North Pacific fin whale
Subspecies of whale
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The North Pacific fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus velifera) is a subspecies of fin whale that lives in the North Pacific Ocean.[1] Most experts consider the fin whales of the North Pacific to be a third subspecies—this was supported by a 2013 study, which found that the Northern Hemisphere northern fin whale was not composed of a single subspecies.[2] At least one other subspecies of fin whale, the southern fin whale (B. p. quoyi), exists in the Southern Hemisphere.[3]
| North Pacific fin whale[1] | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Size compared to an average human | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Artiodactyla |
| Infraorder: | Cetacea |
| Family: | Balaenopteridae |
| Genus: | Balaenoptera |
| Species: | |
| Subspecies: | B. p. velifera |
| Trinomial name | |
| Balaenoptera physalus velifera (Scammon, 1869) | |
Size
Maximum reported figures are 22.9 m (75 ft) for males and 24.7 m (81 ft) for females in the North Pacific, while the longest reliably measured were 20.8 m (68 ft) and 22.9 m (75 ft) — all were caught off California, the former in the 1920s and the latter in the 1960s.[4] At sexual maturity, males average 16.8–17.6 m (55–58 ft) in the North Atlantic and 17.4–17.7 m (57–58 ft) in the North Pacific, while females average 17.7–19.1 m (58–63 ft) in the North Atlantic and 18.3–18.6 m (60–61 ft) in the North Pacific. At birth, calves are 6.4 m (21 ft) in the North Pacific.[5]
Reproduction
Balaenoptera physalus velifera is December–January, while peak birthing is in November–December — in both the North Atlantic and North Pacific.[5]
