What is the Largest Whale? A Cetacea Size Comparison Chart.

How do right whales size up? North Atlantic Right whales (Eubalaena glacialis) are big, but they're not the biggest whales. That distinction goes to the Blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus), the largest animal on Earth. While the Orca, or Killer whale size of up to 31 feet make it the largest dolphin. The Sperm whale on the other hand may not be the biggest whale, but it has the biggest brain to have ever existed on Earth. Below is a comparison chart of whale sizes. To learn more whale facts follow the links below.

Whale size comparison chart: Blue whale (69-90+ feet) , Finback (72-82 feet), Right whale (45-60 feet), Humpback (42-50 feet), Sperm whale (35-60 feet), Minke whale (28-30 feet), Killer whale (23-31 feet), Beluga (13-15 feet), and Narwhal (13-15 feet).
Smithsonian Institution

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Comments

whales

nice!
but where is the weight of each whale?

Submitted by shayna rose (not verified) on Tue, 04/23/2013 - 9:30pm.

whales

this will help so many people to see how big whales are.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 04/16/2013 - 1:06pm.

coment

i love your graph it really helped me

Submitted by alex (not verified) on Tue, 01/08/2013 - 11:56am.

I wish it would give the

I wish it would give the wieght

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 10/12/2012 - 12:32pm.

Weight

Thanks for the feedback! We will look into adding their weights.

Submitted by Ocean Portal Team on Tue, 10/16/2012 - 9:54am.

.....

when you compare the man and blue whale the man is the shortest?

Submitted by mark zuckerberg (not verified) on Mon, 09/24/2012 - 3:03am.

stupid chart

stupid chart

Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 01/13/2012 - 5:55am.

nice chart i wish i could see

nice chart i wish i could see them for real

Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 01/13/2012 - 5:51am.

Why can I not find a

Why can I not find a comparison of the grey whales to all the rest. There are charts on many diferent sites but they seem to all avoid the Grey's

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 01/10/2012 - 12:46am.

It's one thing to use the

It's one thing to use the earth for the benefit of all but when you use the earth and don't replenish it or clean up your mess....you put in motion a series of cir***tances that we all pay for. That's not fair to us of those who don't.

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 01/05/2012 - 2:30pm.

Please help us plan the

Please help us plan the cleanup of all of the plastic floating around in the pacific gyre and abroad. I am 47 years old and travelled to the British Virgin Islands last year for the first time. The surface beauty was breathtaking and then when you looked at the eastern shore of Tortuga island it was covered in trash. Plastic trash, tires, refrigerator parts, boat parts, ropes, trash bags, bottle caps, toys etc...In the middle of the beautiful carribean. This is a disgrace to all humans and animals.

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 01/05/2012 - 2:27pm.

That is a great question.

That is a great question. Whales, dolphins, and porpoises all belong to an order of marine mammals called cetaceans. Scientists usually categorize cetaceans into two sub groups, toothed whales (odontoceti) and baleen whales (mysticeti).

Baleen whales, suborder mysticeti, include right whales, humpback whales, blue whales and many others. These whales feed by filtering food from water through baleen plates.

Toothed whales, suborder odontoceti, have teeth and are active hunters. Dolphins, porpoises, and whales such as the orca, beluga, and the narwhal are some examples of toothed whales.

This size chart compares some of the better-known cetaceans, including both groups.

Thanks for your question,
The Ocean Portal Team

Submitted by Ocean Portal Team on Thu, 12/15/2011 - 5:59pm.

Curious why Orcas seem to be

Curious why Orcas seem to be included on all whale charts when they are actually the largest in the dolphin family?

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 12/15/2011 - 1:38pm.

Hi and thanks for your

Hi and thanks for your comment. This graphic shows size comparisons for some of whales, but it doesn't represent every whale species. The gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus) is a baleen whale that that makes the longest migration of any other known mammal. Each fall and spring season, they pass between their Arctic summer feeding grounds and the lagoons near the equator to birth calves. Gray whales range in size from about 36-49 feet. To learn more and see photos of this mammal, visit the gray whale on the Encyclopedia of Life.

Submitted by Ocean Portal Team on Wed, 12/07/2011 - 1:02pm.

Why does this graphic fail to

Why does this graphic fail to include the grey whale?

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 12/06/2011 - 3:18pm.

How does the 90 foot long 100

How does the 90 foot long 100 ton blue whale, the world's largest creature, develop from a single unfertilized cell? How does a single cell destroy that same massive blue whale?

Submitted by Anonymous on Mon, 10/03/2011 - 4:47pm.

hehe

...single cell destroy that same massive blue whale? aren't they alive? what are you trying to say,can you explain...??

Submitted by Anonymouspys (not verified) on Tue, 11/20/2012 - 3:49pm.

cool comparison chart!

cool comparison chart!

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 01/19/2010 - 6:26pm.

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