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Beluga Whales Background Beluga Whales Live up to 35 Years of Age to 50 a Beluga Whale Has a Big Head to Use Its Echolocation

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Beluga Whales Background Beluga Whales Live up to 35 Years of Age to 50 a Beluga Whale Has a Big Head to Use Its Echolocation Beluga Whales Background Beluga whales live up to 35 years of age to 50 a beluga whale has a big head to use its echolocation. Appearance The melon is a rounded structure on the dorsal surface of a whale's head, just in front of the blowhole. On beluga whales it is prominent and overhangs the rostrum. The melon is composed of lipids (fats) It changes shape when the whale is producing sounds. Diet/Habitat Beluga whales are opportunistic feeders. They prey on about 100 different kinds of primarily bottom-dwelling animals. They eat octopus; squid; crabs; snails; sandworms; and fishes such as capelin, cod, herring, smelt, and flounder. They can be found along the shores of Canada,Alaska,Greenland and Russia. Adaptations Belugas are extremely sociable mammals that live, hunt and migrate together in pods, ranging from a few individuals to hundreds of whales. Their bulbous forehead, called a "melon”, is flexible and capable of changing shape. This allows them to make different facial expressions. Belugas can produce a series of chirps, clicks, whistles and squeals, which give the beluga its other name, "the canary of the sea." They may sound like music or even nonsense to us, but to fellow belugas they convey important information. Jaw Dropping Facts 10. Also known as "sea canaries," belugas are one of the most the most vocal of all whales. 9. The beluga is closely related to the narwhal; they are the only two members of the Monodontidae family. 8. Beluga whales' dives may last up to 25 minutes and can reach depths of 800 meters. 7. The word beluga comes from the Russian word "bielo" meaning white. However, these white whales are born dark gray. It can take up to eight years before they turn completely white. 6. The beluga is able to swim backwards. 5. The beluga can change the shape of its bulbous forehead, called a "melon", by blowing air around its sinuses. 4. In 2009, a captive beluga whale rescued a distressed participant of a free diving competition by pushing her to the surface. 3. Belugas, like other arctic whales, do not have dorsal fins (a dorsal fin causes extra heat loss and would be a major hindrance in the arctic ice), but they do have a tough dorsal ridge. They also have a thick layer of blubber that insulates them from the icy arctic waters. 2. The vertebrae in a beluga’s neck is not fused together, giving it the unusual ability to turn its head up, down and side-to-side. 1. Threats to beluga whales include climate change, hunting, oil and gas development, and industrial and urban pollution. Polar bears and killer whales are known predators of belugas throughout their Arctic range Impact of cross breeding or extinction info In the 16th century, Calusa Indians on Marco Island, Fla., made a six-inch wooden carving of a kneeling panther-woman, her head and upper body feline, her lower body human. This hauntingly beautiful figurine is one of countless portrayals of human-animal and animal-animal hybrids -- among them satyrs and griffins -- found throughout the world for thousands of years Extra information Sound to them is like eyes to us," says Vergara. Like other toothed whales and many bats, they use echolocation: they make a rapid string of clicks that bounce back from the environment, and interpret the echoes to identify objects such as food. Belugas make all these sounds despite having no vocal cords.Other names for Beluga whales would be white whales,belukha,sea canary These are my facts on Beluga Whales.
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