The Big-Hearted Blue Whale

Not only are blue whales the largest animals in the sea, they are also the largest animals ever to live on this planet. They’re bigger than all known dinosaurs! Blue whales can grow to about 110 feet long, which is longer than a basketball court.

With all of that size, the blue whale needs a big heart. In fact, they have the biggest hearts on the planet. The heart of a blue whale weighs about 400 pounds, the weight of studio piano. Its heartbeat can be heard 2 miles away! A blue whale's heart pumps about 60 gallons of blood with each beat. In comparison, a human heart pumps merely 2.4 ounces with each beat.

The Blue Whale's Song

With all of that heart, it’s not surprising a love song is involved. Only male blue whales sing. Scientists believe their song is a mating call.

Scientists found that blue whales have been singing at lower frequencies over the past 50 years. Rivaling Barry White, their deep melodies are lower than the lowest note on an 88-key piano. The reason for the lower sounding whale song remains a mystery.

How Many Blue Whales Are There?

Blue whales are listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. The current population of blue whales is about 10,000 to 25,000 animals worldwide. Before whaling, about 300,000 blue whales populated our oceans—240,000 in the Antarctic alone.

But don’t lose heart! A study on blue whale population trends found that blue whales are making quite a comeback in California. It showed the current California blue whale population is at about 97 percent of pre-whaling numbers, highlighting a heartening conservation success story.

With at least 10,000 individual animals worldwide, more than 10 million pounds of blue whale heartbeats are reverberating in the sea. And that is a whole lot of heart to consider!

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