Minke Whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata)
There are two species of Minke Whale and this is also known as the Northern Minke Whale since it is found from the pole to the equator in the Atlantic and the Pacific.
MINKE WHALE
Balaenoptera acutorostrata
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
The minke whale is the smallest baleen whale with 50-70 throat grooves. It is a rorqual whale (baleen whale with throat grooves). They are the most abundant baleen whale.
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Minke Whale
Order Cetacea : Family Balaenopteridae : Balaenoptera acutorostrata Lacepede ...
Minke whales grow to be about 7.8-9 m long, weighing about 5,400-6,800 kg. Females are about 0.6 m longer than males, as with all baleen whales. The largest minke whale was about 10.5 m long weighing 8,600 kg.
Minke Whale
The Minke whale is the smallest of the rorquals. The male of the species can grow to a length of 9.8m (32ft) and the female larger at 11m (36ft) and weigh 10 tonnes.
Minke Whale
Smaller than either the Humpback or the Fin Whale, the Minke Whales rarely spends much time on the surface. Notice the sickle shaped dorsal fin. Named for a whaling captain who took them when others shunned them as too small to bother.
Minke whale, lesser rorqual
Balaenoptera acutorostrata
The smallest of the rorqual family, minke whales are currently the only whales still openly being commercially hunted.
Subspecies
None.
Minke Whale
Balaenoptera acutorostrata
A student web page designed by Sarah Redding and Jody Shields
Class: Mammalia
Order: Cetacea
Suborder: Mysticeti
Family: Balaenopteridae ...
Minke Whale surfacing, north of Husavik, Iceland
Photograph by Ville Miettinen. Some rights reserved. (view image details)
MAMMAL FACTS ...
Minke whales in Antarctic feeding areas can be solitary or form small groups. They are generally seen in groups of 2 to 4 individuals. Distribution of individuals within these groups is relatively random.
Minke whales are the second-smallest baleen whales. They are identifiable by a narrow, pointy snout, and most seen in North American waters have a white stripe on the back of each flipper.
Common Minke Whale (B. acutorostrata) Â- Antarctic Minke Whale (B. bonaerensis) Â- Sei Whale (B. borealis) Â- Bryde's Whale (B. brydei) Â- Pygmy Bryde's Whale (B. edeni) Â- Blue Whale (B. musculus) Â- B. omurai Â- Fin Whale (B. physalus)
Megaptera ...
Antarctic minke whale
Arnoux's beaked whale
Baird's beaked whale
Blue whale (North Pacific)
Bowhead whale
Gray whale Northeast Pacific population
Northern bottlenose whale
Southern bottlenose whale
Short-finned pilot whale ...
Antarctic minke whale (Balaenoptera bonaerensis)
Information on the Antarctic minke whale is currently being researched and written and will appear here shortly... More 10 Images 2 Videos ...
They range in size from the 30 feet minke whale to the 100-foot blue whale. The baleen plates in this family of whales are short and broad. They feed by gulping large quantities of water into their mouths and then shooting it out through the baleen.
Rorquals include fin whales, Sei whales, Bryde's whales, Eden's whales, blue whales, common minke whales, Antarctic minke whales, Omura's whales and humpback whales.
Whales include the Blue whale, Fin whale, Sei whale, Southern right whale, Humpback whale, Minke whale, Sperm whale, Killer whale or Orca, Southern bottlenose whale, Blackfish, Dusky dolphin, Cruciger dolphin, and Spectacled porpoise.
They range in size from the compact minke whale, whose average length is around 8 meters, to the gargantuan blue whale, which can reach lengths of over 33 meters and weigh up to 120 tons - as much as 32 elephants.
CETACEA: Balaenopteridae (Rorqual Whales)
Common Name Scientific Name Distribution
Common Minke Whale
Balaenoptera acutorostrata ...
Only the small minke whale exists in populations great enough for sustainable whaling to be considered. Whale products include whale oil, sperm oil, spermaceti, ambergris, and whalebone, as well as meat, bone meal, and liver oil.
 See also: Whale, Dolphin, Humpback, Fin Whale, Blue Whale
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