Baleen is a flexible, keratin-based filtering system that allows whales to feed on massive amounts of tiny prey efficiently. Different baleen shapes and sizes reflect different feeding strategies, ...

Alfred the aetiocetid had teeth but needed a better way to capture his tiny prey. Credit: Carl Buell Baleen whales, such as the gigantic 30m-long blue whale, are the largest animals that have ever ...

The largest dataset of cetacean genes ever collated has helped scientists deep dive 'into the blue' to fathom the 'triumph' of baleen whale evolution. The new study explores the key genetic ...

Killer whales are the only natural predator of baleen whales — those that have “baleen” in their mouths to sieve their plankton diet from the water. More solitary than toothed whales, baleen whales ...

Baleen whales are among the largest creatures in the ocean, but that doesn’t mean they’re safe from other animals. A pod of orcas can take a giant baleen whale down, and these filter-feeders are ...

Whales are mighty. Blue whales, for example, aren’t only the largest animal on Earth, but as far as we know, they’re the largest animal that’s ever existed on Earth—and that includes dinosaurs.