“…today we’re talking about a whale that’s here today and here tomorrow. More on that later.”
Description
- Looks like a massive, stocky submarine
- Dark gray to black smooth, rubbery skin, often with white patches on the chin and tail
- Largest mouth of any animal, with a curved jawline that can extend as a massive 13’ frown
- No dorsal fin, unlike most whales, giving it a sleek, humpback-like profile
- Massive, triangular skull that can break through Arctic ice
- Thick blubber layer, up to 20 inches in some spots
Measure Up
Welcome to the beloved Measure Up segment. The official listener’s favorite part of the show! The part of the show when we present the animal’s size and dimension in relatable terms through a quiz that’s fun for the whole family. It’s also the part of the show that’s introduced by you when you send in audio of yourself saying, singing, or chittering the words Measure Up into ldtaxonomy at gmail dot com.
Courage The Cowardly Dog | Sand Whale | Cartoon Network
Length:
Adult males: 14–17 meters (46–56 feet).
Adult females: Slightly larger, 16–18 meters (52–59 feet), with some reaching up to 20 meters (65 feet).
Calves: 4–5 meters (13–16 feet) at birth.
Length of the Bowhead Whale
The Bowhead Whale has a total length of 56 feet (17.07 meters). How many objects fit into the whale’s length (if the object is shorter) or how many whales fit into the object’s length (if the object is longer)?
a) The length of Nansen’s ski from the Fram expedition
Fridtjof Nansen’s wooden skis, used during the 1893–1896 Fram expedition to the Arctic, measured approximately 7 feet (2.13 meters), based on historical records of Norwegian ski designs.
17.07 ÷ 2.13 ≈ 8.0 Nansen’s skis (object is shorter, so skis into whale’s length).
b) The length of the SS Roosevelt’s mainmast
The SS Roosevelt, used in Robert Peary’s 1905–1906 and 1908–1909 Arctic expeditions, had a mainmast approximately 80 feet (24.38 meters) tall, per maritime records of similar steam-sail vessels.
24.38 ÷ 17.07 ≈ 1.4 Bowhead Whales (object is longer, so whales into mainmast).
c) The length of an Inuit umiak from the Thule culture
An umiak, a traditional Inuit skin boat used for whaling in the Arctic, measured about 30 feet (9.14 meters) for a large vessel, based on ethnographic records from the Thule culture.
17.07 ÷ 9.14 ≈ 1.9 Inuit umiaks (object is shorter, so umiaks into whale’s length).
Question: How many fit into each length comparison?
A) 8.0 Nansen’s skis go into the length of a Bowhead Whale
B) 2 Bowhead Whales go into the length of the SS Roosevelt’s mainmast
C) 3 Inuit umiaks go into the length of a Bowhead Whale
Weight:
Adults: 75–100 metric tons (165,000–220,000 pounds), though some can exceed 100 tons.
Calves: Approximately 1 metric ton (2,200 pounds) at birth.
Weight of the Bowhead Whale
The Bowhead Whale weighs 220,000 pounds (99,790 kg). How many objects fit into the whale’s weight (if the object is lighter) or how many whales fit into the object’s weight (if the object is heavier)?
a) The weight of Amundsen’s sled from the Gjøa expedition
Roald Amundsen’s wooden sled, used during the 1903–1906 Gjøa Northwest Passage expedition, weighed about 100 pounds (45.36 kg), based on historical Arctic sled designs.
99,790 ÷ 45.36 ≈ 2,200.0 Amundsen’s sleds (object is lighter, so sleds into whale’s weight).
b) The weight of the HMS Terror’s anchor
The HMS Terror, part of Franklin’s 1845 Arctic expedition, had a main anchor weighing approximately 4,000 pounds (1,814 kg), per naval records of Erebus-class bomb vessels.
99,790 ÷ 1,814 ≈ 55.0 HMS Terror’s anchors (object is lighter, so anchors into whale’s weight).
c) The weight of a polar bear from the Beaufort Sea
A large male polar bear (Ursus maritimus) from the Beaufort Sea, a key Arctic species, weighs about 1,500 pounds (680 kg), per wildlife data.
99,790 ÷ 680 ≈ 146.8 polar bears (object is lighter, so polar bears into whale’s weight).
Question: How many fit into each weight comparison?
- 3,000 Amundsen’s sleds go into the weight of a Bowhead Whale
B) 55.0 HMS Terror’s anchors go into the weight of a Bowhead Whale
C) 150 polar bears go into the weight of a Bowhead Whale
Fast Facts
- Range: Found in Arctic and subarctic waters, primarily in the Bering, Chukchi, and Beaufort Seas, with some hanging out near Greenland and Canada.
- Habitat: Prefers cold, icy waters near pack ice, where it can literally chill year-round.
- Diet: Filter-feeds on tiny copepods and krill, slurping up to 2 tons of food daily through its baleen plates.
- Mating Behavior: Males sing complex, eerie songs underwater to woo females with breeding peaking in late spring. Produces low-frequency moans, grunts, and songs that can travel miles underwater.
- Social Behavior: Often solitary or in small groups, but can form loose pods of up to 14 whales during migration.
- Predators: Orcas are their main natural threat, though humans historically hunted them nearly to extinction.
- Fun Fact: Their massive bow-shaped head can be used to break through ice up to 2 feet thick to create breathing holes.
Major Fact
Sometime before 1890, a bowhead whale was minding its own business in Arctic waters when it was struck in the neck by a harpoon from Native Alaskan hunters. Despite the wound, the hearty cetacean survived and escaped. Around 115 years later, in May 2007, another bowhead whale hunt was successful. When the hunters were dressing their kill they found that it had a metal harpoon piece embedded in its neck– it was the same whale.
Scientists studied other bowhead whales captured between 1978 and 1996. They estimated one whale to be 211 years old, with others ranging from 135 to 172 years.
This revealed that bowhead whales have a much longer lifespan than previously thought. Genetic analysis by CSIRO, Australia’s science agency, further estimated their maximum natural lifespan at 268 years.
Why They Live So Long: Several factors contribute to their longevity:
- Low Metabolic Rate: Their slow metabolism reduces cellular damage over time.
- Cold Environment: Living in Arctic waters may slow aging processes due to lower temperatures.
- Genetic Adaptations: Research indicates bowheads have unique genetic traits, such as enhanced DNA repair mechanisms and resistance to oxidative stress, which help mitigate age-related diseases like cancer.
- Large Body Size: Their massive size (up to 100 tons) reduces predation risk, allowing them to survive longer.
Reproduction and Aging: Bowheads remain reproductively active into old age, with females giving birth even past 100 years. This suggests they experience minimal senescence (biological aging), a rare trait among mammals.
Evidence:
- In the 1990s, Inuit hunters found old harpoon tips in harvested whales, some from the 1800s, indicating the whales were already mature when struck.
- A 2007 study used aspartic acid racemization in eye lenses to estimate ages, confirming lifespans exceeding 150–200 years.
- Genomic studies (e.g., 2015) identified genes linked to longevity, such as those for DNA repair and tumor suppression.
Cultural Significance: Indigenous Arctic communities, like the Inuit, have long known of bowhead longevity, with oral traditions describing whales living across multiple human generations.
Ending
So chill out in chill waters, sing a complex and eerie song from Dreamtheater’s Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence era and don’t let a gilded age javelin bomb stop you from living another 115 years like the bowhead whale here in LDT.