The Bowhead Whale (Balaena mysticetus) is a species of whale from the Arctic Ocean. It is the largest of all of the whales that frequent the Arctic seas, and the last surviving member of the genus Balaena. The bowhead whale has the thickest blubber of any sea mammal, up to 19 inches (50 cm) thick. The blubber helps the whale maintain its body heat in the frigid Arctic waters. Its head is so strong that it can be used as an icebreaker, enabling them to easily move through the remaining Arctic sea ice in the summer. They are a migratory species, only arriving in the Arctic during the warmer summer months. They are the oldest living mammal in the world, getting to 200 years old.
211 was the estimated record age of any Bowhead ever found. And they can probably live for a maximum 268 years. Making them nomads of the Arctic Ocean.
And weighing 100 tons, Bowheads are the only large whales that stay in the Arctic all year-round, throughout their entire lives. They are also the second heaviest animal alive, only the Blue Whale is heavier. Bowhead Whales also have the largest mouth in the Animal Kingdom, 16 feet long, 13 feet high, and 8 feet wide, it's big enough to fit a car as it's the size of a small garage. Yet Bowheads only feed on small creatures like plankton, krill, and Copepods.
Trivia[]
- For the longest time, the Bowhead Whale was the only baleen whale to appear in animation before Season 7 with the arrival of the Blue Whale in Our Blue and Green World.