; margin-right: 10px; justify-content: flex-start; } .student-promo-banner-text-wrapper { text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 10px; } .student-promo-banner-button-wrapper { margin-right: 0; } }</style> <div class="student-promo-banner-wrapper"> <div class="student-promo-banner d-flex flex-column align-items-center bg-blue rounded p-20"> <div class="student-promo-banner-img-wrapper mb-20 mr-0 d-flex justify-content-center"> <img class="rounded" style="max-width: 100px; min-width: 80px" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/marketing/BlueThistle.webp" /> </div> <div class="student-promo-banner-text-wrapper ml-0 mb-10 text-center text-white"> <div class="h2 mb-10">Get Unlimited Access</div> <div class="h4 font-weight-semi-bold">Try Britannica Premium for free and discover more.</div> </div> <div class="student-promo-banner-button-wrapper d-flex justify-content-center align-items-center ml-auto mr-auto"> <a class="btn btn-m btn-orange" href="https://premium.britannica.com/premium-membership/?utm_source=premium&utm_medium=inline-cta&utm_campaign=black-friday-2024">Subscribe</a> </div> </div> </div> </DIV></div><div class="one-good-fact-module"> </div><span class="marker MOD7 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD8 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="181038" data-asm-type="video"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="video" video-id="166619"><a data-id="166619" class="gtm-assembly-link d-flex justify-content-center" style="--aspect-ratio: 16/9" href="/video/discussion-whales-Science-at-Sea-The-Whale/-181038"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/19/166619-138-2D4CDACC/discussion-whales-Science-at-Sea-The-Whale.jpg?w=800&h=450&c=crop" alt="Explore the Whale Museum and the whales around the San Juan Islands" loading="lazy"><script type="application/json"> { "sources": [ { "file" : "//content.jwplatform.com/manifests/bhiAqL8d.m3u8" } ], "image": "https://cdn.britannica.com/19/166619-138-2D4CDACC/discussion-whales-Science-at-Sea-The-Whale.jpg" ,"tracks": [ { "file" : "//assets-jpcust.jwpsrv.com/tracks/SdE1OK21", "label": "English" } ] ,"adfile": "//content.jwplatform.com/manifests/s9yxKNIO.m3u8" } </script><div class="btn btn-xl btn-white btn-circle position-absolute shadow" style="top: 50%; transform: translateY(-50%)"><em class="material-icons" data-icon="play_arrow"></em></div></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><span class="md-assembly-title font-weight-bold mr-5 d-inline font-sans-serif md-video-caption" video-control="166619">Explore the Whale Museum and the whales around the San Juan Islands</span><span>A discussion of whales around the San Juan Islands of Washington, from the documentary <em>Science at Sea: The Whale Museum</em>.</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div><a class="font-14 mt-10 d-inline-block" href="/animal/whale/images-videos">See all videos for this article</a></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">Humans have long utilized stranded whales as a food resource, and historically whales were hunted for <span id="ref1322343"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/whale-oil" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">whale oil</a> and <span id="ref1322342"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/whalebone" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">baleen</a>. In the early 20th century, as demand increased and technology enabled meat to be frozen at sea, whales began to be taken in larger numbers for human <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="consumption" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/consumption" data-type="MW">consumption</a> and for specialty products. Scientific concern over the increased <span id="ref1322341"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/whaling" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">catch</a> of whales in the Southern Hemisphere in the 1930s led to the ratification of the International Whaling Convention and the founding of the <span id="ref97204"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/International-Whaling-Commission" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">International Whaling Commission</a> in 1946. Through the years this agency has acted to moderate <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/whaling" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">whaling</a>, and it instituted a <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="moratorium" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/moratorium" data-type="MW">moratorium</a> on commercial whaling in the late 1980s. Some whaling still occurs under special permit. Native peoples are also allowed to continue traditional whale hunting that has been a part of their <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="culture" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/culture" data-type="MW">culture</a>.</p><span class="marker MOD8 mod-inline"></span></section> <span class="md-signature"><a href="/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419">The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</a></span><span class="md-signature">This article was most recently revised and updated by <a href="/editor/John-P-Rafferty/6747">John P. 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Whale | Definition, Types, & Facts | Britannica