The World Ocean strikes with a variety of living organisms not only the inhabitants, but also seasoned researchers. According to ichthyologists, only 10% of marine life is known and more or less studied by modern scientists. This is due to the difficulties faced by researchers of the sea: great depth, lack of daylight, pressure of water masses, and the threat from underwater predators. But still, some marine animals have been studied quite well. For example, the beluga whale is a mammal from the suborder of toothed whales, belonging to a small family of narwhals.
Appearance
To understand what a beluga whale looks like, you need to imagine a huge dolphin with a small head without a beak ("nose"). A characteristic feature of the animal is the presence of a large convex forehead on the head, which is why the beluga whale is often called "lobasta". They do not have cervical vertebraefused, so these representatives of cetaceans, unlike most of their relatives, can turn their heads in different directions.
Belugas have small oval pectoral fins and a powerful tail, but no dorsal fin.
Adult animals (over three years old) have a solid white skin, hence their name. Babies are born blue or even dark blue, but after a year their skin brightens and acquires a delicate bluish-gray tint.
Belukha is a mammal of impressive size: males reach 5-6 meters in length and weigh at least 1.5-2 tons, females are smaller.
Habitats
These marine inhabitants have chosen the waters of the Arctic Ocean - the Kara, Barents, Chukchi Seas. In the White Sea, they are often found near the Solovetsky Islands. Beluga whales are most densely settled between 50° and 80° north latitude. They inhabit the marginal seas of the Pacific Ocean - the Sea of Okhotsk, the Sea of Japan and the Bering Sea, and enter the B altic Sea (the Atlantic Ocean basin).
Belukha is a marine mammal, but in pursuit of prey it often enters the large northern rivers - Amur, Ob, Lena, Yenisei, swimming hundreds of kilometers upstream.
Food
The basis of the diet of belugas is schooling fish - capelin, herring, polar cod, cod, Pacific saffron cod. They like to eat flounder, whitefish or salmon, less often they hunt crustaceans and cephalopods.
These mammals go to fish in a large flock. "talking" among themselves and actingtogether, they drive fish into shallow water, where it is more convenient to catch them.
The white whale sucks and swallows its prey whole. An adult fish consumes at least 15 kg of fish per day.
Lifestyle, habits and economic importance
Whale or Beluga Dolphin? This will be discussed below. Now let's talk about the habits of these marine inhabitants. They surf the expanses of water in small flocks - 10-15 individuals each, and males swim separately from females with cubs. The average speed of movement is 10-12 km / h, but in case of danger they can accelerate to 25 km / h.
Like an ordinary dolphin, a beluga whale can dive to a depth of 300 m, but every 5 minutes it emerges to the surface to take a breath of fresh air. If necessary, it can continuously be under water for 15-20 minutes, but no more. This explains why beluga whales avoid glaciation zones in winter - the ice-covered surface of the water blocks their access to oxygen.
The natural enemies of the animal are killer whales and polar bears. If a killer whale chases a beluga whale under water, then it will have no chance of salvation. The polar bear tracks down "white whales" near polynyas and jams them with its paw when they emerge to the surface, so that they can then be pulled out of the water and eaten.
Every spring, mammals molt in the truest sense of the word, that is, they shed old dead skin, for which they rub their backs and sides against pebbles in shallow water.
Belukha is a sociable and cheerful animal, friendly towards people, happy to make contact and goodamenable to training. There has not yet been a single case of a "white whale" attack on a person. Therefore, these mammals often perform in dolphinariums, help divers, scouts, explorers of the deep sea.
In nature, these cetaceans live up to 35-40 years, in captivity - up to 50 years.
Reproduction
Belugas reach puberty late: in females at the age of 4-5 years, and in males not earlier than 7-9 years. Before mating, which falls on April-June, males conduct spectacular, but peaceful tournament fights, during which they do not cause damage to each other. The winner retires with the female to a secluded place for mating.
Pregnancy lasts over a year - approximately 14 months. Before giving birth, the female swims in the mouths of the rivers, where the water is warmer. As a rule, only one cub up to one and a half meters long is born, twins are an extremely rare occurrence. Beluga is a mammal, that is, the female feeds her baby with milk. Feeding lasts up to two years, often at this time the beluga is already pregnant again. Fertility is lost at age 20.
Babies stay near their mothers until sexually mature, that is, they leave their native flock at the age of 4-6 years, after which the young go to a new group.
Population status
Belukha is a protected mammal. The population of "white whales" was greatly reduced in the XVIII-XIX centuries, when they became a coveted prey for whalers due to high quality fat, tasty tender meat and thick strongskins. Later, the capture of belugas began to be controlled, and at present the number of these animals is, according to approximate estimates, 200 thousand individuals. Therefore, there is no clear threat of extinction of beluga whales, although they suffer greatly due to the intensive human development of the Arctic and the pollution of the waters of the Arctic Ocean.
Interesting facts
Belugas have very developed muscles of the muzzle, so they are able to change the expression of "face", that is, to demonstrate sadness or anger, joy or boredom. Such an amazing ability is not inherent in all underwater inhabitants.
Belugas swim in the northern latitudes, their natural thermal insulation is provided by strong skin up to two centimeters thick and a powerful layer of fat up to 15 cm thick. This protects animals from hypothermia.
Belugas are called "polar canaries" or "singing whales" because they make up to 50 different sounds, as well as ultrasonic clicks, through which they communicate with each other. It was from the ability of "white whales" to make loud sounds that the Russian phraseological unit "roar like a beluga" came from.
Belukha whale or dolphin?
Now you know everything about this sea creature. But the question of whether the beluga whale is a whale or a dolphin remains open. The people call it none other than the polar or white dolphin. This name arose due to the appearance and habitat of the animal. But in the biological sense, the beluga whale belongs to the order of whales, and the dolphin can be called her cousin.brother. The evolutionary paths of their ancestors diverged several million years ago. Therefore, it is more correct to say that the beluga whale is a whale, not a dolphin.
