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Credit: NOAA Fisheries / Southwest Fisheries Science Center James W. Gilpatrick, Jr. and Morgan S. Lynn Usage does not imply endorsement |
What is the largest animal of all time—even larger than the most massive dinosaurs? The answer is the blue whale. These giants average about 70 feet in length, although some were reportedly more than 100 feet long during the whaling era. That’s about the length of three school buses! While some dinosaurs were longer from nose to tail, the blue whale still tops them in sheer bulk. Blues weigh around 200,000 pounds (100 tons), while the largest land mammal today is the African bull elephant, which may weigh eight tons. If the blue whale lived on land, its skeleton would collapse under its weight. But the blue whale’s home is the vast ocean expanse, where the water’s buoyant force supports its bulk.To finish reading, click on "Blue Whale: The Mammoth of the Sea". You may also like this article on fanciful stories falsely presented as science, "Whale of a Tail Tale".
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