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The longest whales – TOP 10

The longest whale – TOP 10

Whales, as we know, are huge animals. Some of them are the heaviest animals that ever existed on earth. Although whales are not the longest animals, they are the longest mammals. Recently we presented a list of the heaviest whales, today we have the pleasure to present a list of the 20 longest whales. In comparison we give the maximum length, which was recorded for a given species of a whale.

Sei whale (Balaenoptera borealis)
Sei whale (Balaenoptera borealis).

 

The longest whales – TOP 20

Rank 20-16

20. Southern bottlenose whale (Hyperoodon planifrons) – 7.5 m (24.6 ft)
19. Tropical bottlenose whale (Indopacetus pacificus) – 9 m (29.5 ft)
18. Killer whale (Orcinus orca) – 9.8 m (32.1 ft)
17. Southern minke whale (Balaenoptera bonaerensis) – 10.6 m (34.8 ft)
16. Northern minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) – 10.7 m (35.1 ft)

 

Gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus)
Gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus).

Rank 15-11

15. Northern bottlenose whale (Hyperoodon ampullatus) – 11.2 m (36.8 ft)
14. Dwarf fin whale (Balaenoptera omurai) – 11.74 m (38.6 ft
13. Giant beaked whale (Berardius arnuxii) – 12 m (39.4 ft)
12. Baird’s beaked whale (Berardius bairdii) – 13 m (42.7 ft)
11. Gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus) – 14.9 m (49 ft)

 

Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae)
Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae).

Rank 10-6

10. Bryde’s whale (Balaenoptera brydei) – 15.51 m (50.9 ft)
9. Southern right whale (Eubalaena australis) – 18 m (59 ft)
8. North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis) – 18.2 m (59.7 ft)
7. Sei whale (Balaenoptera borealis) – 19.5 m (64 ft)
6. North Pacific right whale (Eubalaena japonica) – 19.8 m (65 ft)

 

North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis)
North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis).

Rank 5-1

5. Bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus) – 20 m (65.6 ft)
4. Sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) – 20.5 (67.3 ft)
3. Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) – 27 m (89 ft)

    unconfirmed (typically it should take 8th place – up to 19 m)

2. Fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) – 27.3 m (89.5 ft)

1. Blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) – 33.58 m (110 ft)

 

Blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus)
Blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) – the longest whale in the world.

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3 Comments

  1. Your information re the longest whales is in error. What is the basis of having the Humpback 3rd – average length is about 14 – 15 metres – I recognise that historically larger whales were caught but today after the Blue and Fin, the Bowhead, Sei, Sperm, Right Whales (Northern and Southern) and Brydes would all precede the Humback.

    1. You are absolutely right. Humpbacks’ typical length is 12–16 m (39–52 ft) but the largest humpback on record, according to whaling records, was a female killed in the Caribbean. It was 27 m (89 ft) long with a weight of 90 tons, although the reliability of this information is unconfirmed.

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