​
Basics
Weighs as much as 200 tons (about 33 elephants)
Blue whale has a heart the size of a Volkswagen Beetle
Largest animal on the planet, weighing as much as 200 tons
Its stomach holds about one ton of krill and it needs to eat about four tons of krill each day to survive
Their calls reach 188 decibels (48 decibels higher than a jet)
This whistle can be heard for hundreds of miles and probably attracts other whales
Whales are at the top of the food chain, making them an indicator species
Why are they endangered?
Whales are threatened by environmental change including habitat loss and toxics
They are often harmed by ship strikes
They often end up entangled in fishing gear
Climate change heavily impacts krill which limits their main source of food
Ways to Prevent This
The International Whaling Commission is in charge of regulating whaling and finding solutions to whales in the ocean
This includes shipping, climate change, and bycatch
Southern Chile's Gulf of Corcovado is an important feeding area for blue whales but also poses many threats
marine debris
bycatch
vessel strikes
WWF is trying to track whales in order to establish protected areas where blue whales commonly migrate