Beluga Whale

1. Beluga Whale Collin Barlow

2. Show Me The Whale Facts! • Scientific name: Delphinapterus leucas • Small, white-toothed whale. • Adult belugas may reach a length of 16 feet (5 m), though average size is 12 to 14 ft. (about 4 m). • Males may weigh about 3,300 lbs. (1,500 kg) and females 3,000 lbs. (1,360 kg). • Type: Mammal • Diet: Carnivore • Average life span in the wild: 35 to 50 years • Commonly in the Arctic Ocean's coastal waters, though they are found in subarctic waters as well.

4. MMMM Sea Food! • Beluga Whales are Carnivores, they eat a variety of other sea creatures such as: octopus, squid, crabs, shrimp, clams, mussels, snails, sandworms, and fishes

5. Habitat • Beluga whales are generally found in shallow coastal waters, often in water barely deep enough to cover their bodies, but have also been seen in deep waters. They seem well adapted to both a cold ocean habitat and a warmer freshwater habitat. Belugas can be found swimming among icebergs and ice floes in the waters of the Arctic and subarctic, where water temperatures may be as low as 32° F (0° C). They can also be found in estuaries and river basins.

6. Impact on Humans • Belugas have traditionally been hunted for food and oil, but only with the advent of commercial whaling did the harvest become too large to sustain (Paine, 1995). Whaling previously provided humans with a profit but there are now regulations regarding the sale of Beluga meat and skin. The sale of Beluga is still allowed in some regions but only among the native Inuit people. • http://www.eoearth.org/view/article/165117/