B.+acutorostrata

media type="custom" key="3984861" =Balaenoptera acutorostrata =  ="The Common Minke Whale" = 

= =  **Class, Order, and Family ** 

Class: Mammalia Order: Cetacea Family: Balaenopteridae

**Year Assessed ** 

The Common Minke Whale was last assessed by the IUCN in 2008. They were put on the list because whaling was resumed in Iceland and Norway. They have been trading with Japan, a big whale consumer. Its status is currently "Least Concern"

**Habitat ** 

The Common Minke Whale is a global speciesfound in all of the 7 oceans. For the Artic Ocean: Temperatures range from 2 degrees Celcius to -2 degrees Celcius Salinity ranges from 34.5 PPS to 33.5 PPS Geology: plate tectonics, volcanism. These are very big in the pacific. Tidal range= High Tide - Low Tide -> So, (.66) - (.48) = .18 Currents"Antartic Circumpolar, Antartic Subpolar, South Atlantic, & South Indian

Migration Patterns
 This whale is known to migrate, but migration patterns are not known except during winter seasons. The whale is found in warmer waters during the winter seasons. They return for the summer.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">Population
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"> The current population is estimated to be 182,000. Each year tens of thousands are being caught for food and other purposes. So their current population is currently rated as stable by the IUCN.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">Appearance
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"> They grow to be approximately 7.8 to 9 meters long and 5,400-6,800 kg. They are grey on top and white on the bottom.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">Reproduction
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"> The gestation period for the common minke whale is 10 months. Babies are usually 2.4 - 2.8 meters. They nurse with the mother for 5 months. They reach sexual maturaty when they are 7 or 8 years old. They calve every 2 years. Their breeding peaks during the summer months.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">Anatomy
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">They have a dark gray back.
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">They have a pale chevron above their flippers or behind the head.
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">They also have a light marking on each flipper.
 * 4) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">Their belly is white.
 * 5) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">They have 50- 70 throat grooves.
 * 6) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">They have a narrow triangular snout.
 * 7) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">They have a flat, broad rostrum behind the flippers on the top of them.
 * 8) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">They have paired blowholes.
 * 9) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">They also have a series of small ridges on its back near the tail.
 * 10) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">Their throat grooves can expand greatly for feeding.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">Food chain
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">

They are seasonal carnivorious feeders. They are filter feeders that eat krill, small fish, sardines, anchovies, cod, herring, capelin.

They are eaten by sharks.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">Economic Importance
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"> They are a huge part of the Japanese diet. Nearly all of the whales that are killed are exported to Japan for food.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">Threats
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"> The common minke whale is threatened by whaling for food and other items of value in Japan.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">Conservation efforts
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"> Whaling has been halted everywhere except Iceland, Russia, and Norway. They refuse to agree to the provisions.

**<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">Solutions **
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"> We should make Iceland, Russia, and Norway comply to the provisions. Everyone else does. We should limit the fishing of their prey. We should learn more about them. We don't know about their migration patterns. If we learn about them, we can protect them.

Questions

1. What 3 countries are still killing whales? 2.What is the status as listed by the IUCN? 3. Name 3 prey of the Common Minke Whale.

**<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">Bibliography: **
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"> <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">[|http://www.minkewhale.org/[[http://www.wdcs.org/|http://www.wdcs.org/[[http://marinebio.org/species.asp?id=230|http://marinebio.org/species.asp?id=230[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minke_Whale|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minke_Whale[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Minke_Whale] []