📷 Stan Shebs · CC BY-SA 3.0
📷 Stan Shebs
📷 Ansgar Walk
IUCN: Near Threatened
Beluga Whale
Delphinapterus leucas
KingdomAnimalia›PhylumChordata›ClassMammalia›OrderArtiodactyla›FamilyMonodontidae›GenusDelphinapterus
About
Belugas are all-white Arctic whales without a dorsal fin, able to swim beneath ice and find breathing holes. Their flexible melon and constant chatter earned them the nickname 'sea canary'. Many populations summer in warm estuaries to moult and calve. Noise, pollution, ship traffic, and warming seas are the main threats, and the Cook Inlet population in Alaska remains critically small.
Key Facts
⛰Habitat Arctic and sub-Arctic coastal waters, estuaries, and fjords, often among sea ice
🍃Diet Carnivore — fish, squid, shrimp, crabs, and worms
📏Size & Weight Body 3–5.5 m
•weight 1,100–1,600 kg
⏳Lifespan 40–60 years
🗺Range Circumpolar Arctic and sub-Arctic: Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Svalbard, and Russia
MammalMarine
Key Facts
⛰Habitat Arctic and sub-Arctic coastal waters, estuaries, and fjords, often among sea ice
🍃Diet Carnivore — fish, squid, shrimp, crabs, and worms
📏Size & Weight Body 3–5.5 m
•weight 1,100–1,600 kg
⏳Lifespan 40–60 years
🗺Range Circumpolar Arctic and sub-Arctic: Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Svalbard, and Russia
Photo Credits
#1Stan Shebs · CC BY-SA 3.0
#2Stan Shebs · CC BY-SA 3.0
#3Ansgar Walk · CC BY-SA 2.5
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