Fin Whales

Fin whales are baleen whales.

They belong to the group rorquals, and they all belong to the same species - Balaenoptera physalus - however there are a few different subspecies.

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Sometimes called finback whales, they are the second largest whales in the world (after blue whales). They grow up to 20 meters long and can live for almost 100 years. They are brownish gray, have relatively small flippers, broad tail, a white patch on the right side of their lower jaw, and a dorsal fin as their name says. As other baleen whales, they are filter feeders and eat krill, small fish and squid. They swim quickly for a baleen whale. Like most other whales they breed every 2-3 years and most often give birth to one young although up to six young have been reported in rare cases.

A Fin Whale Swimming under the Rippled Surface of the Sea of Cortez

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They are found in all of the world's oceans except the polar regions. Like most other whales they migrate between summer feeding and winter breeding grounds. They are known for low frequency whale songs, often sung while migrating. And like other large whales, they were targeted during the old whaling days, so the majority of them got killed and today they are endangered species. The two subspecies are Balaenoptera physalus physalus and Balaenoptera physalus quoyi.

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