Largest Mammal – Certain Things to Know
Mammals are a different category among the various animals found on Earth. They are warm blooded vertebrates and have a hairy body. Most of the female mammals have mammary glands which produce milk and with that they feed their young ones. The Bumblebee bat is considered as the smallest mammal and the largest mammal is Blue Whale. The members belonging to order Cetacea is commonly called as Whale. Sperm whale, pilot whale, beluga whale, killer whale etc comes under this order. Blue Whale is the largest known animal which lives in the present world. It has a body size of 35m and weighs about 150 tones. The growth rate of this whale varies from 3 to 13 percent per annum. They are mostly hunted by human beings for their meat and other raw materials. Blue Whales can breathe air and they feed their little ones with milk.
Largest Mammal – Certain Things to Know
They have only few hairs. The Blue Whales have skin blubber underneath made up of fat. It stores the energy necessary for their activities and also serves as an insulator. Like other mammals, they have spinal column, heart which is four chambered and vestigial pelvic bone. A blowhole is present in the body of whales through which they breathe. Normally all whales have only one blowhole but toothed whales have two. The excess water that enters the body of whale is pushed out through this blowhole. The teeth of Blue Whales are made up of enamel similar to human beings. The ear of whales has undergone many adaptations to suit the marine environment. These animals produce huge sounds which come around 180 decibels. They use this vocalization technique for the purpose of mating, identification and echolocation. In this species, male ones are known as bulls, females as cows and young ones as calves. Blue Whales give birth to one calf at a time and nurse them for around one year. Whales are considered as social animals as they have the ability to learn, cooperate and grieve.
