How big is a blue whale?
They are mind-bogglingly enormous! They are the biggest creatures to have ever lived on Earth - much bigger than all the dinosaurs. Blue whales can grow up to 33 meters long – that is longer than a netball court. One blue whale weighs about the same as 3000 harbour porpoises or 2000 people.
Did you know that blue whales really are mottled blue? Here are some more fascinating fun facts about blue whales:
- A blue whale’s tongue is so long that a whole football team could stand on it.
- Did you know that a blue whale's heart can weigh as much as an average dairy cow? It's almost half a tonne!
- Blue whales can live for 90 years and one famous blue whale lived for 110 years.
- Before hunting tragically reduced their numbers, it is estimated that there were over 350,000 blue whales living on Earth. Tragically there are only 10,000 to 25,000 blue whales left in the whole world.
- Blue whales can talk to one another across hundreds of miles. They can produce sounds that are even louder than those of a jet plane.
- Blue whales have super-sized babies. When newborn they are a whopping seven metres long and weigh as much as a fully grown African elephant.
- A blue whale baby can drink up to 250 litres of milk every day.
- It is amazing to think that the biggest whale eats one of the smallest creatures in the ocean - krill. These tiny shrimp-like creatures swim in vast numbers, forming red clouds in the ocean. A blue whale can eat 40 million krill in a day.