Ocean of Hope

10 Cool Facts About Blue Whales

Blue Whale by NOAA
Blue Whale photo by: NOAA

1. Blue Whales are the largest animal to have ever lived on Earth. They are larger than any dinosaurs were.

2. Blue Whales can grow to 100 feet long (30.5 meters) long. That’s as long as 20 school children laying down end-to-end!

3. Blue Whales weigh as much as 26 adult bull elephants (about 200 tons).

4. Blue Whales eat up to 40 million krill (a small kind of shrimp) a day, or about 8,000 pounds (3,629 kg). That’s the equivalent of eating 32,000 quarter pound hamburgers a day!

5. A Blue Whale’s heart is the size and weight of a compact car. It pumps a whopping 60 gallons per beat.

6. A Blue Whale can live over 80 years.

7. The deep rumbling sounds from a Blue Whale can travel for thousands of miles under the sea.

8. Before whaling, there were 250,000 Blue Whales on Earth. Now there are less than 10,000.

9. A Blue Whale calf (baby) gains 250 pounds (113 kg) a day just from its mother’s milk!

10. Central California, USA has the largest concentration of Blue Whales in the world. There are about 2,000 there seasonally.

10 Fabulous Sea Snakes Facts

Banded Sea Krait, sea snakes facts
Banded Sea Krait photo by: Cherilyn Chin

Note on picture: Sea kraits are sea snakes that go onto land, true sea snakes spend their whole lives in the water.

10 Fabulous Sea Snakes Facts

1. Sea snakes are reptiles and need to breathe air.

2. 50 different species of true sea snakes live in the tropical waters of the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

3. A beaked sea snake venom is 4x more deadly than a cobra’s.

4. Sea snakes move by wriggling like an “S”

5. Most sea snakes are 3-5 feet (0.9-1.5 meters) long, but some can reach lengths of 8 feet (2.4 meters).

6. A sea snake can hold its breath for 2-3 hours!

7. A sea snakes spits out excess salt on its forked tongue.

8. True sea snakes do not lay eggs. The eggs develop in the female and the young are born alive.

9. Sea snakes have 2-20 young, around 12 inches long (0.3 meters)

And the last sea snakes fact is:
10. The few predators sea snakes have are sharks, moray eels, sea eagles (a type of bird).

Also see: 10 Fabulous Sea Cucumber Facts
As well as: Snake Facts-Sea Snakes and Water Snakes from Kidzone

10 Cool Facts About Dolphins

dolphin mother and calf
Dolphin mother and calf Photo by: Cherilyn Jose

1. Dolphins are mammals and breathe air through the blowhole at the top of their head. Their blowhole doesn’t shoot out water, only air.

2. Killer Whales, or Orcas, are the largest dolphin and grow up to 23 feet (7 meters) long.

3. The most common and recognizable dolphin is the Bottlenose Dolphin.

4. Some Bottlenose Dolphins use a tool, a sponge on its snout, to help flush out fish on the bottom of the ocean.

5. Dolphins mainly eat fish, squid and crustaceans (such as crabs and lobsters) that they swallow whole.

6. Female Dolphins are called cows, males are called bulls, and babies are called calves.

7. Dolphin calves are born tail first.

8. A Dolphin can “see ” by using sound waves bouncing off objects in the environment (called echolocation).

9. Dolphins are very intelligent and can recognize themselves in a mirror (like humans, chimpanzees and elephants).

10. Dolphins have signature whistles which are like human names.

10 Fascinating Piranha Fish Facts

picture red-bellied piranha, piranha facts
Red-bellied Piranha photo by wikimedia commons Karelj

10 Fascinating Piranha Fish Facts

1. All Piranhas fish live in tropical freshwater rivers, lakes, and lagoons in the northern half of South America.

2. There are between 30-60 species of Piranha fish.

3. Piranhas’ teeth are triangular shaped and as sharp as sharks’ teeth.

4. Only 3 species of Piranhas are considered dangerous to humans:
a. Black shoulder Piranha
b. Red-bellied Piranha (average sized at 13 inches and 3 pounds)
c. Sao Francisco Piranha (largest at 24 inches and 13 pounds)

5. There have been no fatal attacks on humans as Piranhas only bite fingers, toes and chunks of legs and hips.

6. Piranhas live 10-25 years.

7. Shoals of up to 1000 Piranhas stay together to survive, not necessarily to hunt.

8. Most Piranhas are omnivores that eat meat (scavenge mainly), seeds and fruits.

9. Predators include caimans (a small crocodile), river otters, larger fish, and herons (a large bird).

And the last fascinating piranha fact is:
10. When Piranhas attack a large animal, they eat the flesh and muscle in seconds, and leave only the skeleton.

Also see: 10 Fascinating Facts About Manatees
As well as: Piranha facts by Livescience

10 Killer Whales, or Orca Whales, Facts

Orca breaching
Killer Whale breaching photo by NOAA

10 Killer Whales or Orca Whales Facts:

1. Orca Whales are found in all the world’s oceans.

2. Orcas are apex predators and lack any natural predators.

3. Most males never leave their mothers.

4. Orcas have culture since their hunting techniques and vocalizations are passed down generations.

5. Killer Whales generate 3 types of sounds: clicks, whistles, and pulsed calls.

6. Each pod has its own dialect of calls (that only they use).

7. Orcas and pilot whales are the only non-human species in which females undergo menopause (around age 40 years) and live decades after.

8. There may be up to 4 generations of Orcas in a traveling group.

9. Orcas have the 2nd heaviest brain among marine mammals (sperm whales have the heaviest brain)

10. A female Orca gives birth to 1 calf every five years, and she averages 5 calves per lifetime.

Also see: The 200-Year-Old Bowhead Whale: The Oldest Mammal on Earth

10 Cool Facts About Narwhals

8 Surprising Facts about Orcas from Treehugger