Humpback whale
Humpback whale
Humpback whale
Megaptera novaeangliae
CLASS: Mammalia
ORDER: Cetacea
SUBORDER: Mysticeti
FAMILY: Balaenopteridae
GENUS: Megaptera
SPECIES: Novaeangliae
Physical Description
The head is broad and rounded when viewed
from above, but slim in profile.
The body is quite round, narrowing to a
slender peduncle.
The top of the head and lower jaw have
rounded, bump-like knobs, each containing at
least one stiff hair.
The body is black on the dorsal side, and
mottled black and white on the ventral side.
About 2/3 of the way back on the body is an
irregularly shaped dorsal fin. Its flippers are
very long, between 1/4 and 1/3 the length of its
body, and have large knobs on the leading
edge. The flukes, which can be 5.5 m wide, is
serrated and pointed at the tips.
Adult males measure 12.2-14.6 m, adult
females measure 13.7-15.2 m. They weigh 25 to
40 tons.
Feeding
Feed on kr...