Blue Whales Back to their Best off US Coasts

Great Whale Conservancy protects the great whales and their habitat.

There are now about 2,200 blue whales from Alaska to Mexico, up from about 750 in the 1930s, and the new study says that the current population is about 97 percent of its pre-hunting levels.

Red List, meaning the species is listed as endangered.

Balaenoptera musculus (Blue Whale, Pygmy Blue Whale, Sibbold's Rorqual, Sulphur-bottom Whale)

www.iucnredlist.org

The Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) was enacted on October 21, 1972. All marine mammals are protected under the MMPA. The MMPA prohibits, with certain exceptions, the "take" of marine mammals in U.S. waters and by U.S. citizens on the high seas, and the importation of marine mammals and marine mammal products into the U.S.

Marine Mammal Protection Act

www.fws.gov

The blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) is the largest animal to have ever lived, being almost as big as a Boeing 737 and even larger than the biggest dinosaurs. The largest recorded length for a blue whale is 33.5 metres, although most individuals vary between 24 and 27 metres. The heart of this monstrous whale is actually around the size of a Volkswagen Beetle.

Blue whale videos, photos and facts - Balaenoptera musculus | ARKive

Learn more about the Blue whale - with amazing Blue whale videos, photos and facts on ARKive

www.arkive.org

Blue whales are back!

Blue whales have recovered from decades of hunting.