AnAge entry for Balaenoptera musculus

Classification (HAGRID: 02281)

Taxonomy
Kingdom: Animalia
    Phylum: Chordata
        Class: Mammalia (Taxon entry)
            Order: Cetacea (Taxon entry)
                Family: Balaenopteridae
                    Genus: Balaenoptera
Species
Balaenoptera musculus
Common name
Blue whale
Synonyms
Sibbaldius sulfureus, Balaena musculus

Lifespan, ageing, and relevant traits

Maximum longevity
110 years (wild)
Source
ref. 1
Sample size
Medium
Data quality
Acceptable
Observations

The blue whale is the largest animal on earth. Its gestation period is short when considering its size. One possible explanation is that longer gestation periods would mean that the young would be born in the season spent in the season spent in cold waters [0434]. It is estimated that these animals live over 100 years.

Life history traits (averages)

Female sexual maturity
1,827 days
Male sexual maturity
1,827 days
Gestation
350 days
Weaning
182 days
Litter size
1 (viviparous)
Litters per year
0.4
Inter-litter interval
914 days
Weight at birth
2,000,000 g
Weight at weaning
17,000,000 g
Adult weight
136,000,000 g
Postnatal growth rate

Metabolism

No information on metabolism is available.

References

External Resources

Integrated Taxonomic Information System
ITIS 180528
Animal Diversity Web
ADW account (if available)
Encyclopaedia of Life
Search EOL
NCBI Taxonomy
Taxonomy ID 9771
Entrez
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Ageing Literature
Search Google Scholar or Search PubMed
Images
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Internet
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