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A bowhead whale is a large marine mammal found in Arctic waters, named for its distinctive bow-shaped head that it uses to break through ice. These whales are significant because they are long-lived animals that have adapted to survive in some of Earth's harshest environments.
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Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- taxon
- Parent taxon
- Balaena
- Image
- Gemeinnüzzige Naturgeschichte des Thierreichs (Plate 50) (6008528637).jpg
Show 5 more facts
- P105
- species
- P141
- Least Concern
- P7603
- Appendix I of CITES
- P1034
- zooplankton
- P523
- Late Pleistocene
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Article
The bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus), sometimes known as the Greenland right whale, Arctic whale, and polar whale, is a species of baleen whale belonging to the family Balaenidae and is the only living representative of the genus Balaena. It is the only baleen whale endemic to the Arctic and subarctic waters, and is named after its characteristic massive triangular skull, which it uses to break through Arctic ice.
Bowheads have the largest mouth of any animal, representing almost one-third of the length of the body. They also have the longest baleen plates among whales, with a maximum length of 2.97 to 5.2 metres (9.7 to 17.1 ft). They may be the longest-lived of all mammals, with the ability to reach an age of more than 200 years.
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Alaska Native cultureAnimal taxa named by Carl LinnaeusBalaenidaeCetaceans of the Arctic OceanESA endangered speciesFauna listed on CITES Appendix IFauna of the Holarctic realmGreenlandic cuisineIUCN Red List least concern speciesMammals described in 1758Symbols of AlaskaTaxonbars with 25–29 taxon IDs