Animal's Body: size, color, type of covering and special body parts.

Humpback whales are 35 to 48 feet long. They can weigh up to 65 tons. The female whale is larger than the male.

The humpback has skin for its covering.

Its skin color can range white to gray to black. Their skin usually is scarred and may be covered with barnacles which are small, hard, ocean creatures.

Their heads are covered with small round bumps called knobs.

Humpback whales have 2 blowholes near the top of their head that they use to breathe air at the surface of the water.

The humpback whale has about 330 pairs of dark gray baleen plates with coarse gray bristles hanging from their jaws.

Humpbacks have very long flippers on the side of their bodies. They can be up to 15 feet long. This is one-third of their whole body's length. These whales also have a small dorsal fin (on their back) close to their tails. Their backs have a high hump when they are diving.

Their tail has horizontal fins called flukes. They are 12 feet wide and have wavy rear edges.

Animal's Habitat: location in the world they live, type of habitat, and type of home.

Humpbacks are found in all the world's oceans.

Even thought they are found everywhere, they move from season to season. This is called migration. They mate and have calves in tropical waters during the winter. Then, they travel to cold polar waters during the summer to feed. So their habitat depends on the season and their activity.

The humpback whale's home is at the surface of the ocean. When they are not migrating, they prefer shallow waters.

Animals Living Habits: eating, sleeping and moving.

Humpback whales favorite food is krill. Krill are similar to shrimp. They also eat small fish such as herring and mackerel. A humpback eats between 2,000 and 9,000 pounds of fish and krill a day.

Humpback whales sleep, but they don't go into a full sleep. This is because they have to think in order to breathe. So, they switch off half of their brain to relax. The other half of their brain is awake and thinking to breathe.

Humpback whales normally swim at speeds of 3 to 9 miles per hour. But, they can swim up to 16 miles per hour when in danger.

Humpbacks can also swim in many unusual ways. By using their fins and flukes, they can dive deep into the ocean. When they dive, their backs arch into a hump. That's why they are called "humpbacks."

They can also breach, meaning they come high out of the water. Sometimes they spin as they breach. Humpbacks also "lobtail." This is where they stick their tail out of the water into the air, swing it around, and then slap it on the water's surface.

Interesting Facts

• The 'songs' of humpback whales are made only by the males.
• In the 1960's they were nearly extinct.
• Whales suffer from illegal whaling, entanglement in fishing nets and death from pollution.

For information, contact John Dyer, Media Specialist, Aquila Primary Center.