Download Fast Facts -Male beluga whales can weigh up to 1,600 kg (3,528 lbs

Fast Facts
-Male beluga whales can weigh up to 1,600 kg (3,528 lbs) and are instantly recognizable by their bright white colour and
melon shaped heads.
-Belugas live throughout the Arctic Ocean
-Through the use of echolocation, beluga whales are able to find food and explore their surroundings
-Unlike baleen whales (a group which includes larger filter-feeder whales like humpback) belugas have teeth and like to
snack on fish and invertebrates
-Newborn calves are grey, they measure 1.5 m (5 ft) and weigh 80 kg (180 lbs)
-Near Threatened (IUCN) and Endangered/Threatened for most populations in Canada (COSEWIC) with climate change,
increased shipping traffic and water pollution being their main threats
Description
Beluga whales are instantly recognizable by their bright white skin and melon shaped heads. Adults measure about 5 m
in length and can weigh up to 1,600 kg (3,528 lbs). That might seem huge to you, but to put it into perspective, the blue
whale – the world’s largest whale – can weigh up to 181,000 kg (400,000 lbs). When compared to other whales, it’s easy to
see that belugas are on the smaller side.
Although they might be small, they still carry around a large amount of blubber on their bodies to keep warm in the chilly
Arctic waters where they live. This blubber may account for up to 40% of the belugas’ total body mass!
As marine mammals, beluga whales need to take in air from the surface using a special structure on their backs called a
blowhole. Just before surfacing, the beluga opens its blowhole and exhales, producing a spray of seawater. Once its back
is above the surface, the beluga quickly takes a deep breath of fresh oxygenated air before using muscles to close the
blowhole and slip back under water. Beluga whales are able to hold their breath under water for up to 15.
Beluga whales are the only species of cetacean (a taxonomic order that includes whales, dolphins and porpoises) that can
move their heads from side to side independent of their bodies. Unlike other cetacean species the beluga whale’s neck
vertebrae are not fused together.
Habitat
Beluga whales are found throughout the Arctic Ocean, as well as in the connecting seas and inlets in North America,
Russia, Greenland and Scandinavia. While some beluga whales remain in more or less the same place year round, many
populations are migratory. When belugas migrate is determined by sea ice conditions, access to food and mating. As
temperatures warm up in the springtime, these belugas begin to gather together and travel in large groups (“pods”) to
shallower coastal waters, as well as places called estuaries, where large rivers open out into the ocean. Habitat preferences
are different depending on the beluga population. For example, the Western Hudson Bay population lives in Hudson Bay
for the summer and migrates in pods of up to 200 individuals eastward through the Hudson Strait to spend the winter
near the entrance to the Labrador Sea region of the Arctic Ocean.
Belugas are thought to migrate to warm, shallow and ice-free waters for a number of reasons. For example, they may be
seeking out places with a greater supply of food or warmer temperatures for breeding, nursing and raising their young.
Belugas have also been seen using the rocky bottoms of river estuaries during moult. Belugas rub their bodies against
rough patches of stone and gravel to remove old layers of skin that have built up over the year, making it easier for new
skin to form.
Starting in mid-August the migratory belugas begin their journey back to their wintering areas. During the fall and winter
months some beluga populations prefer areas with relatively light, mobile ice cover while others head for deeper waters
with more dense ice sheets. Western Hudson Bay belugas spend the winter near the Labrador Sea in areas with dense,
slow-moving ice. In fact, in this region about 90% of the water is covered by ice. Belugas may seek different habitats to
avoid favoured hunting grounds of their primary predators, polar bears and killer whales. While the vast majority of
beluga whales are Arctic species, there is one population that lives year round in the St. Lawrence Estuary at the southernmost limit of the species’ range.
Ecology
Like most whales and dolphins, belugas use sound to communicate with other members of their group, to explore their
surroundings and find food. These whales are particularly talented vocalists, capable of making a wide number of sounds
and calls, earning them the nickname “canaries of the sea”. The secret lies in the bump on their foreheads. Inside the bump
is a special structure called a “melon” which helps to direct sound waves. These sound waves bounce off objects in the
water and get sent back to the beluga as echoes, which help them find things in their environment. Echolocation comes
in very handy when the belugas are hunting for fish or invertebrates like crabs in very deep or murky water, for finding
breathing holes in ice sheets or detecting predators.
Another physical feature that helps the beluga in its habitat is the colour of its skin. Their snowy white colouring helps
them blend in with the ice floating in the water so they can better avoid predators.
Beluga whales also show an attachment to their summering areas. Some pods will return to the same spot year after year
to mate, even when it is dangerous for them. Unfortunately, by having such a predictable movement pattern during the
summer it’s easier for people to find and hunt them.
Diet
Belugas belong to a group of cetaceans known as toothed whales. Having teeth separates belugas from baleen whales, a
group which includes larger filter-feeder whales like humpback, gray and blue whales.
Since belugas have teeth they can eat larger prey than their baleen (filter-feeding) cousins. Food varies with season but
generally includes fish like capelin, Arctic cod and herring, as well as invertebrates such as shrimp, squid and marine
worms. Arctic cod is especially important during the fall when belugas need to develop thick blubber to survive the
wintery cold Arctic waters.
Belugas require a lot of food to satisfy their nutritional demands. In captivity, belugas can eat about 15 kg of food a day!
For belugas in the wild this means they spend a lot of time hunting underwater. Since they are mammals, belugas have
special adaptations for breathing and for diving for extended periods of time before coming up to the surface. Belugas
have twice as much blood as other land animals of similar size. In addition, their blood cells can hold 10 times more
oxygen! These adaptations allow them to hold their breath for 15 minutes while diving.
Reproduction
For beluga whales, mating takes place around April and May. Females are ready to reproduce when they are 4-9 years old
and males at 4-7 years old. The gestation period (pregnancy) lasts 12-14.5 months.
Newborn calves are about 1.5 m (5 ft) and weigh 80 kg (180 lbs). Although adult belugas are pure white, beluga calves are
born a mottled grey or brown colour. The skin of calves begins to lighten in colour at about six years old and is completely
white by about 13 years old – when the belugas are old enough to have families of their own.
Young belugas can swim beside their mothers at birth. Calves will nurse underwater approximately every hour for 1-2
years, on average, but start eating small fish and shrimp when they are about one year old and have small teeth.
Due to the long gestation and nursing period, female beluga whales only give birth to one calf every three years.
Conservation Status
Near Threatened (IUCN) and Endangered/Threatened for most populations in Canada (COSEWIC)
Threatened by climate change, increased shipping traffic and water pollution
In Canada, six of the seven (86%) beluga whale populations are at risk of extinction. Many of these populations are threatened with issues specific to their regions, but there are a few challenges that all belugas in Canada face.
As it is for most Arctic species, climate change is a big threat for beluga whales. Greenhouse gases are building up in our
planet’s atmosphere and global temperatures are on the rise. These warming temperatures are having big impacts on the
Arctic Circle, where the amount of ice covering the Arctic Ocean is decreasing dramatically. As more ice melts, belugas are
being forced to change their migration patterns and are finding it more difficult to seek out places that are safe from
predators. If areas of the Arctic Ocean become ice-free year round, scientists expect that industrial shipping traffic will
keep increasing through many parts of the beluga whales’ range. Not only are belugas more likely to collide with these
ships, but the noise pollution created by this boat traffic interferes with the beluga’s ability to communicate with each
other and echolocate to find food. Finally, many beluga whales are greatly affected by pollutants released into the water.
Beluga whales consume a wide variety of fish and invertebrate prey, putting them at great risk of bioaccumulation. As the
beluga whales consume more and more food contaminated with heavy metals like lead and mercury or with industrial
chemicals like poly-aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), these toxins begin to collect, or accumulate, in the belugas’ fat stores.
Accumulation of toxins in their fat tissue cause belugas to get sick. Beluga whales living in the St. Lawrence River are
exposed to more pollutants than any other beluga population in Canada and are suspected to have a much higher rate of
cancer than most other wild mammals. It’s critical that we protect beluga whales from the threats they face in the wild,
and that’s why Earth Rangers is on the job! Thousands of Earth Ranger kids are raising awareness and donations to
support scientific research that will help us figure out the best ways to protect beluga whales in a changing arctic environment. Working with the Western Hudson Bay population of beluga whales, our conservation partner will be using
acoustic recorders near Baffin Island to study the levels of noise in the Hudson Bay ecosystem. This data will allow
researchers to predict how increased noise from boats may affect the belugas’ ability to echolocate and avoid predators,
as well as help us understand where and why belugas travel to particular locations throughout the year, information that
will allow us to better protect these spots. We will also be supporting research to understand how contaminants in the
water affect beluga health.
References
COSEWIC. Assessment and update status report on the Beluga Whale in Canada.
http://www.sararegistry.gc.ca/default.asp?lang=En&n=D632A0DB-1&offset1&toc=show
Encyclopedia of Life. Delphinapterus leucas. http://eol.org/pages/328541/details
Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Aquatic Species at Risk – Beluga Whale (St. Lawrence Estuary). http://www.dfompo.gc.ca/species-especes/species-especes/belugaStLa-eng.htm
IUCN Redlist. Delphinapterua leucas. http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/6335/0
Okeanos – Foundation for the Sea. International Workshop on Shipping Noise and Marine Mammals.
http://www.okeanos-foundation.org/assets/Uploads/Hamburg-shipping-report-2.pdf
Castellote M, RH Leeney, G O’Corry-Crowe, R Lauhakangas, KM Kovacs, W Lucey, V Krasnova, C Lydersen, KM Stafford, and
R Belikov (2013). Monitoring white whales (Delphinapterus leucas) with echolocation loggers. Polar Biology 36:493-509.
Climate Change (2007). Synthesis Report: An Assessment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr.pdf
DFO (Department of Fisheries and Oceans). (2002). Beluga. Underwater World 6 Ottawa: Communications Directorate,
Fisheries and Oceans Canada. 8 p. http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/science/publications/uww-msm/pdf/beluga-eng.pdf
Ewins P (2012). The ice whales: new conservation approaches and priority work. WWF Magazine The Circle No. 4, Pp.
Ferguson SH, JW Higdon, and EG Chmelnitsky (2010). The rise of killer whales as a major Arctic predator. A Little Less
Arctic: Top Predators in the World’s Largest Northern Inland Sea, Hudson Bay. Pp. 117-136.
Gervaise C, Y Simard, N Roy, B Kinda, and N Ménard (2012). Shipping noise in whale habitat: characteristics, sources,
budget, and impact on belugas in Saguenay-St. Lawrence marine park hub. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
132:76-89.