Western gray whale
Best feature
Their baleen – a filtering system in their mouths that they use to sieve small morsels of food from the seawater.
Size
They measure between 12.2-15.2m and weigh a colossal 30-40 tonnes!
Western gray whale
Favourite food
They’re the only species of whale that feeds mostly on the ocean floor. They mostly eat organisms from the sea bottom.
Home
They’re shallow water feeders so you’ll find them close to the coastlines.
Western gray whale
Current population
Estimated to be fewer than 130.
Biggest threat
There are many threats to their survival including: noise disturbance from oil and gas development, entanglement in fishing gear, being struck by ships, and pollution.
That’s a fact!
Western gray whales feed during the summer in Russian waters then migrate south to breed, during which time they do not eat.
