Cornell Institute for Biology Teachers
Whale&Kit&Manual&
Teachers’&Reference&&&Guide&
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Whale&Kit&Manual&
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Table of Contents:
Introduction to the Whale Kit…………………..1
Whale Kit Book List……………………..…..…..2
Whale Kit Labs and Activities List……………..3
NYS Learning Standards...………….....…….….5
Unit 1: Whale Diversity and Anatomy….….….11
Unit 2: Evolution………………………………..47
Unit 3: Feeding Strategies………...……………59
Unit 4: Life Cycle and Reproduction……….…73
Unit 5: Behavior and Communication…..….…77
Unit 6: Conservation………………………....…93
Unit 7: Cultural Whale Tales……………..……99
Extra Useful Materials
Whale Internet Links…………….…....…101
Introduction to the Whale Kit
How to use the Whale Kit Manual
The activities in this Whale Kit expose students to numerous aspects of whale biology,
evolution, ecology, and conservation, and students should be encouraged to read and research
more about the lifestyles of whales. The Whale Kit Manual is divided into 7 units that briefly
review information relevant to teachers and students in order to complement the activities
provided in the kit. Handouts and worksheets for each unit’s activities are included in the unit
section. Extra handouts of interest can be found at the very end of the manual, including a page of
Internet links to websites worth visiting and sharing with your class. Digital materials and files are
loaded on the Whale Kit Reference CD. See pp. 5-9 for Learning Standards for the overall kit.
Teacher instructions and accompanying
student worksheets for kit activities are clearly
labeled along the top of the page (see right).
On the next pages, you will find an outline of
the books provided in the CIBT Whale Kit and a list
of the labs, demonstrations, and activities related to
each unit.
Teacher Section
Student Worksheet
Let’s begin! Whale Basics
Whales are fascinating creatures! They include the largest animals to ever live on Earth
and can be found in every ocean on the planet. Whales are highlighted as theme park attractions
and movie headliners, the subjects of famous novels (Moby Dick, for example), and the center of
much controversy (captivity, oil spills, whaling, etc.). But above all, whale species are critical
members of many marine ecosystems and valuable indicators of the health of the underwater
world.
The most important thing to teach students about whales is that whales are mammals, not
fish. This means that, like humans, whales are warm-blooded, give birth to live young, feed their
young with milk from mothers’ mammary glands, have hair on their bodies at some point in their
lives, and most importantly, whales breathe air. Whales must come up to the surface to take every
breath they need to survive (as opposed to fish, who extract oxygen from the water using gills). If
a whale can’t reach the surface in time, it can indeed drown! Imagine living your life in an
environment surrounded by fluid you should not allow into your lungs.
As you will learn in Unit 1: Anatomy and Diversity, the word “whale” describes all
whales, dolphins, and porpoises in the scientific order Cetacea. All dolphins are whales, and all
porpoises are whales, but not all whales are dolphins or porpoises. It seems confusing, but think
about this like a square vs. rectangle scenario: a square is a rectangle, but not all rectangles are
squares.
Whales have large brains and are considered to be highly intelligent animals. They are
known to have complex vocalizations (sound patterns) and perhaps unique dialects or languages
(see Unit 5: Behavior and Communication). Some people even believe that whales are capable
of expressing emotions.
Have a whale of a time!
CIBT Staff
1
Books provided in the CIBT Whale Kit:
(organized by relative Elementary School reading levels)
EASY
Whales, by Gallimard Jeunesse
Ibis: A True Whale Story, by John Himmelman
Great Migrations: Whales, National Geographic Readers
Do Narwhals Have Blowholes?, by Gilson Holub
INTERMEDIATE
Whales, by Jen Green
Whales! Strange and Wonderful, by Laurence Pringle
The Life Cycle of a Whale, by Bobbie Kalman
Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea, by Janet Halfmann (includes audiobook CD)
ADVANCED
Zoobooks Whales, by John Wexo
Secret of the Sleepless Whales… and More!, by Ana Maria Rodriguez
2
Activities provided in the CIBT Whale Kit:
(listed in order of the ‘unit’ to which they relate and by their page number)
(Page #)
17………….
23………….
25………….
31………….
33………….
35………….
39………….
43………….
45………….
Unit 1: Whale Diversity and Anatomy
Activity 1 – Whale and Dolphin Anatomy Worksheets
Activity 2 – Felt Flippers
Activity 3 – Dichotomous Key Activity: Identify that whale
Activity 4 – Blow Hole Demonstration
Activity 5 – Spout Activity
Activity 6 –Whale Length Comparison Activity
Activity 7 – Blubber Lab
Activity 8 – Why Don’t Whales Sink? Lab
Activity 9 – Humpback Whale Fluke Matching Game
species!
Unit 2: Evolution
53…………. Activity 10 – Land to Sea: A Whale Evolution Game
Unit 3: Feeding Strategies
65…………. Activity 11 – Whale Teeth
67…………. Activity 12 – Feeding Strategies Lab
63…………. Other – Marine Food Web worksheet
Unit 4: Life Cycle and Reproduction
75…………. Activity 13 – North Atlantic Right Whale Migration Route
Unit 5: Behavior and Communication
81…………. Activity 14 – Whale Behavior Matching Activity
83…………. Activity 15 – Whale Behavior and Communication Activities
88……
Background Research Report on Humpback Whales
89……
Humpback Whale: The Great Communicator of the Sea
CD…..
Underwater Sound Guessing Game PowerPoint
Unit 6: Conservation
Book……..... Read Ibis: A Real Whale Story, by John Himmelman
95…………. Other – Pre-Whaling vs. Current Whale Populations Estimates (data and map)
Unit 7: Cultural Whale Tales
99…………. Internet resources and short stories are located in the Unit 7 section.
Extra Useful Materials
101………… Whale Internet Links
106………… Origami Whale instructions
107………… Whale Wonder Words word search
3
4
Cornell Institute
for
Biology Teachers
© 2012 Cornell Institute for Biology Teachers, Ithaca,
NY 14853. Distribution of this laboratory exercise is
permitted if (i) distribution is for non-profit purposes only
and (ii) this copyright notice appears on each copy.
Lab issue/rev. date: Oct. 2012
Title:
Whale Kit
Authors:
Wendy Fillmore, CIBT, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
Alexa Hilmer, CIBT, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
Appropriate
Level:
Grades K-8 (adaptable to high school cirricula)
Abstract:
The Whale Kit provides a full teachers' manual with background information,
handouts, games, and laboratory exercises related to all aspects of whale
biology, from the massive blue whale to the smallest harbor porpoise. Students
will explore anatomy, evolution, feeding strategies, migration, communication,
behavior, conservation, and cultural whale tales. Kit activities target elementary
and middle school ocean science and ecosystem curricula, but are adaptable to
the high school level.
Time
Requirement:
An entire week’s worth of activities! Each actvity is targetted to take no more
than one class period (approx. 45 minutes).
Elementary
Science Core
Curriculum
(NYS):
*Actual K– 4
standards met
vary by activity.
5
Standard 1 Analysis, Inquiry, and Design: The central purpose of scientific
inquiry is to develop explanations of natural phenomena in a continuing,
creative process.
S1.1 Ask "why" questions in attempts to seek greater understanding
concerning objects and events they have observed and heard about.
S1.1a Observe and discuss objects and events and record observations
S1.1b Articulate appropriate questions based on observations
S1.2 Question the explanations they hear from others and read about,
seeking clarification and comparing them with their own observations and
understandings.
S1.2a Identify similarities and differences between explanations received
from others or in print and personal observations or understandings
S1.3 Develop relationships among observations to construct descriptions of
objects and events and to form their own tentative explanations of what they
have observed.
S1.3a Clearly express a tentative explanation or description which can be
tested
S2.3 Carry out their plans for exploring phenomena through direct
observation and through the use of simple instruments that permit measurement
of quantities, such as length, mass, volume, temperature, and time.
S2.3a Use appropriate "inquiry and process skills" to collect data
S2.3b Record observations accurately and concisely
The observations made while testing proposed explanations, when
analyzed using conventional and invented methods, provide new insights into
phenomena.
S3.1 Organize observations and measurements of objects and events
through classification and the preparation of simple charts and tables.
S3.1a Accurately transfer data from a science journal or notes to
appropriate graphic organizer
S3.2 Interpret organized observations and measurements, recognizing
simple patterns, sequences, and relationships.
S3.2a State, orally and in writing, any inferences or generalizations
indicated by the data collected
S3.3 Share their findings with others and actively seek their interpretations
and ideas.
S3.3a Explain their findings to others, and actively listen to suggestions for
possible interpretations and ideas
S3.4 Adjust their explanations and understandings of objects and events
based on their findings and new ideas.
S3.4a State, orally and in writing, any inferences or generalizations
indicated by the data, with appropriate modifications of their original
prediction/explanation
S3.4b State, orally and in writing, any new questions that arise from their
investigation
Standard 6 Magnitude and Scale: The grouping of magnitudes of size, time,
frequency, and pressures or other units of measurement into a series of relative
order provides a useful way to deal with the immense range and the changes in
scale that affect behavior and design of systems.
• Observe that things in nature and things that people make have very
different sizes, weights, and ages
• Recognize that almost anything has limits on how big or small it can be
Standard 6 Equilibrium and Stability: Equilibrium is a state of stability due
either to a lack of changes (static equilibrium) or a balance between opposing
6
forces (dynamic equilibrium).
• Observe that things change in some ways and stay the same in some ways
• Recognize that things can change in different ways such as size, weight,
color and movement. Some small changes can be detected by taking
measurements.
Standard 6 Patterns of Change: Identifying patterns of change is necessary
for making predictions about future behavior and conditions.
• Use simple instruments to measure such quantities as distance, size, and
weight and look for patterns in the data
• Analyze data by making tables and graphs and looking for patterns of
change
Standard 4 The Living Environment: Students will understand and apply
scientific concepts, principles, and theories pertaining to the physical setting
and living environment and recognize the historical development of ideas in
science.
Performance Indicator 3.1: Describe how the structures of plants and
animals complement the environment of the plant or animal.
3.1a Each animal has different structures that serve different functions in
growth, survival, and reproduction.
Performance Indicator 3.2: Observe that differences within a species may
give individuals an advantage in surviving and reproducing.
3.2a Individuals within a species may compete with each other for food,
mates, space, water, and shelter in their environment.
3.2b All individuals have variations, and because of these variations,
individuals of a species may have an advantage in surviving and reproducing.
Performance Indicator 4.1: Describe the major stages in the life cycles of
selected plants and animals.
4.1a Plants and animals have life cycles. These may include beginning of a
life, development into an adult, reproduction as an adult, and eventually death.
4.1e Each generation of animals goes through changes in form from young
to adult. This completed sequence of changes in form is called a life cycle.
Some insects change from egg to larva to pupa to adult.
4.1f Each kind of animal goes through its own states of growth and
development during its life span.
4.1g The length of time from an animal’s birth to its death is called its life
span. Life spans of different animals vary.
Performance Indicator 5.2: Describe some survival behaviors of common
living specimens.
5.2c Senses can provide essential information (regarding danger, food,
mates, etc.) to animals about their environment.
5.2d Some animals, including humans, move from place to place to meet
their needs.
7
5.2e Particular animal characteristics are influenced by changing
environmental conditions including: fat storage in winter, coat thickness in
winter, camouflage, shedding of fur.
5.2f Some animal behaviors are influenced by environmental conditions.
These behaviors may include: nest building, hibernating, hunting, migrating,
and communicating.
Performance Indicator 7.1: Identify ways in which humans have changed their
environment and the effects of those changes.
7.1c Humans, as individuals or communities, change environments in ways
that can be either helpful or harmful for themselves and other organisms
Middle School
Science Core
Curriculum
(NYS):
*Actual 5– 8
standards met
vary by activity.
Standard 1 Analysis, Inquiry, and Design:
S1.1: Formulate questions independently with the aid of references
appropriate for guiding the search for explanations of everyday observations
S1.1a Formulate questions about natural phenomena
S1.1c Refine and clarify questions so that they are subject to scientific
investigation.
S1.2: Construct explanations independently for natural phenomena,
especially by proposing preliminary visual models of phenomena.
S1.2a Independently formulate a hypothesis
S1.2b Propose a model of a natural phenomenon
S1.2c Differentiate among observations, inferences, predictions, and
explanations
Standard 4 The Living Environment:
Performance Indicator 3.1
3.1a The processes of sexual reproduction and mutation have given rise to a
variety of traits within a species
3.2b Extinction of a species occurs when the environment changes and the
adaptive characteristics of a species are insufficient to permit its survival.
Extinction of species is common. Fossils are evidence that a great variety of
species existed in the past.
Performance Indicator 6.1
6.1a Energy flows through ecosystems in one direction, usually from the
sun, through producers to consumers and then to decomposers. This process
may be visualized with food chains or energy pyramids.
6.1b Food webs identify feeding relationship among producers, consumers,
and decomposers in an ecosystem
Performance Indicator 7.1
7.1b Given adequate resources and no disease or predators, populations
(including humans) increase. Lack of resources, habitat destruction, and other
factors such as predation and climate limit the growth of certain populations in
8
the ecosystem
7.1c In all environments, organisms interact with one another in many
ways. Relationships among organisms may be competitive, harmful, or
beneficial. Some species have adapted to be dependent upon each other with
the result that neither could survive without the other.
7.1d Some microorganisms are essential to the survival of other living
things.
Performance Indicator 7.2
7.2a In ecosystems, balance is the result of interactions between community
members and their environment.
7.2b The environment may be altered through the activities of organisms.
Alterations are sometimes abrupt. Some species may replace others over time,
resulting in long term gradual changes (ecological succession).
7.2c Overpopulation by any species impacts the environment due to the
increased use of resources. Human activities can bring about environmental
degradation through resource acquisition, urban growth, land-use decision,
waste disposal, etc.
Standard 4 The Physical Setting:
Performance Indicator 3.1
3.1i Buoyancy is determined by comparative densities.
9
10
Unit 1: Whale Diversity and Anatomy
Whale Diversity
All whales, dolphins, and porpoises belong to the scientific order Cetacea (whales are
therefore sometimes called “cetaceans”). Cetacea can be further divided into two sub-orders:
Mysticeti (baleen whales) and Odontoceti (toothed whales). Baleen whales use hard, bristle-like
plates to consume food by filter feeding, whereas toothed whales bite into the flesh of their prey.
The differences between baleen whales and toothed whales are described in more detail in Unit 3:
Feeding Strategies. There are around 80 species within the order Cetacea.
Whales come in all shapes and sizes. The blue whale, the biggest animal to ever live on
Earth, grows to be about 100 feet long! While some dinosaurs may have been longer, like
Argentinosaurus, the blue whale weighs in at over 175 tons (and up to 200 tons), which is much
heavier than any dinosaur discovered thus far. The smallest whales are the Vaquita, a highly
endangered porpoise, and the Hector’s dolphin, both of which are less than 5 feet in length and
weigh only about 100 pounds.
Some whales, like the narwhal and bowhead whale, live exclusively in the cold waters of
the Arctic Ocean, while other whale species, like the pantropical spotted dolphin, prefer warm
Caribbean waters. Freshwater species, like the Amazon river dolphin, are confined to life in large
rivers. Many whales, like the sperm whale, spend most of their time far offshore in deep openocean waters, whereas others, like the harbor porpoise, prefer shallower coastal habitats. Species
like the killer whale (also called the orca) can be found in any ocean environment. As explained in
the introduction, all of the world’s oceans and most of its seas support whale populations.
A brief Whale Species Diversity “phylogeny” (a branching tree diagram) depicting
relationships between whale species within Cetacea is included as a handout for this unit.
“Taxonomy” is another good vocabulary word used to describe animal classification.
Whale Anatomy
Because whale species are so varied and diverse, there is not one particular body plan or
shape that applies to all whales. There are, however, several important body parts that students
should become familiar with:
Baleen Whale Anatomy
(diagram depicts a blue whale)
11
Toothed Whale Anatomy (including dolphins and porpoises)
(diagram depicts a bottlenose dolphin)
Vocabulary: parts of baleen and toothed whales
Fluke
the tail of a whale. Whales swim much differently than sharks and other fish.
Instead of moving their tail side to side, whales undulate their tails up and
down.
Flipper
(pectoral fin) the pair of fins closest to the head of the whale, used for steering
and maneuverability but rarely for swimming forward.
Eye
12
a whale’s vision is usually very poor because they often spend their lives in
dark water or murky/nutrient rich waters.
Blow hole
whales breathe using a hole on the top of their heads which is directly
connected to their lungs. The blow hole was originally the nostrils on the
ancient ancestors of whales (see Unit 2: Evolution). Toothed whales have one
blow hole (pictured below, left), whereas baleen whales have two slits forming
a pair of blow holes (pictured below, right).
Dorsal fin
the fin on the back (or ‘dorsal’ side) of the whale. Dolphin species usually
have very pronounced dorsal fins for stability while swimming in the water
(think about the feathers on an arrow). The dorsal fin on a killer whale, which
is a member of the dolphin family, can be almost 6 ft. tall! Other whale
species, like the blue whale, have very small dorsal fins that do not help the
whale’s swimming ability. Right whales, bowhead whales, and narwhals don’t
have dorsal fins at all.
Caudal Peduncle the region between a whale’s dorsal fin and a whale’s flukes. Whales have
powerful muscles in this region that they use to move their flukes up and down
in order to propel themselves forward.
Rostrum
the snout region of a whale’s head. In baleen whales, the rostrum includes the
mouth, which holds baleen plates. In toothed whales, the rostrum is usually
called the beak, and houses the whale’s sharp teeth.
Baleen plates
hard, protein plates that hang down from the upper jaw in the mouth of whales
that do not have teeth. (Toothed whales have teeth on both upper and lower
jaws, except for the sperm whale, with teeth only on their lower jaw).
See Unit 3: Feeding Strategies for details.
Throat pleats
(or “ventral” pleats) some of the baleen whales, known as the “rorqual”
whales, have the ability to hold thousands and thousands of gallons of water as
they filter feed for food. To hold all this water, rorqual whales have many
throat pleats on the underside (“ventral” side) of their bodies which expand
like an accordion, providing extra throat space.
Melon
the rounded part of a toothed whale’s head. Toothed whales use echolocation
to find their food. The melon of a toothed whale’s head is full of fatty, oily
tissue to help them send and receive the sound waves they use to echolocate.
See Unit 3: Feeding Strategies for details.
Baleen whale and toothed whale anatomy handouts are included in Activity 1 (pp. 17-22).
Two levels of difficulty have been provided for the fill-in-the-blank style worksheets. The ‘easy’
versions are entitled “Parts of…” and the more ‘advanced’ versions introduce the term
“Anatomy”.
Identifying individual whales
Even within one population of the same whale species, there is substantial variation
between individuals. Scientists need to be able to distinguish individual whales in order to get
accurate population estimates, and to study whale behavior, social structure (whale families),
migration, etc. Humpback whales, for example, have unique black and white patterns on the
undersides of their flukes. When a humpback whale lifts its flukes out of the water, scientists can
tell them apart as individuals. Dolphins have unique patterns on the back edge of their dorsal fins.
Fin whales have a gray swirl pattern behind their heads, called the blaze and chevron design.
Killer whales have a gray swirl behind their dorsal fins, called a saddle patch. Right whales and
gray whales have rough patches of skin on their heads that get infested with whale lice (called
cyamids) in specific patterns. Each of these markings or features can be used to tell individual
whales apart. Sometimes scientists give individual whales a special number code, and sometimes
they give them interesting names, like the names of the humpback whales in the Humpback Whale
Fluke Matching Game included in the kit.
13
14
http://zoomenglish.blogspot.com/2012/03/eso1-animals-jclic-describe-your.html
What’s the difference between a dolphin and a porpoise?
Archeoceti (extinct whales)
Go to the Whale Evolution Unit !
Bowhead Whale
Right Whale
Scientific Order:
Cetacea
Pygmy Right Whale
Gray Whale
Bryde’s Whale
Sub-Order:
Mysticeti
Sei Whale
(baleen
whales)
Blue Whale
Fin Whale
*
Minke Whale
Humpback Whale
*Rorquals
(whales with
throat pleats)
Sperm Whale
Beaked Whale
Beluga Whale
Narwhal
Sub-Order:
Odontoceti
Killer Whale (Orca)
(toothed
whales)
**
Whale Species
Diversity
15
Note: sizes are not exactly to scale
Pilot Whale
Bottlenose Dolphin
Porpoises
River Dolphins
**Delphinidae
(oceanic dolphins)
16
CIBT Whale Kit
Teacher Section
Activity 1 – Whale and Dolphin Anatomy Worksheets
Objective:
This is a quick introductory activity to the CIBT Whale Kit. In this activity, students will
learn the basic anatomy (body parts) of baleen whales and toothed whales. A blue whale will be
used as the model baleen whale and a bottlenose dolphin will be used as a model toothed whale.
Procedure:
Have students fill in the blanks and answer the question(s) on the anatomy worksheets
provided, then check their answers, or collect and grade the worksheets.
Two versions are included depending on the skill level of the students:
(1) Easy: uses only the basic body parts
- “Parts of a Blue Whale!” (pg. 19)
- “Parts of a Dolphin!” (pg. 20)
(2) More Advanced: uses technical terms, more advanced vocabulary and spelling
- “Blue Whale Anatomy!” (pg. 21)
- “Bottlenose Dolphin Anatomy!” (pg. 22)
Teacher Key: See reverse side of this sheet (pg. 18). The diagrams for the Teacher Key could also
be copied as an Anatomy Handout for students.
17
Blue Whale (a baleen whale)
Bottlenose Dolphin (a toothed whale)
18
CIBT Whale Kit
Student Worksheet
Parts of a Blue Whale!
Name _____________________ Date ________________ Class___________
Use each word from the word bank once to fill in the blanks.
baleen
flukes
flipper
eye
dorsal fin
blow hole
blow hole
dorsal fin
flukes
eye
flpper
baleen plates
What does a blue whale use baleen for?
The baleen plates serve as a whales means of filtration
19
CIBT Whale Kit
Student Worksheet
Parts of a Dolphin!
Name _____________________ Date ________________ Class___________
Use each word from the word bank once to fill in the blanks.
melon
flukes
flipper
eye
dorsal fin
blow hole
beak (teeth inside)
blow hole
dorsal fin
melon
flukes
eye
flipper
beak
blow hole
A dolphin breathes from its __________________________.
20
CIBT Whale Kit
Student Worksheet
Blue Whale Anatomy!
Name _____________________ Date ________________ Class___________
Use each word from the word bank once to fill in the blanks.
baleen plates
blow hole
flukes
eye
dorsal fin
flipper (pectoral fin)
caudal peduncle
rostrum
throat pleats (ventral pleats)
In the space below, compare and contrast two parts of a blue whale’s anatomy.
(Where on the whale’s body is each part located? What is each used for?)
21
CIBT Whale Kit
Student Worksheet
Bottlenose Dolphin Anatomy!
Name _____________________ Date ________________ Class___________
Use each word from the word bank once to fill in the blanks.
melon
flukes
flipper (pectoral fin)
eye
dorsal fin
blow hole
caudal peduncle
beak (rostrum)
In the space below, compare and contrast two parts of a dolphin’s anatomy.
(Where on the dolphin’s body is each part located? What is each used for?)
22
CIBT Whale Kit
Teacher Section
Activity 2 – Felt Flippers
Objective:
Students will examine the diversity of flipper shapes of six different whale species.
Procedure:
Six pairs of large felt flippers are included in the CIBT Whale Kit. A felt tail fluke is also
included in the kit.
Caution: STUDENTS SHOULD NOT PUT THE FELT FLUKE OVER
THEIR FEET, LEGS, OR SHOES. THIS WILL DAMAGE THE FELT FLUKE.
Students may pass these around, put them on their HANDS, or use them for
demonstrations of Whale Behavior (such as in Activity 15 – Humpback Whale: The Great
Communicator of the Sea).
Teacher Key: See reverse side of this sheet (pg. 24).
23
! front edge of flippers
24
CIBT Whale Kit
Teacher Section
Activity 3 – Dichotomous Key Activity: Identify that whale species!
Objective:
Students will work through a dichotomous key to identify 16 different species of whales
(including dolphins and porpoises).
Materials: included in CIBT kit and manual
- 12 laminated sheets (Dichotomous Key Activity: Figure 2. Whale Species to Identity)
- Student Worksheets (pg. 27-28)
- Student Answer Worksheets (pg. 29)
- Pencils or pens
Procedure:
1. Divide the class into 12 pairs.
2. Distribute a laminated Figure 2. Whale Species to Identity sheet to each pair. Student
pairs can either share the laminated sheet and complete their own Student Answer
Worksheet individually, or work together to complete one Answer Worksheet as a pair.
Students will use the pictures on the laminated Figure 2 sheet to determine the physical
characteristics referenced in the dichotomous key.
3. Students will follow the directions on the Student Worksheet, progressing sequentially
through the dichotomous key questions in order to identify 16 different whale species.
Special Notes:
- Figure 2 has already been divided into baleen whales (upper blue box) and
toothed whales (lower red box).
- A length comparison bar is included in the blue box for baleen whales to be
used with Question #5 about species lengths.
- Students should use the pictures on Figure 2, NOT prior knowledge of what
whale species look like, or else they might end up with the wrong answers.
- When in doubt, choose the BEST answer of the two options provided.
- MAKE SURE STUDENTS START BACK AT THE BEGINNING OF
THE KEY (Question #1) EACH TIME THEY BEGIN TO IDENTIFY A
NEW WHALE.
4. When a student thinks he/she has correctly used to key and identified the name of the
whale from Figure 2, he/she should record the species’ name next to the corresponding
letter on the Student Answer Worksheet.
Teacher Key: See reverse side of this sheet (pg. 26).
25
Key to Student Answer Worksheet
A. Bowhead Whale
B. Humpback Whale
C. Minke Whale
D. Sperm Whale
E. Bottlenose Dolphin
F. Right Whale
G. Gray Whale
H. Fin Whale
I.
Pilot Whale
J.
Harbor Porpoise
K. Blue Whale
L. Killer Whale (Orca)
M. Sei Whale
N. Beluga Whale
O. Narwhal
P. River Dolphin
26
CIBT Whale Kit
Student Worksheet
Activity 3 – Dichotomous Key Activity: Identify that whale species!
What is a dichotomous key?
A dichotomous key is a tool that scientists use to identify an unknown organism. The
dichotomous key includes specific characteristics and traits that are matched to the unknown
organism. The prefix “di” in the word “dichotomous” means “two”. Each statement in the key has
two options (A and B). You must choose which option matches the unknown whale species, and
then follow the directions to move to the correct next statement.
Procedure:
1. Choose one of the whale species in Figure 2 and try to identify it using the dichotomous
key. Pay close attention! (Use Figure 1, below, to help you identify specific body parts.)
2. Start at statement #1A. If this statement is true, follow the directions to the next
statement. If #1A is false, move on to #1B and follow the directions.
3. Continue to follow the directions for each statement the key leads you to.
4. When you identify the whale species, write the species’ name on the line next to the
corresponding letter on the Answer Worksheet.
5. Repeat this procedure this for each of the 16 whale species in Figure 2.
REMEMBER: You must start back at statement #1A each time you move on to a new whale!
If you start in the middle of the key or work backwards, you might get the wrong answer.
Figure 1. Basic Anatomy of Whales and Dolphins
Choose a whale and start here:
#1) How does the species catch and eat its food?
A. The species has teeth……...………………………………………… Go to statement 2.
B. The species has baleen……...………………………………………. Go to statement 3.
#2) Look carefully at the body color of the species.
A. There is one main body color..……...……………………........... Go to statement 4.
B. There are at least 2 body colors…..……...…………………….… Go to statement 6.
#3) Examine the dorsal fin (the fin on the back) of the species.
A. The dorsal fin is triangular and pointy.……...…………….……. Go to statement 5.
B. There is no dorsal fin, or it is not triangular and pointy...….. Go to statement 7.
27
#4) How dark is the main body color of the species?
A. The main body color is dark.………..……………………............. Go to statement 8.
B. The main body color is a shade of white……………………….… Go to statement 10.
#5) How long is the species?
A. Less than 50 feet long……...………………………………….……. Go to statement 9.
B. Greater than 50 feet long……...……………………………………. Go to statement 11.
#6) Examine the body color pattern of the species.
A. There are black and white patches or spots…………….……….. Go to statement 12.
B. The body color pattern is mostly gray……...…………………….. Go to statement 14.
#7) Does the species even have a dorsal fin?
A. There is no dorsal fin at all (smooth back)..…………………..… Go to statement 13.
B. The species has some kind of dorsal fin or dorsal ridge.....…. Go to statement 15.
#8) Look at the shape of the flipper (or pectoral fin).
A. The flipper has a round shape.……...…….. ………………...………..… Sperm Whale.
B. The flipper has a long, pointy shape.……...……………………..……...… Pilot Whale.
#9) Look at the color of the flipper (or pectoral fin).
A. There is a white patch on the flipper.……...…………………………...... Minke Whale.
B. The flipper is dark gray…..……...……………………………….…….……….. Sei Whale.
#10) What is the shape of the beak (or rostrum)?
A. The beak is long and narrow………..…...……………..........……........ River Dolphin.
B. The beak very small and short…….....……………..……………….....… Beluga Whale.
#11) Examine the ventral (stomach side) color pattern.
A. The ventral color pattern is speckled gray (spots)……………………..… Blue Whale.
B. The ventral color is mostly white……...…………….……………..………..… Fin Whale.
#12) Is there anything noticeable about the teeth of the species?
A. There is one very long, pointy tooth (called a tusk)..……………………….. Narwhal.
B. There is no tusk……………..……………………………………..….. Killer Whale (Orca).
#13) Look for a special mark near the species’ eye.
A. There is no special mark near the eye.……………………………..... Bowhead Whale.
B. There is a white patch (made of whale lice!) near the eye…………..… Right Whale.
#14) What is the shape of the melon (the front part of the head)?
A. It curves down smoothly to the mouth .……………………….….... Harbor Porpoise.
B. It makes an indent when it reaches the beak ……………..…… Bottlenose Dolphin.
#15) Examine the rostrum (snout area) of the whale.
A. The rostrum has circular bumps (called tubercles)…...…...….... Humpback Whale.
B. The rostrum does not have circular bumps……………….…………....… Gray Whale.
Record your answers on the Student Answer Worksheet!
28
CIBT Whale Kit
Student Answer Worksheet
Activity 3 – Dichotomous Key Activity: Identify that whale species!
Name:
Class:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
H.
I.
J.
K.
L.
M.
N.
O.
P.
29
Date:
.
30
CIBT Whale Kit
Teacher Section
Activity 4 – Blowhole Demonstration
Whales are mammals and must bring oxygenated air into their lungs. The land-based
ancestors of whales had snouts and nostrils on the fronts of their faces, much like dogs. As these
creatures moved from the land back into the sea, they had to evolve better breathing mechanisms
suited to life in the ocean because lifting a nose above the surface of the water to take a breath
would be very inefficient. Therefore, instead of typical nostrils, the opening to a whale’s lungs
migrated from the tip of a snout to the top of its head. This is now called the whale’s blowhole.
(Source: http://www.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/school_programs/whales/pdfs/t-activities-all-2.pdf)
Toothed whales have ONE blowhole.
(i.e., dolphins, porpoises, killer whales, sperm whales, narwhals, and belugas)
Baleen whales have TWO blowholes.
(i.e., blue whales, humpback whales, gray whales, and right whales)
A whale’s blowhole is surrounded by a set of powerful muscles that close off the hole and
prevent water from entering when the whale dives. A system of nerves and muscles automatically
keeps the blowhole from opening underwater.
Breathing frequencies vary depending on species, physical activity, and family groupings.
Blue, humpback, and right whales surface every 5 to 10 minutes when they are feeding or
spending time higher in the water column. Their limit under water is about 40 minutes. Most
species take a series of breaths separated by 10 to 30 seconds before diving again. At rest, whales
do not need to breathe as quickly as they do immediately after returning from a dive.
Family relationships can also influence breathing. Killer whale family groups, for example,
tend to breathe in the same rhythm, with all animals surfacing at approximately the same time.
When whales surface, they let out their breath as a cloud of air and water vapor high into
the air. This is called spout or blow (See the Activity 5 – Spout Activity for more details).
To simulate how a whale uses its blowhole on the top of its head, students will act out the
opening and closing of the whale’s blowhole using their hands.
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Procedure:
1. Students*should*close*their*eyes,*take*a*deep*breath*and*imagine*they*are*underwater.**
(Think:*what*is*the*first*thing*I*will*do*when*I*come*to*the*surface,*inhale*or*exhale?)**
2. Now,*make*a*large*blowhole*with*both*hands*cupped*in*a*circle*together*over*your*head.**
3. Take*a*deep*breath*and*close*your*hands*tight,*like*a*twoFhanded*fist.***
4. Hold*your*breath*for*10*to*15*seconds.**
5. Open*your*hands*and*exhale,*then*inhale*quickly*and*close*your*hands*tightly*again.*
6. Repeat*this*pattern*until*you*understand*the*rhythm.*
Have students notice the different sounds they make as they inhale and exhale. Most whales
make a tremendous sound as they surface and breathe. They must inhale quickly because their
blowhole is only out of the water for a short time.
(Adapted from: http://www.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/school_programs/whales/pdfs/t-activities-all-2.pdf)
32
CIBT Whale Kit
Teacher Section
Activity 5 – Spout Activity
Since whales are mammals, they must breath air to survive. Many cartoons show whale
spouts as giant fountains squirting water, but this is incorrect! Whale spouts (also called blows)
are actually exhalations of moist air from the whale’s lungs.
We breathe without even thinking about taking air into our
lungs or blowing air out, but whales cannot do this. Unlike most
mammals, whales are “voluntary breathers” – this means they
must consciously remind themselves to go up to the surface every
time they need a breath.
So why is there a puff or cloud of water droplets above a
whale’s blow hole when it breathes at the surface? The answer is
condensation! This short activity will help demonstrate what is
going on when a whale spouts.
Materials:
- hand mirror (6 provided in CIBT kit)
- paper towels or napkin (& hand sanitizer!)
Procedure:
1. Divide students into 6 groups (6 mirrors are provided in the kit)
2. To simulate a whale spout, students hold the mirror about 3 inches from
their mouth and exhale a big breath onto the surface of the mirror. The
mirror should become foggy and wet.
(Students should not touch the mirror surface with their mouth.)
3. In between each students’ turn, wipe the condensation off the mirror with
a paper towel or napkin (& hand sanitizer!).
Discussion questions:
- What happened when you exhaled (blew air out) on the mirror?
- What causes the water droplets to collect on the mirror surface?
- How is this like the puff or cloud of water droplets and air that forms when a whale spouts at
the surface?
Answers and other discussion extensions:
Respiration involves the exchanges of gases. Oxygen is the gas that enters the body cells,
and carbon dioxide is the gas that leaves the cells. In animals with lungs, this gas exchange takes
place in the lungs. Air in lungs is warm and moist. When it hits the cooler mirror surface, the
moisture in your exhaled breath condenses (changes from a gas to a liquid). The wisps of fog
forming in the warm air in front of the open freezer or your smoky-looking breath outside on a
cold day are both a result of condensation. The cooling of warm, moist air changes the water from
a gas to a liquid. When small amounts of warm moist air are cooled, small droplets of water are
formed. A whale's body cavity acts as a giant air-storage tank. The condensing of such large
amounts of warm, moist air upon exhaling results in a spout that looks like a cloud. The spray
from the whale is a mixture of water and air.
33
What do you think would happen if the mirror was colder? Try putting the mirror in the
freezer for five minutes and then repeat the activity. Do you notice a difference?
What causes the whale's spout to shoot so far into the air? Whales dive far below the
water's surface. The weight of the water on the whale causes the air inside its body to compress, or
get pushed into a small space. When the whale quickly surfaces and exhales, the gases expand and
are pushed out with a great force. A spout of air and water shoots upward from the hole in the
whale's head far into the air above. This can be demonstrated by spraying some of the contents of
a spray bottle filled with water into the air. Squeezing the handle pushes the water out with a great
force in the same way that the air shoots from inside the whale's body.
(Adapted from: http://www.education.com/science-fair/article/super-spout/)
34
CIBT Whale Kit
Teacher Section
Activity 6 – Whale Length Comparison Activity
Included in the CIBT kit are 9 cord lengths for each of the following:
Animal
Killer Whale (Orca)
Blue Whale
Humpback Whale
Beluga Whale
Harbor Porpoise
Bottlenose Dolphin
Argentinosaurus (the largest dinosaur
known—longer than the Blue Whale!)
African Elephant
School Bus
Length
25 ft.
100 ft.
50 ft.
14 ft.
5 ft.
8 ft.
140 ft.
Weight
5 tons
200 tons
40 tons
3100 lbs
150 lbs
550 lbs
99 tons
22 ft.
45 ft.
5 tons
13 tons
Materials needed:
- 9 cord lengths (included in CIBT kit)
- Pencils, markers, or pens
- copies of Bar Graph paper (one for each student) (pg. 36)
- Student Worksheet, two versions provided:
 Easy version for lower level elementary students (pg. 37)
 More Advanced version for upper level elementary students (pg. 38)
Procedure:
Note: 100 ft. is the length of a basketball court. This is a great outside or gym activity.
Divide the class into groups of 3 or 4. Two students in each group are responsible for holding the
wooden dowel end of their designated cord. These students then walk away (slowly!) from the
students holding the wooden rectangular slat until the cord is fully extended. Each rope marked
with colored tape:
Between blue marks = 10 feet
Between yellow marks = 5 feet
Between green marks = 1 foot
You can have students move to arrange the fully extended cords from longest to shortest whale
species. Each group should determine the length of their rope by counting how many of each
colored tape mark are on their cord. They can calculate total length using multiplication and
addition. Have students report their length results on the board or where other classmates can see
their results in a Class Data Table. (Check these student calculations!) Then have the students
make a bar graph comparing all the recorded lengths.
For upper elementary, you could work fractions or division into the lesson by asking questions
like “How many porpoises would it take to make the length of a blue whale?” You could also
figure the average height of students in the class, then determine how many students it would take
to reach the length of each whale. Also, given the weights of whales (above), students could graph
the different weights of the animals. The scale would have to go from 150 lbs to 200 tons!
35
10
20
30 40
50
70 80
90 100 110 120 130 140
Length (in feet)
60
Whale Length Comparison
Bar Graph
Name: _____________________________________ Class: _____________________________ Date: ________________________
Object being measured
36
CIBT Whale Kit
Student Worksheet
Activity 6 – Whale Length Comparison Activity
How big are whales? Good question!
Let’s compare the size of different kinds of whales.
Step 1:
The name on my cord is: _____________________________________________
Step 2:
Working in a group, pull on the small wooden piece to see how long your cord is.
Count how many different colored marks are on your cord.
Number of Blue Marks: __________
Number of Yellow Marks: __________
Number of Green Marks: __________
Step 3:
Compare your cord to the other cords in the class! Which is the longest? Which is
the shortest?
Longest: ___________________________ Shortest: ________________________
Step 4:
Use the numbers of the colored marks on your cord to determine how long it is.
Between blue marks = 10 feet
Between yellow marks = 5 feet
Between green marks = 1 foot
Length of my cord: _____________ feet
Step 5:
Now share your cord length with the class, and make a bar graph of every cord
length using graph paper!
37
CIBT Whale Kit
Student Worksheet
Activity 6 – Whale Length Comparison Activity
In this activity, you will use different lengths of cords to discover just how long different
types of whales can be. There are around 80 different types of whales in the world’s oceans.
Whales range in size from small porpoises that are only 5 feet long (the same height as an average
teenager), to the giant blue whale, (up to 100 feet long!).
Step 1. Working in a group, your teacher will give you one cord.
Step 2. Look at the name written on the wooden rectangle that the cord is wrapped around. What
cord were you given? Write the name on the line below.
___________________________________________________
Step 3. Divide your group into two teams.
Team 1 = Wooden Rectangle Team. These students are in charge of holding the
wooden rectangle.
Team 2 – Small Dowel Team. These students are in charge of the wooden dowel (the
smaller wooden piece).
Step 4. Give yourself plenty of room! If you are holding the wooden rectangle piece (Team 1),
you are the anchor. Do not move from your spot. If you are holding the smaller wooden dowel
(Team 2), SLOWLY walk away from the Team 1 members to unwind the cord.
Step 5. COUNTING! As you unravel your rope cord, the Team 1 members are in charge of
counting the number of colored bands that unwind. Record the number below.
Number of Blue Marks: ________
Number of Yellow Marks: ________
Between blue marks = 10 feet
Between yellow marks = 5 feet
Between green marks = 1 foot
Number of Green Marks: ________
Step 6. When you have finished unwinding the cord, compare your cord length to all the other
cords in the class.
Step 7. Use the numbers of the colored marks to determine the length of your cord.
Length of my cord: _______ feet
Step 8. Compare the lengths of all the cords in the class. Then graph your data as a bar graph!
38
CIBT Whale Kit
Teacher Section
Activity 7 – Blubber Lab
Objective: Students will learn the insulating properties of whale blubber.
Background:
Because whales are warm-blooded, they require a thick layer of insulation to maintain their
body temperature in water. Water drains heat from a warm body 25 times faster than air does.
Whales have a thick layer of fat, called blubber that serves as an insulator and body temperature
regulator, a reserve energy source, and a flotation device. Depending on the species, blubber can
make up 21-45% of a whale's body weight and can reach a thickness of 50 cm.
Although ocean water is cold, a whale that is exerting itself to swim fast produces a great
deal of heat. Because whales cannot sweat or pant to cool off, their blubber may cause them to
overheat. To maintain a constant body temperature, blood vessels leading to the flippers, tail
flukes, and dorsal fin expand to dissipate excess heat into water.
Materials: for 6 classroom stations
1-quart yogurt container for as many stations as desired (not included in kit)
2 small yogurt containers for as many stations as desired (not included in kit)
Buckets of ice for as many stations as desired (not included in kit)
2 thermometers per station (12 provided in CIBT kit)
2 cups of shortening for each station (not included in kit)
Above: station set-up shown without the ice bucket.
Procedure: for each station
1. Insert equal amounts of water in each small yogurt container.
2. Place one small container inside the larger container that has two cups of shortening
and press down so shortening surrounds the small container.
3. Place the large container with shortening and the remaining small yogurt container
with just water in cooler or bucket of ice. (Students may do this step.)
4. Students will put a thermometer in each small container and read temperature (in
Celsius or Fahrenheit, or both) and record the reading in the chart provided.
5. Repeat the reading/recording process every 10 minutes for both small containers.
39
Sample Data Table:
Time
(Minutes)
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Temperature in
Insulated Cup (° ____)
Temperature in
Uninsulated Cup (°____)
Discussion: Wrap-up activities that follow can be adapted to the grade level
- Create a line graph showing the relationship of water temperature to time.
- Have a discussion about how blubber acts as a thermoregulator for whales.
- Ask some follow up questions, such as:
What do you think would happen if we continued to take temperature readings for another
hour or two? The container in the shortening would slowly decrease and become the same
temperature as the container without any insulation.
Then how does the whale stay warm? The whale creates its own heat, just like humans and
other mammals (warm-blooded or “endothermic”).
40
CIBT Whale Kit
Student Worksheet
Activity 7 – Blubber Lab
Background:
Whales have a thick layer of fat, called blubber, all around their bodies. Blubber is an
“insulator” which means it helps whales keep warm by trapping heat. Whales are mammals.
They are warm-blooded and must keep their body temperature high. In this activity, you will learn
the insulating properties of whale blubber.
Materials:
- 1 large yogurt container
- 2 small yogurt containers
- Bucket of ice
- 2 thermometers
Above: set-up shown without the ice bucket.
Procedure:
1. Your teacher will assign you to a work station. Each station has:
- 1 large yogurt container (with shortening and a small yogurt cup filled with water)
- 1 plain, small yogurt cup filled with water
- 2 thermometers
- bucket of ice
2. Put the large container and the plain, small cup in the bucket of ice.
3. Put a thermometer in each small cup.
4. Let the thermometer adjust. Then record the temperature of each of the small cups (in degrees
Celsius or degrees Fahrenheit, or both) in the chart below at Time = 0 minutes.
5. Check and record the temperature of each small cup every 10 minutes.
6. Answer the questions on the back of this worksheet.
Data Table:
Time
(Minutes)
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
41
Temperature of the
Insulated Cup,
the cup in shortening
(° ____)
Temperature of the
Non-insulated Cup,
the plain cup
(°____)
Post-Lab Questions:
1. Describe your observations. What happened to the temperature in each cup? Was there a
difference between the cups?
2. Which cup represents whale blubber? Did this cup get colder faster or slower than the plain
cup not surrounded by shortening (fat)?
3. What did this lab teach you about whale blubber?
42
CIBT Whale Kit
Teacher Section
Activity 8 – Why Don’t Whales Sink? Demonstrations
Whales are enormous!
Blue whales, the heaviest organism to ever live on
Earth, can weigh up to 200 tons. But how is it that whales can
get so massive and do not sink to the bottom of the ocean?
There is a two-part answer to this question. The first lies in
the fact that their lung size is larger than that of terrestrial
animals by lean body weight. Inflated with air which they
breathe at the surface, whales can increase their buoyancy.
The second answer is that they all have a thick layer of
blubber under their skin that is less dense than water.*
Below are two demonstrations that will help students learn these two concepts.
Part A: How larger lungs help an animal float
Materials:
- 40 flat glass marbles (provided in CIBT kit)
- 3 large balloons (not included in kit)
- bucket of water
1. Insert 10-13 flat glass marbles into each of three large balloons (not included in kit). The
flat glass marbles represent the bones and muscle of the whale, which are heavier than
water.
2. Tie one of the balloons, forcing all of the air out of it before securing it with a knot. This
one should sink to the bottom of a large bucket of water.
3. Insert a tiny amount of air into the second balloon before tying it. The balloon should have
just enough air in it to lift it off the bottom of the container, but not enough to bring it to
the surface of the water.
4. The third balloon should have just enough air to make the balloon float.
Note: You may have to experiment with this before class to get the right ratio of beads to air.
Set-up should look
something like this:
43
Part B: Blubber is less dense than water
Materials:
- small, plastic Ziploc bag (not included in kit)
- shortening (lard, butter, Crisco, etc.)
- bucket of water
- flat glass marbles (provided in CIBT kit)
1. Put some shortening into a small plastic sandwich baggy and seal it
2. Set it into a bucket of water to float.
3. You can proceed by adding the flat glass marbles from the balloon that sank in Part A to
the bag with the shortening that floats.
Ask: Does the bag with the shortening float or sink now?
Optional: The children can test a variety of other objects of the same size to see if they will float
(i.e., a bag of small stones, a piece of wood, a bag of dirt, a bag of feathers, etc.)
Post-Demo Discussion:
What organ in a whale’s body do the balloons simulate? Lungs, filled with air
What part of a whale’s body does the shortening simulate? Blubber, less dense than water
(i.e., What 2 features of a whale prevent it from sinking to the bottom of the ocean? Why?)
* You might now be wondering how whales can dive deep. What is controlling their buoyancy?
As this is not elementary material, it is not included here. To find out more, go to
http://www.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/school_programs/whales/pdfs/t-activities-all-2.pdf  pg. 10.
44
CIBT Whale Kit
Teacher Section
Activity 9 – Humpback Whale Fluke Matching Game
SEE HUMPBACK WHALE FLUKE MATCHING GAME BINDER IN CIBT KIT.
How do you study an animal that spends 90% of its life below the surface of the water?
How do you track animals that swim thousands of miles in the ocean each year?
Studying whales is not an easy task, but marine biologists have developed special ways to
collect data on these marine mammals. One popular method is the creation of a photo database.
Taking pictures of whales and then studying the pictures lets scientists do research projects even
after the whales dive beneath the surface.
Photo-identification is a scientific matching game used to identify unique individuals.
This activity uses real pictures of humpback whale flukes taken from a database used by
researchers at the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies in Massachusetts.
Humpback whales are robust creatures. Diving below the surface takes energy and a
special fluking dive technique. (How easy is it for you to dive down underwater?) Humpback
whales lift their large tail flukes up out of the water and push their bodies downward. When they
do this, they display a unique black and white pattern on the underside of the flukes.
This black and white pattern is similar to a human fingerprint or birthmark. No two
humpback whales have ever been found with the same pattern! Fluke patterns range from all white
to all black, and everything in between. Each humpback whale is then given a name to help
scientists track and record information about where the whale travels, if it is seen with other
whales, and what behaviors it is doing. This way, scientists can use pictures of flukes to try to
understand the lives of humpback whales.
Matching Game Instructions:
Each student will be given a humpback whale fluke picture from the stack of Fluke Picture
Cards provided. Each of these cards has a number in the upper right hand corner that corresponds
to the Fluke Matching Game Key, which gives the whale’s individual name.
Students must use a Fluke Catalog (the black and white images arranged in rows) to match
their flukes and discover the name of their individual whale. Two versions of this Catalog are
provided depending on the amount of class time available for the activity, and the grade
level/attention span of the students. See below.
Flukes in the Catalog are ordered from light to dark. If a student has a very dark black
fluke, he/she might consider looking at the last images, whereas if a student has a mostly white
fluke, he/she might consider looking at the first images.
CAUTION: The Fluke Picture Cards are taken from research and whale watch boats out in the
field. They are NOT exact matches to the Fluke Catalog pictures. Scientists must rely on using
specific markings to match the flukes because the angle of the Fluke Picture may be different from
the corresponding Catalog picture. Please inform students of this before they begin matching.
45
Have students identify two or three special marks they see in their flukes. This may be a
black dot, a line, a white patch, etc. Then, students should try to find the Catalog picture that has
those markings.
When a student believes he/she has a match, refer to the Fluke Matching Game Key to
confirm. Students may take several attempts, but remind them that scientists spend hours doing
this, and it is very challenging. Students are using actual database images. This is the real deal!
 Easy Version:
The “easy” version uses only 18 flukes. This is perfect for a small class of younger
students, or if time is limited. Use the one-sheet Fluke Catalog with 18 flukes (no colored border).
Then hand out only the first 18 Fluke Pictures (#1-18). You can photocopy some of the pictures if
there are more than 18 students in the class, or else have students share flukes. All 18 flukes to be
matched are on the Catalog page.
 Advanced version:
The “advanced” version uses 36 flukes (Fluke Pictures #1-36). The 6-page Fluke Catalog
with colored borders should be used. (Note: the 36 flukes plus additional flukes other than the
given 36 are included in this version of the catalog to make it more challenging)
Fluke Catalog pages are numbered #1-6 and colored for ease in setting up stations.
Page 1 = lime green (whitest flukes)
Page 2 = purple
Page 3 = yellow
Page 4 = pink
Page 5 = light blue
Page 6 = orange (darkest flukes)
Set up stations using these Catalog pages:
For 4 stations, put one of each page/color at a station.
Assign a group of students to each station.
For 6 stations, put a different page/color at each station.
Have students cycle between each of the 6 stations until they have found their
whale’s correct name.
Additional Info:
PowerPoint directions to show the class have been provided on the Whale Kit Reference
CD, along with files to print if you need additional copies.
Sometimes it’s fun to give each student a photocopy of his/her fluke instead of having
students use the laminated Fluke Picture Cards. This way students can write their whale’s name on
the picture and take it home as a souvenir of the activity.
46
Unit 2: Evolution
The prehistoric ancestors of whales did not live in the ocean, but roamed the land! Pakicetus,
one of the oldest ancestors of whales, lived completely out of the water, with long legs, and a doglike snout. Over millions of years, the front feet of these whale ancestors evolved into flippers,
back legs became smaller, and a tail fluke took over to allow for swimming. Nostrils migrated
backwards until they formed blowholes, a crucial adaptation for breathing at the surface.
Which ancient animals gave rise to whales? Whales have a common ancestor with hoofed
mammals, just like deer, pigs, giraffes, and hippos! But how did scientists link today’s whales to
hoofed mammals? Early, four-legged whales have toes ending with hoof-like claws. But an even
better clue is found in the ankle. Certain hoofed mammals have an astragalus (one of the ankle
bones) with deep grooves at each end. Early whales like Rodhocetus have the same type of bone!
You can still find evidence of whale leg bones today, though you would never be able to tell
without dissections or use of X-rays. A pair of hind limb bones ‘float’ uselessly in the blubber of a
whale’s back end. These bones are vestigial, meaning they once had a use but now have no
purpose.
The ancestors of whales all had large, pointy teeth, so how did baleen whales evolve? Long
ago ancestors of baleen whales did have teeth. In fact, modern baleen whale embryos often have
tooth buds in their mouth that disappear before they are born. Paleontologists have identified a
transitional whale, Aetiocetus weltoni, that had both teeth and baleen. Over time, the teeth were
lost and the baleen retained. The first baleen-bearing, toothless whales appeared about 30 million
years ago.
Since mammals originally evolved on land, their spines are designed for running in an upand-down motion, which explains why whales don’t swim side-to-side like fish and sharks. For
this reason, marine mammals have horizontal tail fins while fish have vertical tail fins.
To cope with life in cold water, whales also developed a thick, fatty under skin layer called
“blubber”. Blubber works like insulation to keep the animal warm, as well as to aid in buoyancy
by helping the animal float and rest at the water’s surface. (Whale lungs also contribute to their
buoyancy in water.) See Activity 7 and Activity 8.
For their assistance with content support, thank you to
Maureen Bickley, Maija Cantori, Kelly Rowland, and Dr. Richard
Kissel of the Paleontological Research Institution and its Museum of
the Earth in Ithaca, NY.
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CIBT Whale Kit
Teacher Section
Activity 10 – Land to Sea: A Whale Evolution Game
Background:
It has long been theorized that the whales moved, in reverse of the evolutionary beginnings
of mammals, from the land back to the sea. Fossil evidence has supported this theory as more and
more missing links are being found. It is believed that whales, like hippopotamuses (the present
day closest living cousin to Cetaceans) were once furry mammals that lived along coastal regions
and began using the shallow waters to hide from their prey. As the competition for food or the
need to hide from predators became more intense, the ancestors of whales moved further and
further out to sea. In the fossil record, we can see this fascinating lineage of whales gradually
adapting parts of their anatomy, physiology, and feeding habits to the aquatic environment (see the
Museum of the Earth handout of the evolutionary tree included in this unit).
Evolution is very often a misunderstood term. We may think that what is living today is
more advanced than what was living millions of years ago, but this is not a well supported view. It
is believed that life adapts to its environment and evolution comes with evolutionary baggage. In
other words, in order to adapt to a new or changing environment, life does not start anew.
Evolution works with what it has at the moment. Those organisms that have evolved in a way that
is a ‘best fit’ within their environment are the ones that survive and produce offspring.
Scientists do not believe that evolution is directed, but happens gradually with the change
in the environment of the organism. The fossil evidence of transitional forms is generally a mosaic
of traits, suggesting some traits evolved faster than others. Whales are thought to have evolved
over the last 50 million years from the furred ancestor Pakicetus, then only the size of a dog. (The
prehistoric fur mammal in this game represents Pakicetus). The incredibly long time span over
which evolution occurs is not well represented in the game. A roll of the die produces the
evolution of a completely new body part. This should be emphasized to students in the follow-up
or introduction to the activity.
A very exciting discovery linking whales to land animals are vestigial hind limbs
embedded in the blubber of present day whales where their back legs once were. This is
represented in this game in the form of small discs of white material with the vestigial bones
drawn on them. These are hidden from view and are attached to the back of the whale when
assembling (see photo below).
The evolution of baleen represents the division of the two broadest categories of Cetacea
today, baleen whales and toothed whales. It may be confusing to the students that the baleen is
attached to a toothed whale, but indeed there is some fossil evidence that baleen AND teeth
existed together at some point in time. The baleen has been another adaption to the types of food
that some whales had available to eat.
Photo showing placement of vestigial hind limbs
and baleen on the final whale in the game. (Photo
is of the underside of the assembled whale.)
53
Goal of the Game: First team to “evolve” its prehistoric mammal to a baleen whale wins.
Materials: for 6 teams, all parts included in large plastic “Land to Sea” bag in CIBT kit
6 fur bodies
6 fur forelimbs
6 fur hind limbs
6 fur heads
6 fur tails
6 whale bodies
6 whale heads
6 whale flippers
6 whale flukes
6 whale blubber
6 whale vestigial hind leg bones
3 whale baleen
6 sets of laminated cards (numbered 1-5 using dice pictures in upper left corner)
6 dice
Game Rules:
1. Divide the class into three groups. Each group should then be divided evenly into 2 teams
(i.e., 6 teams total for the whole class). Each team within a group is competing against the
other team in that group.
2. Each of the six teams gets a prehistoric furry mammal (pre-assembled) in front of them.
The parts for the modern whale are put in the center of the table or you could assign one
student in each team to be the distributor of whale parts when a part is needed.
3. To determine which team in each group starts, have a student from each team roll the die.
The team with the highest number gets to begin the game.
4. Each number of the die represents a card. The team must pick the card that corresponds to
the number on the die that was thrown on its turn (based on the dice picture in the upper
left corner of the card). After reading the card, the team will determine which WHALE
body part should replace the corresponding body part on the prehistoric mammal in front
of them. The answers to the questions are on the back of the card, but the student should
try and answer the question before looking at the back. Ask the students to imagine
themselves moving from land to water in order to live. What would make things easier for
them? What adaptations would they need?
5. If the number six is thrown and all the whale parts have not been “evolved” the team must
pass its turn. Once the whale is evolved (used all cards 1-5) and the number six is thrown,
the team yells “BALEEN” and wins the game. A small baleen piece can be attached to the
winning whale.
6. Only one throw of the die each turn is allowed. If the die is thrown and the number
corresponds to a part that is already evolved, the team passes its turn
Note: The blubber does not have a replacement part in the prehistoric mammal, however, it is
necessary to roll a 3 to get blubber before rolling a 6 to get baleen! Also, both forelimbs and
hind limbs are replaced together. The whales have evolved so they do not need hind limbs, but
there are still vestigial bones that have no purpose in the whales of today.
54
Game pieces:
Prehistoric fur animal and parts.
Whale and parts.
(See previous photo for placement of
vestigial hind limbs and baleen).
Extensions:
The following links are great video resources to show students when presenting this lab:
http://www.nature.com/nature/videoarchive/ancientwhale/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cn0kf8mhS4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6GpnbX0jNM&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKzeorIrSKU&feature=related
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CIBT Whale Kit
Student Worksheet
Activity 10 – Land to Sea: A Whale Evolution Game
How do animals adapt to their environments and
change over time? Scientists who study this try to
understand the process of evolution.
1. What is your definition of evolution?
2. The evolution of whales is very unique because whales
moved from land to the sea. What is the closest living
relative of whales still living on land today?
Using the fossil record, we can see how the body parts of whales gradually changed
to adapt to life in the water. For example, whales gave up walking and started
swimming. They had to figure out how to breathe better at the surface of the ocean.
They had to learn how to hunt and eat their food in different ways.
Goal of the Game: The first person or team to “evolve” a prehistoric mammal to a
modern whale wins!
Materials for each team:
- 5 yellow game cards
- dice
- body pieces:
Prehistoric Mammal
Modern Whale
(already put together)
Whale body (gray)
Fur body
Whale head
Fur forelimb (front leg)
Whale flipper
Fur hind limb (back leg)
Whale fluke
Fur head
Whale blubber
Fur tail
Whale vestigial hind leg bone
Whale baleen (shared by 2 teams)
57
How to play:
1. Start in a group with two teams. Each team begins with a prehistoric furry
mammal that is already put together.
2. To decide which team starts the game, roll the dice. The highest number gets
to begin the game.
3. One person from the starting team now rolls the dice. Each number of the dice
represents a yellow game card. Game cards are numbered 1 to 5 using dice
pictures in upper left corner.
4. Read the card that corresponds to the number on the dice that you just rolled.
Imagine you are moving from land to water in order to live. Discuss with your
teammates:
What adaptations would you need?
What body part should you replace on the furry mammal body?
(The answers to the questions are on the back of the yellow game card,
but you should try to answer the questions before checking the back.)
5. Use the whale body part pieces to replace the correct body part on the
prehistoric furry mammal. The prehistoric furry mammal is beginning to
adapt to life in the ocean. It is beginning to evolve!
6. Take turns back and forth rolling the dice. If you roll a number that you have
already rolled, skip your team’s turn. You need to roll 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. Skip
your team’s turn if you roll a 6 before you have rolled 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.
7. Once your team has rolled 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, your modern whale is almost
evolved. Keep taking turns until one team finally rolls a 6. The first team to
roll a 6 yells “Baleen!” and wins the game.
8. A small baleen piece can be attached to the winning team’s whale.
In the space below, list what changes had to occur as the prehistoric furry
mammal evolved into a modern baleen whale:
58
Unit 3: Feeding Strategies
Baleen Whales
Whales in the sub-order Mysticeti (like blue whales, fin whales, right whales, humpback
whales, minke whales, and gray whales) do not have teeth in their mouths, but instead have
hundreds of baleen plates rooted in their upper jaw in a horseshoe or U-shape. (No baleen plates
attach to the lower jaw!) These plates are made out of the same protein as our hair and nails, called
“keratin”. Baleen plates are extremely durable and hard when dry, but are much softer in a whale’s
mouth (like when your hair gets wet vs. when it is dry).
Baleen whales use their plates like the holes of a strainer. They take a large amount of
water and fish into their mouths (expanding throat pleats, if they have them). Then, they close
their mouths and use their tongues to squirt the water out between the plates. All the tiny fish and
other whale food (like plankton or krill) get trapped on the fringed edges of the baleen plates. The
whale then licks its food out of the fringes and swallows everything whole!
(You can have students imagine they are eating a bowl of cereal. Tell them they have a spoonful
of milk and cereal. They put the spoonful into their mouths, close their jaw, and then squirt all the
milk out between the spaces in their teeth using their tongues. The cereal is left behind for eating!
In the Feeding Strategies Lab, students can practice this using cake sprinkles and water. Parents
will love you for these little ideas…)
There are two basic feeding strategies that baleen whales use: gulping and skimming.
These techniques are described in Activity 12 – Feeding Strategies Lab.
Baleen comes in all shapes and sizes depending on the size of the species and what it eats.
Right whales, for example, have baleen measuring five or more feet tall, but the fringe is as fine as
human hair because right whales only eat tiny zooplankton and small marine crustaceans called
copepods. Humpback whales have coarser baleen because they primarily eat larger prey items,
like small sand lance (pencil-size, and eel-like), krill (larger marine crustaceans), and even small
herring. Their baleen feels like thick broom bristles. Minke whales are much smaller baleen
whales and their baleen is short (around a half a foot long) and its texture is intermediate between
fine right whale baleen and coarse humpback whale baleen.
Some Unique Baleen Whale Feeding Strategies
Lunge feeding: whales actively surge up through the water to gulp down large patches of fish.
Bubble clouds: humpback whales have a special feeding technique whereby they blow a big cloud
of bubbles from underneath a school of bait fish. The bubble scare the fish into a tight ball
and the whale comes up through the bubbles to eat the ball of fish.
Bubble net: humpback whales also use a more complicated bubble-feeding strategy in which they
blow little puffs of bubbles in an elegant spiral, called a bubble net. These bubble nets are
often used for group feeding, because they are much larger than individual bubble clouds.
Kick feeding: humpback whales also sometimes forcefully hit the water near a school of fish with
their powerful tail flukes to scare the fish into a ball or to possibly stun the fish.
Bottom feeding: the only baleen whale to use this technique is the gray whale (or grey whale).
These whales feed on small crustaceans that are buried in the sand and sediment on the sea
floor. Gray whales dive down to the bottom and sift through the sediments to suck up food.
59
Toothed Whales
Toothed whales (sperm whales, beaked whales, belugas, narwhals), dolphins (which
included killer whales), and porpoises have sharp teeth for hunting underwater. Whale teeth are
very strong and durable, and were once prized for ivory carving in the days of whaling. Check out
the killer whale and sperm whale tooth replicas in the kit!
Much like there are different types of baleen, toothed whales have different teeth from one
another. See Activity 11 – Whale Teeth. Most toothed whales and dolphins have cone-shaped
teeth on both their upper and lower jaws. Sperm whales are an exception to this, having teeth only
on their lower jaw. Beaked whales have teeth that curl up out of their mouth and look like small
tusks on the sides of their faces. Narwhals have an extremely large tooth that resembles a unicorn
horn.
Teeth are useful for classifying dolphins vs. porpoises. Unlike dolphins, porpoises have
spade-shaped teeth, not classic cone-shaped teeth.
Toothed whales are dominant predators in the sea, eating all types of fish, and even birds,
seals, and squid. The sperm whale is capable of hunting Giant Squid, which live thousands of feet
down in the deep, dark oceans.
Some Toothed Whale Feeding Strategies
Echolocation: All known species of toothed whales use echolocation to find their food. (This is the
same way bats find food, too!) They send out sound waves from the rounded part of their
head, called the melon (See Unit 1: Whale Diversity and Anatomy). These sound waves
then travel through the water until they hit an obstacle, which could be another whale, a
fish, a boat, a rock, etc. The sound waves then reflect off this surface and return to the
whale that sent them. The whale receives the reflected waves with its jaw, which is
connected to its ear canals and its brain. In this way, toothed whales use sound to “see”
what is in the underwater world around them and especially to find food.
Group feeding: Toothed whales often travel in tight knit family or social groups, called pods.
These pods are often families of related individuals, and help each other hunt in packs (like
wolves!).
Killer whale hunting: Killer whales are extraordinary predators. They are often the only predators
capable of attacking and killing other whales. They also eat penguins and seals, which are
much too large for other toothed whales. A very special technique used by only a few
groups of killer whales in the whole world is known as “beach hunting”. These whales
intentionally swim up onto the shore (very dangerous if they get trapped in the sand!) and
pull seals right off the beach to eat them! Wow! Killer whales can also splash seals and
penguins right off floating icebergs in order to eat them.
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http://www.coastalstudies.org/what-we-do/stellwagen-bank/baleen-whales.htm
The images above show a cross-section through the head of a generalized
baleen whale where the baleen appears yellow, pink areas are the tongue and
associated muscles, and black dots represent food items. Water and food pour into
the mouth as the mouth is opened (left). The mouth is then shut part way, the tongue
is expanded to push out the water, and food items, unable to escape through the
baleen, are trapped (right).
Baleen plates in action:
Diagram of a fin whale gulping water:
(Notice how its throat or ‘ventral’ pleats expand!)
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/loom/2009/11/24/the-origin-of-big/
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Food chains are networks of organisms that depend on each other for energy to live.
All energy that flows through the food chain starts with sunlight. From there, energy is
passed along through different plants and animals. Can you finish the arrows to show
which direction the energy is flowing between organisms on this ocean food chain?
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Food chains are networks of organisms that depend on each other for energy to live.
All energy that flows through the food chain starts with sunlight. From there, energy is
passed along through different plants and animals. Can you finish the arrows to show
which direction the energy is flowing between organisms on this ocean food chain?
64
CIBT Whale Kit
Teacher Section
Activity 11 – Whale Teeth
Objective:
Examine replicas of a sperm whale tooth and a killer whale tooth (included in CIBT kit).
Sperm Whale Tooth:
Sperm whales, the largest species of toothed whale, have teeth only in their lower (bottom)
jawbone. They primarily consume giant squid in the deepest depths of the world’s oceans.
Killer Whale Tooth:
Killer whales, like most other toothed whales and dolphins, have teeth on both their upper
and lower jaws. Their teeth are pointed and cone-shaped, (as opposed to the teeth of
porpoises, which are spade-shaped). Killer whales hunt for fish, seals, penguins, and even
other whales. They are considered to be the top predators in many ocean food webs.
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66
CIBT Whale Kit
Teacher Section
Activity 12 – Feeding Strategies Lab
Activity adapted from:
http://www.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/school_programs/whales/pdfs/t-activities-all-2.pdf
Objective: Students will understand the differences between feeding in toothed whales and baleen
whales.
Background: Different species of whales use different techniques to hunt and eat different types
of prey. There are two basic types of feeding strategies:
Toothed whales (scientific order: Odontoceti), such as killer and sperm whales, hunt large prey
such as fish and squid, which they seize with their teeth. Of the 78 species of cetaceans in the
world, 67 have teeth.
Baleen whales (scientific order: Mysticeti) have no teeth. They feed on small organisms in the
water such as crustaceans (krill and copepods) or small fish such as herring, sardines, and sand
lance, which they filter out of the water with sieve-like baleen plates (pictured below). Only 11
species of cetaceans are baleen whales, including humpbacks, grays and blues.
Baleen whales have two basic feeding strategies: gulping and skimming. A gulper (called a
rorqual) feeds by gulping a huge amount of water containing plankton or small fish into its
pleated throat, which bulges out to hold an incredible volume. After taking in this great mouthful –
or throatful – the whale raises its tongue and forces the water out through sieve-like baleen plates
that hang down from its upper jaw. The food is caught in the baleen and, once the water is
removed, the whale licks the baleen clean and swallows the food. Some whales may also raise
their heads out of the water and let gravity do the work of straining the water through the baleen.
Other baleen whales are skimmers. They swim close to the surface with their mouths open and sift
plankton from the water that enters their mouth with their baleen.
Above: the fringed edge of baleen plates
67
The gray whale, a baleen whale, feeds on the seafloor and is not considered a gulper or a skimmer.
Pressing one side of its head (usually the right side) against the bottom, a gray whale sucks up a
large amount of mud and sand. Using its tongue, it pushes the mud, water and food through its
baleen plates. The mud and water pass through, and the food, mostly small crustaceans, is trapped
in the baleen. Gray whales leave characteristic pits in the bottom of the ocean where they have
been feeding. They tend to feed closer to shore and in shallower water than other baleen whales.
Toothed whales hunt larger animals, such as fish and squid, which they capture with their teeth.
Sperm whales will dive deeper than two kilometers below the surface for up to 90 minutes to catch
their favorite food, giant squid. Sailors have told many stories of battles between sperm whales
and giant squid. These “battles” are usually just the writhing of the squid in a vain attempt to
escape the jaws of the whale.
There are three types of killer whales: residents, transients and offshore. Residents tend to stay in
the same general area; transients travel more widely, moving up and down the coast and passing
through areas inhabited by resident pods; and offshore killer whales inhabit the open ocean, far
from shore. Residents live in pods of 6 to 50, while transients form smaller pods of 5 whales.
Resident killer whales eat fish, while transients feed on marine mammals such as seals, sea lions
and even other whales.
Materials: CIBT kit provides materials for 6 groups. Each group should get:
- 1 plastic Tupperware tray
- 1 pair of metal tongs
- 1 colored comb
- 1 pastry brush
Not included in CIBT kit, each group needs:
- 1 small handful of carrot slices (pieces of pasta also work)
- 2 tsp. parsley flakes
- 1 tsp. ground pepper
Procedure:
1. Using the background information above, introduce the two types of whales: baleen whales
and toothed whales.
2. Divide class into 6 groups.
3. Give each group a plastic Tupperware tray, pair of metal tongs, colored comb, and pastry
brush. Explain that the tongs represent whale teeth, and that the comb and pastry brush
represent two types of baleen: coarse baleen and fine baleen, respectively. Some baleen
whales, like humpbacks and blue whales, eat larger crustaceans (krill) or small fish
(herring) and therefore have thicker, coarser baleen to filter these prey items. Other baleen
whales, like right whales and bowhead whales, feed exclusively on tiny copepods and
zooplankton, and have baleen as fine as human hair.
4. Fill plastic trays with water. Give students the carrot slices, parsley flakes, and pepper.
5. Have students sprinkle pepper in their tray of water. The pepper represents small
zooplankton and copepods. Ask students to experiment with the tongs, comb and pastry
brush. Which tool collects pepper better?
6. Next, drop a few carrot pieces into the container. The carrot pieces should sink to the
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bottom. They represent larger fish and other big prey animals. For example, killer whales
use teeth to catch salmon, penguins, seals, (and even other whales!). Have students
experiment with the brush, comb and tongs. Which collects carrots better? (Note: pasta
pieces also work for this step, but make sure they sink.)
7. Repeat with parsley flakes to represent krill. Which instrument collects parsley better?
8. Students should fill the Data Table provided in the Activity 12 Student Worksheet (pg.
71) and answer the follow-up questions.
9. During clean-up you may want to put a screen or strainer in the sink to catch the parsley
flakes and carrots so they don’t clog the drain.
Teaching Questions:
How much do baleen whales eat in one day?
This varies depending on the size of the whale. It is estimated that they eat 4% of their
body weight per day. Blue whales eat up to 8,000 lbs per day and it may take as much as 2,200 lbs
of food to fill a blue whale’s stomach.
What is baleen made of?
Keratin, the same protein that our fingernails and hair are made of. Baleen whales never
“lose their teeth”, instead their baleen wears down – like the ends of an old broom – and
continues growing from where it is attached in their upper jaw.
What are krill? Plankton? Crustacea?
Krill are shrimp-like marine crustaceans. Plankton (comes from Greek word “planktos”
which means drifting) are the base of the marine food chain. Phytoplankton are plant plankton,
photosynthesizing in surface waters. Zooplankton are animal plankton, usually various larva or
other extremely small marine invertebrates that cannot swim under their own power. Crustacea is
a large group of arthropods (relatives of insects) that includes lobster, shrimp, krill, and
copepods.
Can whales drink salt water? No, just like humans and other mammals, salt water is bad for
whales to swallow. Whales filter out all the salt water and get freshwater from their food.
Is the blue whale, the largest whale, a toothed or baleen whale? A baleen whale.
What are some characteristics besides teeth/baleen that differentiate these two groups of whales?
Baleen whales tend to be solitary, although occasionally gather in groups to feed and
migrate. They also have two blowholes right next to each other. Female baleen whales are
generally larger than the males of the same species.
Toothed whales include all dolphins and porpoises, as well as killer whales, sperm whales,
belugas, and narwhals. They grab their food with their teeth and swallow it whole. They only have
one blowhole. Male toothed whales are generally larger than the females.
What would be an advantage of toothed whales traveling in pods?
They are extraordinary predators and help each other hunt in packs similar to wolves.
69
Optional extensions:
1. Have students pretend they are baleen whales.
Give each student a cup with a small amount of water. Add “krill” (cake decoration
sprinkles). Tell them to strain the “krill” from the water, just like a whale: fill your mouth
with water, close your teeth together, and squirt the water through your teeth into the cup
(back into the ocean). The “krill” will remain on the back of your teeth. Students can use
their tongues to lick off the “krill” from their teeth and swallow it, just like a whale with
baleen.
Alternate version: A spoonful of milk and Cheerios works the same way!
2. Use the following food items and have students determine if they would need baleen or
teeth to eat them: cake sprinkles, vegetables, spaghetti, alphabet soup, bread, noodles,
peanut butter sandwich, hot dogs, whole fruit, sunflower seeds.
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CIBT Whale Kit
Student Worksheet
Activity 12 – Feeding Strategies Lab
How do different whales eat their food?
What are the two major types of whales based on how they catch and eat their food?
Fill in the table below.
Two major types
of whales:
Describe how
each type catches
its food:
What kinds of
prey does each
type eat for food?
Give at least two
examples of each
type of whale:
In the lab:
1. Which tool was best at picking up the pepper (plankton)?
2. Which tool was best at picking up the carrot pieces (fish)?
3. Which tool was best at picking up the parsley (krill)?
4. In a marine food web, are whales carnivores or herbivores?
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Whale Food Represented in the Feeding Strategies Lab
72
Ground Pepper
represents:
Zooplankton (copepods)
Parsley Flakes
represent:
Krill
Carrot Pieces
represent:
Large fish (tuna)
Unit 4: Life Cycle and Reproduction
A whale’s life cycle can be divided into three general stages: baby stage, juvenile stage
(adolescence), and adulthood. There is no rule as to how old a whale will be when it reaches a
particular stage; this varies from species to species.
Whale babies are usually born in warmer waters associated with the species’ breeding
grounds. Breeding grounds are unique areas that a population of whales will return to each year in
order to mate and give birth. Breeding grounds, however, often do not have adequate food
resources. Whales on these breeding grounds may have to survive months without eating anything,
and must live off their blubber reserves.
When the baby whale, called a calf, is only a few months old, it often makes a long
migration with its mother, called a cow, to feeding grounds in colder waters (See Activity 13 –
North Atlantic Right Whale Migration Route). These colder waters are rich with nutrients and
plenty of food for the whales. The whale mother spends most of her time on the feeding grounds
either actively eating or searching for food. She must regain enough weight and improve her
nutrition in order to be able to suckle her baby with milk. A whale mother’s milk can be as much
as 30% milk fat (the consistency of cottage cheese)!
Baleen whale calves usually spend only one or two years with their mothers, before
venturing off on their own. Toothed whales, especially those living in social groups called pods,
have much closer-knit family associations. Toothed whales form matrilineal clans whereby a
dominant whale mother keeps her children with her for years. Juvenile females will stay with the
pod longer, (even for their whole lives). Juvenile males may separate from the group to find other
mating opportunities.
Whales reach sexual maturity anywhere between 5 and 10 years of age. Courtship and
mating is usually a very casual (and sometimes dangerous!) event. Humpback whale males, called
bulls, actively fight each other and charge after a female. Injuries may result. Humpback whales,
like many whale species, do not mate for life. A humpback whale mother may have calves once
every two or three years, each time with a different male. The calves will never know their fathers.
Whale mothers raise calves by themselves, or with help from other pod members if available.
This slow reproductive rate – an interbirth interval of two to three years between calves –
is one of the reasons many of the endangered large whale populations are so slow to rebound even
decades after the worldwide ban on whaling. Whales cannot reproduce fast enough to increase
their populations.
Scientists believe that the large whales can live to be well over 50 years old and may be
more than 100 years, but no one knows how old most species live to be for sure! It is nearly
impossible to follow a whale for its entire life. We have not studied any individual whale in the
wild long enough to track it from birth to a natural death.
73
74
CIBT Whale K
Teacher Section
Activity 13 – North Atlantic Right Whale Migration Route
Objectives: Use the migration route of North Atlantic Right Whales to teach students how to
locate cities and landmarks on a map of the East Coast of the United States, and discuss why
animals need to make long-distance migrations.
75
76
Unit 5: Behavior and Communication
Family Structure and Pods
As described in Unit 4: Life Cycle and Reproduction, baleen whales do not have close
family associations and primarily travel alone or with a first-year calf. Toothed whales, on the
other hand, form strong bonds and travel together in social groups called “pods”. These pods may
be as small as five members, and can increase to the level of “super pods” with hundreds of
individuals. Pods cooperate to feed and raise young. They can develop their own specialized
behaviors and communication strategies, like unique dialects. Pods often surface to take a breath
all together, and then dive back down in unison.
Surfacing Behaviors and Diving Styles
Each species of whale has a characteristic surfacing behavior and diving style. Some
species rise slowly to the surface and take many slow deep breaths. Others are only at the surface
for a few seconds before they dive under again. The smaller species, (dolphins, porpoises, and
even the minke whale), fall into the latter category. Sperm whales and beaked whales are record
holders for some of the longest and deepest dives. Sperm whales can hold their breath for an hour
and a half and can reach depths nearly two miles down!
Surface behaviors can be used to identify whale species. For example, a right whale has a
very distinct V-shaped spout at the surface. Blue whales have a single spout which can rise over
30 feet into the air.
Whale species vary in their diving approaches as well. Dolphins and some large whales,
like the fin whale and minke whale, do not have to lift their flukes out of the water before diving.
Humpback whales, right whales, and sperm whales arch their back and do lift up their tail flukes.
(Reference the Surfacing Behaviors and Diving Styles handout in this unit.)
Acrobatics
Whales also have a number of dramatic display behaviors at the surface. Breaching is
perhaps the most famous whale behavior. A “breach” occurs when a whale throws part or all of its
body out of the water. Various different kinds of breaching (tail breaching, chin breaching, and
full breaching) are observed. Students should be made aware that breaching is a rare behavior and
that scientists are not entirely sure why whales breach. Some theories include:
Communication: landing back in the water after breaching makes a loud splash that can be heard
by other whales in the area
Exfoliation: landing on the water may help remove parasites or allow the whale to get rid of dead
or irritating skin cells
Play or Exercise: maybe jumping out of the water is just a fun, energetic display
Aggression: a loud dramatic display may serve as a warning for other whales to stay clear or backoff during a fight between two individuals
Looking Around: jumping out of the water may allow whales to see what is going on above the
surface.
77
Use Activity 14 – Whale Behavior Matching Worksheet to introduce students to various
behaviors. Two sets of 17 Whale Behavior Cards are included in the CIBT Whale Kit for students
to pass around, and an accompanying Whale Behavior Card PowerPoint can be found on the
Whale Kit Reference CD.
Students can further experiment with these whale behaviors and how to make messages
with movements during Activity 15 – Humpback Whale: The Great Communicator of the
Sea.
Communication
Whale communication is still a massive mystery to scientists. We know that whales have
complex vocalization patterns, including specific dialects, and maybe even unique languages.
However, it is very hard to study whale sounds because we cannot hear them above the surface of
the water. No one has decoded whale language yet, but it is an active area of research!
Humpback whales, for example, make incredible mating calls, called “songs”. The
humpback song changes every year, adding new elements, changing the pitch or tone of parts of
the song, and varying in duration.
Toothed whales primarily communicate using a series of clicks and whistles that are high
pitched and can be heard by humans. They produce these sounds for use in echolocation, but also
to contact one another.
Killer whales in particular have fascinating communication systems. Resident populations
off the coast of Vancouver, British Columbia have been found with dialects unique to each pod.
Trained researchers can tell which pods are in the area just by listening to underwater microphone
recordings.
The biggest whales, like the blue and fin whale, are capable of communicating over
extreme distances – entire ocean basins! It is rumored that a blue whale on the eastern side of the
Atlantic Ocean (by England, let’s say) can contact another blue whale all the way in Long Island
Sound! This is because the sounds produced by the largest whales are extremely low frequency,
well below the range of human hearing. Low frequency sounds are capable of traveling well in
water and over long distances without losing sound energy.
Experts have yet to determine if different species of whales can communicate with each
other, but it is entirely possible that whales can do this. Humpback whale ears, for instance, are
capable of hearing a very wide range of sound frequencies that are used by other species for
communication.
78
WHALE SURFACING AND DIVING BEHAVIOR
http://www.environment.gov.au/coasts/species/cetaceans/whale-watching/identificaiton.html
Each species of whale behaves differently at the surface of the water when they come up to breathe and before they dive underwater.
For example, right whales have a V-shaped blow. Some whales, like humpbacks and sperm whales, lift their tail flukes out of the water.
What other differences do you notice?
79
80
CIBT Whale Kit
Teacher Section
Activity 14 – Whale Behavior Matching Worksheet
Objective: Students will be able to identify and describe various whale behaviors.
Materials: (provided in CIBT kit)
- “Whales in the Wild II” DVD: go to “Humpback Whales” to see clips of each behavior
- Whale Behavior Cards PowerPoint on the Whale Kit Reference CD
- Whale Behavior Cards (2 sets of 17 cards provided)
- Act out behaviors using Felt Flippers and Fluke
- Copy the Student Worksheet on next page (pg. 82)
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CIBT Whale Kit
Student Worksheet
Activity 14 – Whale Behavior Matching Worksheet
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CIBT Whale Kit
Teacher Section
Activity 15 – Whale Behavior and Communication Activities
Source:
The following activities are adapted from the resources available at:
http://www.dosits.org/resources/
Background:
How do people communicate with sound? We can either use our voices, or we can make
sounds with body movements and/or instruments. We communicate with each other mostly on
land, while animals in the ocean must communicate with each other underwater. How do whales,
like the humpback whale, communicate with sound? They communicate using vocalizations and
by making sounds with body movements. Humpback whales are capable of communicating with
other whales miles and miles away!
Objectives:
Students will:
1. Participate in the introductory class discussion questions (see next page).
2. Grades 4-8: Write down answers to questions on the Background Research Report on
Humpback Whales Worksheet (pg. 88).
3. View the DVD: "Whales in the Wild II: New England Whale Watching Highlights". (included
in the CIBT Whale Kit)
4. Choreograph a message movement phrase in a student pod in the Humpback Whale: The
Great Communicator of the Sea Activity (pg. 89-91).
5. Perform the message movement phrase in front of an audience in the Humpback Whale: The
Great Communicator of the Sea Activity.
6. Compare message movement phrases between pods in the Humpback Whale: The Great
Communicator of the Sea Activity.
7. Read Some Theories About Whale Behavior at the end of this Teacher Section (pg. 87).
8. Listen to a variety of sounds heard underwater in the ocean with the Underwater Sound
Guessing Game PowerPoint. (file located on Whale Kit Reference CD)
83
Introductory class discussion questions:
1. How do people use sound to communicate? Brainstorm ideas on board.
We can use our bodies as instruments.
We can use our voice. We can talk. We can sing. Give example of singers.
We can also use our hands and feet to make sound. We can clap our hands, beat hands on
chest, or stomp our feet.
We can do combinations of clap hands, stomp feet, beat hands on chest, and/or use our
voice at the same time.
2. How can we use one type of sound to mean different things? Brainstorm ideas on board.
We can repeat that pattern of sound over and over again.
We can add a rhythm and a pitch in a sequence to create a melody of the sound.
We can change our tone of voice.
We can add gestures.
3. What would we want to communicate with all these sounds?
Discuss: messages, greetings, getting attention, warnings, thoughts, etc.
“Where is there water or food?”
“How do I get to…?”
“You are on my turf!”
“Is any one out there?”
4. Do we always understand the sounds that we are communicating to each other?
Say: “Ti kanete” Pause. (Greek for “How are you?”)
Say: “Come sta” Pause. (Italian for “How are you?”)
Say: “Comment allez-vous” Pause. (French for “How are you?”)
Say: “Que pasa” Pause. (Spanish for “What's happening?”)
Say: “Aloha kaua” Pause. (Hawaiian for “Greetings” or “May there be friendship
between us.”)
What did I just say to you? Did you understand any of the words? Translate and discuss.
5. What if we just did a movement or gesture with our body?
Demonstrate a “hi” wave. Ask: What does it mean?
We can add our voice to it and say “Hello”, “Bonjour,” “Kalimera,” etc.
Demonstrate a “bye” wave. Ask: Does it mean the same as a “hi” wave in our culture?
Demonstrate shaking hands. Ask: What message am I communicating? Can I add a
sequence of sounds to it?
Shake hands and say “Hello, how are you?” at the same time. Now what am I saying?
Demonstrate a slight bow. What message am I communicating? Can I add a sound
sequence to it? Now what am I saying?
Make a knocking sound. What message am I communicating now?
6. In what cultures do we find any of these movements? Brainstorm.
We might not always understand the sounds that are being communicated to us. Why?
Sounds whether vocalized or made with our bodies mean different things to different
people in different cultures.
84
7. How can we use any of these sounds to communicate with someone else far away? What if the
person was 1 mile away, 3 miles away, 10 miles away or 50 miles away? Brainstorm
8. How did people in various cultures around the world communicate 1 mile, 2 miles, 10 miles
away from each other with sound before the Industrial Age (no post offices, phones, or email)?
They could use drums, drum rocks, sticks, bells, whistles, blowing through horns or hollow
branches, gongs, smoke signals, etc…
Any or all of the above questions can open up dialogue and discussion with your class
about how humans communicate with sound. These concepts and questions can be modified for
various grade levels and student needs (i.e. ESL, etc.).
Introductory research project: (Grades 4-8)
Have students research the behavior and characteristics of the humpback whale using the
Background Research Report on Humpback Whales Worksheet (pg. 88). They will research
the anatomy of the humpback whale, how they produce sound through vocalization and
movement, the oceans in which they live, their migration patterns, etc.
Introductory visual aids: (materials included in the CIBT Whale Kit)
After setting up the background for humans communicating with sound (above discussion
questions), introduce humpback whale movements and sounds using the Whale Behavior Cards
or the “Whales in the Wild II” DVD. The Whale Behavior Cards PowerPoint and
Underwater Sound Guessing Game PowerPoint are included on the Whale Kit Reference CD
and can be used here as well, or as a wrap-up to this activity. Review any research gathered by the
students on the anatomy, behavior, and life history characteristics of the humpback whale.
Teacher Notes for Humpback Whale: The Great Communicator of the Sea Activity:
A common question that comes up after watching the DVD and observing the different
behaviors is “Why do the whales act this way?”. Scientists are not certain for what reasons whales
do the behaviors outlined in these activities. Usually scientists ask themselves how the behavior
contributes to the animal’s survival. Ask your students what whales might want to communicate to
each other to ensure their survival. For example: danger, plentiful food, “I am here”, warm waters,
follow me, etc.
It should be noted that whales have not been easy animals to study due to their size and an
environment that is inaccessible to humans. Underwater technologies such as satellite tags,
acoustic monitoring buoys, waterproof biopsy sampling, etc., have only been used in the last 15
years. Based on the whale life history, environment, and survival, scientists rely heavily on
inference to figure out how whales communicate with different behaviors. These behaviors have
evolved through time, so the assumption is that they have been used to improve the survival of the
species.
85
Important!
This activity should be presented to the students as if they are the whales trying to
communicate the phrase they are given to other whales. (i.e. “How would I communicate this
message if I were a whale?”, not “How do real whales communicate this message?”) There are no
“right” answers.
Procedure:
Before having the students begin the Activity 15 – Humpback Whale: The Great
Communicator of the Sea, demonstrate a message movement phrase for students. Then ask:
What am I trying to say with my body? What is the message? Write the message on the board.
Teach the message movement phrase to the students and have them practice it.
Following the instructions on the Student Worksheet (pg. 89-90), each group (“pod”) of
students will get one message to communicate. Suggested messages are listed below. Write
messages on index cards distribute one to each pod. The complete list of possible messages can be
given to the students (i.e. written on the board) while they are guessing the messages of the other
groups to make the game easier and more accessible. Older groups of students may want to create
their own phrase to communicate and not want to use the messages provided.
The students can review and practice some of the behaviors from the Whale Behavior
PowerPoint and Cards with the felt flippers and fluke provided in the CIBT Whale Kit. Each
pod can also use the flippers and fluke when students act out the message movement phrases. Use
the blue fabric provided in the CIBT kit to create a water level. This makes it easier to
demonstrate surface behaviors, like jumping out of the water.
The process of peer review is the final element to this activity. Each pod should present the
first edition of their message movement phrase to at least one other group, or to the whole class.
Have the other students guess the presenting pod’s message. Then, the other students should
provide feedback to the presenting pod. The pod will use these suggestions to adjust their message
accordingly. Afterwards, all pods will perform their final message movement phrases for the class.
How well did each pod incorporate the peer review suggestions?
List of Possible Messages:
I FOUND FOOD
SHARK! DANGER!
BOAT AHEAD
TIME TO MIGRATE
WATCH OUT FOR FISHING NETS
NEED TO BREATHE
FOLLOW ME
I WANT TO PLAY
LOOK ABOVE THE SURFACE
DON’T MESS WITH ME!
WARM WATER
MOTHER FINDING A BABY
Vocabulary for Activity 15:
message movement phrase: in dance, a movement phrase is a sequence of steps having a
beginning, middle and end. The students will create a sequence of steps depicting the
86
movements of humpback whales with a beginning, middle and end. The movement phase will
express a non-verbal message.
pod: group of animals that swim, travel and work together as a team, such as dolphins.
Humpback whales do not travel in pods. But for these activities, the word pod rather than team
appears to be more appropriate.
Optional extensions for upper grade levels:
Experiment with communicating different messages amongst another pod. Try to have an
entire conversation (full sentences or scenarios that they may like to narrate!) using different
movements (don’t limit yourself to known whale behaviors). No talking among the animals
allowed! Have each pod write down what it thinks the other pod was communicating. Then come
back together and see how well you did decoding the other pod’s message.
Some Theories About Whale Behavior:
Killer whales are known to travel from cold northern waters to warm tropical waters so they can
exfoliate. They have been observed rubbing on pebbles located on the ocean bottom to facilitate
this process.
Killer whales swim up on shore to catch seals and then wiggle their way back to the water (some
good YouTube videos on this). This is very dangerous for the whales because they can die if they
get trapped in the sand.
Sperm whales, a toothed whale that forms pods, have been observed to spend a few hours a day
after feeding at the surface of the water just hanging out with each other. Sperm whales dive deep
and catch giant squid, an activity that the young calves are not ready to participate in. Scientists
theorize that this “group bonding” behavior ensures that there will always be responsible adults at
the surface “babysitting” the calves while the mothers dive.
Sperm whales are estimated to live to around 60 years old. They do not start calving until around
age 20, then have one calf approximately every 5 years. At 40, the calving rate slows down, but
the older females are still valued in the pod as they have a much greater knowledge of the ocean
than the younger females. These older females might know the best migration routes or the
location of prime feeding grounds better than the younger pod members.
Humpback whales are usually solitary creatures. They do not form pods or travel frequently with
other whales, unless a mom has a new baby. Humpback females with their calves observed in
Hawaii however, are sometimes “escorted” by a male humpback. This escort male is believed to
be protecting the mother and calf from other aggressive males.
87
CIBT Whale Kit
Student Worksheet
Activity 15 – Background Research Report on Humpback Whales
Record your findings on a separate sheet of paper
1. How big are humpback whales?
2. Compare their size to another animal or thing.
3. How do they move?
4. Describe these special behaviors and movements they use to communicate:
a. lobtailing
b. pectoral fin slapping (flipper slapping)
c. breaching
5. What are some of the possible reasons scientists say they produce sound with these movements?
6. How do they hear?
7. How do they vocalize (produce songs)?
8. How do they see? Which sense is stronger their sight or hearing?
9. Describe how they eat through their mouths.
10. Describe how they breathe.
11. Describe their diving capabilities.
12. Describe their migration patterns.
13. Where in the world can they be found?
14. Describe any special characteristics. (For example, their dorsal fin or tail flukes.)
15. Write a minimum five-paragraph report on your research.
88
CIBT Whale Kit
Student Worksheet
Activity 15 – Humpback Whale: The Great Communicator of the Sea
Name ____________________________ Date ____________________ Class _______________
Background:
How do people communicate with sound? We can either use our voices, or we can make
sounds with body movements and/or instruments. We communicate with each other mostly on
land, while animals in the ocean must communicate with each other underwater. How do whales,
like the humpback whale, communicate with sound? They communicate using vocalizations and
by making sounds with body movements. Humpback whales are capable of communicating with
other whales miles and miles away!
Choreographing Humpback Whale Message Movement Phrases
Humpback whales are known for their beautiful underwater songs, but scientists think that
whales use body movements to communicate as well. Each time a whale hits part of its body on
the surface of the water, it makes a loud noise that can be used to contact other whales in the area,
and maybe even whales miles away.
Some humpback whale behaviors that make sounds underwater are:
Breaching - when the whale throws part or all of its body out of the water. Such as,
Chin breach - when the whale throws its head out of the water)
Tail breach (also called peduncle slap) - when the whale throws its tail out of the water)
Full breach - when the whale throws its whole body out of the water)
Tail Slap - when a whale slaps its tail on the surface of the water once, very forcefully
Lobtailing and tail slapping - when a whale slaps its tail on the surface of the water
repeatedly
Flipper slapping - when a whale slaps its pectoral fin (its flipper) on the surface of the water
over and over
For this activity, you and your “pod” will create and choreograph a “message movement
phrase” based on the humpback whale behaviors listed above. After you create your message, use
your movements to communicate with another pod.
Procedure:
1. Working in pods of three or four students, each pod will be given a card with a message they
must communicate non-verbally to the other pods in the class. Brainstorm some other words
and ideas that are related to your card based on what you have learned about whales.
For example, if the message on your pod’s card is “Dive”,
you might think of the words “deep”, “dark”, and “hold your breath”.
My pod’s message is: ____________________________________________________________
89
Brainstorm: _______________________________
_________________________________
_______________________________
_________________________________
_______________________________
_________________________________
2. Pretending that you are a pod of whales, create body movements that will communicate the
message on your card. You may want to use a prop to represent a tail fluke or use two people to
create the head and the tail. You may also want to create some kind of noise or use an
instrument to represent the sound that some behaviors might make.
Remember: No one really knows how whales communicate using movements, so be creative!
Scientists are still trying to figure out what each behavior means. There is no right or wrong
answer in this activity.
3. Choreograph your movements, rearrange, and design them in any order or combination to
translate your written message. Remember, you can repeat movements.
4. Practice this “message movement phrase” as a pod.
5. Each pod will perform this message movement phrase to another pod, or the whole class.
6. Have the students from different pods guess what the original message was.
After they guess correctly, have the other students discuss your message movement phrase:
Does your message movement phrase express the original message well?
How should you change or rearrange your message movement phrase?
7. Meet back with your pod. Change parts of your message movement phrase if you need to.
8. Practice your final message movement phrase.
9. Perform your final message movement phrase in front of the whole class.
Answer in the space below:
What changes did you make? Was the message better understood the second time?
90
Follow-up questions:
1. Describe how you interpreted and translated the message movement phrases?
2. Were any movements performed by the different pods similar? If so, what were they?
3. Did a common movement - a common language - develop between the pods? Was there a
specific movement that two or more pods used to communicate the same thing? How or why do
you think this happened?
4. What was the most difficult part of creating and choreographing this message movement phrase
and why?
5. What was the most important thing you learned from this activity?
91
92
Unit 6: Conservation
Whales include some of the most endangered large mammals in the world. For hundreds of
years, whales were hunted by humans for their meat, bones, and blubber. The demand for blubber
to use in oil lamps in the 19th and early 20th centuries was enormous. Worldwide whale
populations were decimated during this whaling period, and numbers remain low today even
though whaling has been banned for decades. Whales are threatened directly and indirectly by
many different human activities.
Read each section below for links to teaching materials and suggested classroom activities.
Pollution
Pollution in our oceans is a major problem for whale species. Plastics, sewage, and other
debris litter the oceans. Many whale species are skim feeders, and unintentionally ingest these
harmful bits of trash while trying to get food at the surface. Chemical pollutants are also of grave
concern. Whale species like the killer whale and beluga are high on the predatory food chain. Any
chemicals that are absorbed by marine plants get magnified hundreds of times over (the term for
which is “bioaccumulation”) by the time the whales come along to eat large fish, penguins, and
seals. Toxic pollution levels in a whale’s body can cause sickness, disease, and death by poison.
Oil spills are also a well-known and deadly source of marine pollution. Thick layers of oil
prevent whales from getting adequate and clean air when they come up to the surface to breathe.
Oil gets in the gills of fish, and can poison the whales who eat the fish. Remnants of oil spills
remain in the ocean environment long after any noticeable effects on shore have been cleaned up.
Visit http://www.nwf.org/Oil-Spill/Effects-on-Wildlife/Mammals.aspx for information
about how oil spills affect marine mammals, including a 1-minute video which maps the dolphin
and whale deaths after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Visit http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/05/100521-science-environmentgulf-mexico-oil-spill-sperm-whales/ for information about sperm whale deaths in association with
the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
Noise pollution
Lately, new research has shown that whales are also affected by “noise pollution”, or
human sounds that fill the ocean so that whales cannot communicate with each other properly.
Large container ships and cruise liners have very loud engines and generators. The noises made by
ships might be unbearably loud to whales even though humans are not affected by the sounds
above water. Think of how noisy large planes are when they fly overhead.
Military sonar may also affect whales. Whales can become disoriented when exposed to
intense military underwater sound tests and submarine activities.
Visit http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/Aug12/RightWhales.html and also
http://news.discovery.com/animals/whales-scream-noise-pollution.html for a news stories on
North Atlantic Right Whales and noise pollution from shipping traffic off the coast of Boston,
Massachusetts.
93
Ship strikes
Besides shipping noise, boats pose additional threats to whales. Heavy metal hulls and
large propellers can easily kill a whale that cannot swim fast enough out of the way. Shipping
lanes into major coastal cities and ports often bring boats directly through the feeding or breeding
ground of endangered whale species. The Mediterranean Sea shipping lanes are especially busy
and dangerous for whales. Shipping lanes into Boston, Massachusetts have regulated speed limits
during times of the year when right whales are present. Slowing ships down reduces the injury to a
whale if it is accidentally hit. Recreational boaters can also maim and scar whale if they do not
follow proper boat handling guidelines when driving in areas with whales.
Visit http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/shipstrike/ for information on ship strike reduction.
Entanglements in fishing gear
Another potential threat to whales is entanglement in lines, nets, lobster pots, and other
gear associate with fishing. The fishing industry is booming worldwide and the oceans are being
ravaged over and over by the non-sustainable practices of major fishing companies. Whales cannot
always avoid areas with lines and nets, and can easily become wrapped in them, cutting their flesh
or trapping them underwater. If a whale cannot get to the surface to breathe, it will drown!
Fishermen do not intentionally catch whales in nets, but because fines for accidental “by-catch”
are so high, they often do not report entangled whales, and leave the whales to die in the gear.
Several research organizations around the world are now developing methods and training
whale rescuers to go out and cut gear off of whales that have become entangled. This is an
extremely dangerous, but lifesaving task.
Ibis: A True Whale Story by John Himmelman is a great book (included this CIBT
Whale Kit) to share with students regarding entanglements in fishing gear and a team effort to
save an entangled baby humpback whale.
Whaling
Worldwide whaling was banned by the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in 1985.
Under international law, humans are not allowed to kill and sell whale meat or other whale
products for profit. However, a few countries continue whaling practices, including Japan, Iceland,
and Finland. These countries exploit a scientific loophole in the IWC documents that permits
certain whaling activities for ‘scientific research’. However, most countries worldwide agree that
whale studies can be adequately performed without killing any whales.
For cultural reasons, some native tribes are allowed to kill a very limited number of whales
each year as part of ceremonial traditions. These groups use all parts of the whales they kill to feed
and provide for their local communities. Some whaling cultures include the people of the island of
Bequia in the Caribbean and the Inuit of Northern Alaska and Canada.
The next page (pg. 95) includes a table of population estimates for different whale species
pre- and post-whaling. Students could practice graphing or using fractions to quantify population
decline. Additionally, two slides are provided in this unit (pg. 96-97, and on the CIBT Whale Kit
Reference CD) which visually map the decline of Southern right whale populations.
94
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PRE-WHALING
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CURRENT
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97
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http://www.environment.ucla.edu/ctr/symposium/presentations/PDFs/thursday/Baker.pdf
98
Unit 7: Cultural Whale Tales
Whales are majestic creatures that have captivated people for centuries. Because they are
so elusive and their lives in the sea are such a mystery, many cultures have interesting whale
myths and legends that might be fun to share with students.
Below is a collection of tales compiled from Internet sources to read and discuss with students:
“Whale of a Tale” by ECHO (Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations)
Visit: http://www.echospace.org/articles/409/sections/1251
This website is a great resource providing storytelling guides for four different cultural
whale tales (listed below). Activities include videos of traditional storytellers recounting each
whale story, and other related links.
Hamumu the Whale Rider, a traditional Hawaiian tale
The Legend of Moshup, a Wampanoag legend from coastal Massachusetts
The Raven and the Whale, from Southeast Alaska
Whale Snow, an Inuit story about community and the importance of the bowhead whale
Narwhals and Unicorns
(from Europe in the Middle Ages)
Narwhals are small whales from the icy channels of Northern Canada and Northwestern
Greenland in the Arctic Ocean. Narwhals are sometimes called sea unicorns because of the
enormous tooth (or “tusk”) that grows from the upper jaw in males. Some scientists have
speculated that narwhal tusks, which can grow almost as long as 10 feet, might be enormous
sensory organs that can detect subtle changes in temperature and pressure.
Before Europeans became familiar with narwhals, unicorns were often described as having
horns in a variety of sizes, shapes and colors. In the Middle Ages however, Danish sailors and
other merchants from the North brought narwhal tusks to European markets, where buyers
considered them to be valuable, magical remains of elusive unicorns. From then on, nearly all
descriptions of unicorn horns are consistent: they are long, white and spiraled.
Many stories of unicorns refer to the magical properties of their horns, a claim first made
by a Greek physician named Ctesias more than 2,000 years ago. Those lucky enough to possess a
horn might take advantage of its wide range of healing properties, from detecting and neutralizing
poisons and curing fevers, to prolonging youth and acting as an aphrodisiac.
(Source: http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/mythiccreatures/land/unicorns.php)
Natsilane, a Tlingit legend about the origin of Killer Whales
(from the Pacific Northwest coast of North America)
In a time before there were any killer whales, there lived a very able sea lion hunter and a
highly skilled carver named Natsilane. He was from Kake and when he took as his wife the
daughter of a chief on Duke Island, he decided to live among her people. He was accepted into her
family and because he tried hard to prove himself, he soon had a place of honor as an
accomplished hunter and spear carver.
99
His desire to please won him the admiration of the youngest of his brothers-in-law, but the
oldest ones misunderstood his intentions and became jealous and so began to plot against him. The
men decided to get even with Natsilane on the day of the big seal hunt.
After much preparation, the day of the big hunt arrived and Natsilane along with his four
new brothers paddled their canoe toward West Devil Rock, out in the open straits. The wind was
blowing fiercely and the waves were high, but Natsilane was determined that the hunt would be
successful. When the canoe neared the rocks, he leaped toward shore and plunged his spear into
the nearest sea lion before it could escape. Unfortunately, the point broke off and the sea lion
slipped into the water. Worse yet, Natsilane saw that his brothers-in-law, over the fierce objections
of the youngest, were paddling away and abandoning him on the deserted island with no food or
weapons. Their betrayal stung him deeply and after a time, he pulled his cloak up over his head
and fell asleep.
Natsilane awoke the next morning to the sound of his name. He saw a sea lion that looked
like a man beckoning to him to go with him down beneath the waves into the Sea Lion's House. At
the great Sea Lion House, he met the chief of the sea lions who asked him if he could help his
injured son. Natsilane saw that the young lion had his spear point embedded in his body and with
some effort was able to remove it and the son was healed. The chief was very grateful and after
granting Natsilane even greater skills, arranged for his safe return to the village.
Natsilane met with his wife and after telling her his story, he made her promise to keep his
return a secret. He took with him his carving tools and went into the woods to carry out a plan of
revenge on the older brothers-in-law who had betrayed him. Remembering the Sea Lion Chief's
promise, he asked him for help and began carving a killer whale of spruce the likes of which had
never been seen before. After three tries and much improvement in his carving skills, he fashioned
a whale of yellow cedar and when launched, came to life and swam out to sea.
He called the black fish to him and ordered it to find his brothers-in-law when they
returned from their hunting, destroy them and their boat but spare the youngest boy. The black fish
set out and found them late that afternoon. The black fish capsized the boat breaking it in two and
drowned the older three brothers by keeping them from shore. The youngest made it back safely
along with his story of the great black fish and his brothers' treachery.
The villagers now came to wonder if Natsilane had carved the great black fish and given it
life. Not long afterward, a strange black fish with teeth was seen near the shore and at times would
leave a freshly killed seal or halibut there for the villagers. Natsilane had instructed it never again
to harm humans but instead, to help them. As he continued to help the villagers, they realized that
the "Killer Whale" was a gift from Natsilane and so they took it for their crest, and have been
making majestic totem poles out of yellow cedar in honor of the black fish ever since. Natsilane
became a legend to their village and some have claimed to have seen him riding the seas on the
backs of two great black fish.
(Source: http://www.firstpeople.us/FP-Html-Legends/Natsilane-Tlingit.html)
The Legend of Kae’s Theft of the Whale
(a Maori/Polynesian myth from New Zealand)
Visit: http://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-GrePoly-c1-5.html
The story of a Maori tribe leader who gives his newborn son a pet whale, only to have the
whale stolen and killed by a magician from a neighboring tribe.
100
Whale Internet Links
Univ. of Rhode Island’s Office of Marine Programs: Discovery of Sound in the Sea
(A great resource to introduce underwater acoustics and issues of marine noise pollution.)
http://www.dosits.org/resources/teachers/
http://www.dosits.org/audio/agsummary/ (underwater sounds audio gallery)
http://www.dosits.org/resources/all/downloads/powerpoints/ (guessing game PowerPoint)
National Geographic: Blue Whale Interactive
(An AWESOME website about the largest creature to ever live on earth.)
http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/blue-whale-interactive/
C.O.O.L. Projects: Food Web Game
(Explore an interactive marine food web.)
http://www.coolclassroom.org/cool_windows/home.html
PBS: Jean-Michel Cousteau’s Ocean Adventures, Whale Watcher interactive site
(Join Mr. Cousteau’s team on a virtual mission to film gray whales in the Pacific Ocean.)
http://www.pbs.org/teachers/connect/resources/5154/preview/
Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society: Kidzone
http://www.wdcs.org/wdcskids/en/
PBS and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution: Guess How Whales Hear! video
http://www.pbs.org/teachers/connect/resources/5686/preview/
Enchanted Learning: Whales
(A good source for elementary worksheets/activities.)
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/whales/
Dolphin Fleet Whale Watch: Cetacean Station
http://whalewatch.com/kids/
Royal British Columbia Museum: Whales On-line School Program
(Teacher instructions for lots of whale-related lab activities.)
http://www.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/school_programs/whales/pdfs/t-activities-all-2.pdf
SeaWorld: Teacher’s Guide to Whales
(Informational sheets and student handouts all about whales.)
http://www.swbg-animals.org/just-for-teachers/guides/pdf/whales-4-8.pdf
Alaska Fisheries Science Center: Marine Mammal Education
http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/nmml/education/cetaceans/
101
102
103
104
Sea Life Matching!
105
Enchanted Learning Software's
Origami Whale
A simple-to-make origami whale.
Supplies needed:
•
•
•
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/origami/whale/
- Construction paper
- Scissors
- Markers or crayons
Start by making a square piece of paper.
Fold one corner of a piece of paper over to the adjacent side.
To finish making the square, cut off the small rectangle.
The area in the folded triangle is your square!
Fold two opposite corners over so that they meet at the center
fold. Press each fold flat.
Fold the tip over to just meet the other folds.
Fold this shape in half along the center fold.
(Like closing a hotdog bun)
Fold the tail up.
Make a short cut through the end of the fold in the tail. Fold the edges
of the tail outwards.
Draw eyes, fins, and any other patterns you like, and enjoy your whale. DONE!
106
107
107
108
Cecil asks: What special
structure does the whale
have to breath? Answer below.
Answer to Cecil’s question:
Blowholes, along with high levels of
oxygen-holding proteins, allow
whales to stay under water for up to
an hour.
Drawings by Maureen Bickley
For thousands of years, philosophers and
scientists have known that whales are
mammals, but cetacean ancestry mystified
whale scientists (cetologists), until now! With
discoveries of fossil whale bones found in
Asia over the past 30 years, scientists now
know that whales first evolved during the
Eocene Epoch approximately 55 million years
ago. These primitive whales evolved from a
four-legged hoofed mammal. In fact, whales
closest living relatives are the hoofed hippos,
cows, pigs, and camels.
109
Design by Maureen Bickley 2012
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Whale Watcher, 2006. T. Day. Firefly Books Ltd., NY.
A Leviathan of Our Own, 2004. W.D. Allmon.
Paleontological Research Institution, NY.
http://www.indiana.edu/~ensiweb/lessons/whalekiosk.html.
Whale evolution (information and activities):
For More Information
Whales have hair! Although it
is very sparse, whales have
hair just like all other
mammals, occurring
generally around callosities
or for a few weeks after birth
on the face of calves.
Aristotle was the first to realize that whales are
not fish. Although cetacea is derived from the
Greek word ketos, meaning “big fish or sea
monster,” whales are mammals just like humans:
they have mammary glands, hair, and three
middle ear bones. Toothed whales (odontocetes),
such as dolphins, sperm whales, and orcas, hunt
fish and squid. Baleen whales (mysticetes), such
as the right whale, blue whale, and humpback,
have evolved long, hair-like baleen for feeding
instead of teeth.
Tucked inside slits on
either side of the genitalia,
mammary glands are
protected from saltwater.
To prevent dehydration,
the mother’s milk is highly
concentrated. Whale milk
is 40 – 60% fat!
1259 Trumansburg Road
Ithaca, NY 14850
607.273.6623
museumoftheearth.org
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The skeleton was then transported to Ithaca via a flatbed
truck (see photo at left). Back at PRI, an army of staff
and volunteers worked together to unload the skeleton
and bury the bones in a bed of horse manure (above).
The manure provided an ideal environment for the
remaining flesh and oil to be removed from the bones
over the course of several months. The cleaned bones of
#2030 were assembled and mounted for display at the
Museum of the Earth (right).
Unique patterns formed by callosities (see
below right), scab-like encrustations on the
head, help in right whale identification. These
thickened patches of skin are infested by
cyamid crustaceans (right) known as whale
lice, even though they are not related to lice.
Whales are superbly
adapted to their
environment. They are
streamlined and
conserve heat by
having no external
appendages other than
flukes and fins.
Whales often become entangled in fishing gear. More
than 60% of right whales bear the scars of past
entanglements. A severely entangled Northern right
whale (diagram below), identified by researchers as #2030,
was spotted off the
coast of Massachusetts
in May 1999. Multiple
strands of fishing rope
were wrapped three
times around its body,
causing a wound that
cut seven inches into
the blubber.
Researchers lost track of #2030 until early September 1999, when
she was sighted in the summer feeding waters off the coast of Nova
Scotia in Canada’s Bay of Fundy. Rescuers succeeded in cutting two
of the three encircling ropes in early September, but the third
remained. By attaching buoys with VHF (Very High Frequency) and
satellite transmitters to the entangling rope, researchers continued to
track the movements of the whale. After the initial rescue attempt,
#2030 headed south along the coast towards winter breeding waters.
On October 21, 1999, the body of an entangled right whale was
discovered floating off the coast of northern New Jersey. The position
of the entangling rope wrapped around the upper body and cutting
deeply into the blubber unmistakably identified this whale as #2030.
110
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Photo Credit: 2%&34)5,678#""9):'#%'7,);%#,7%9)<%3%/"1%')!,//,7=9)>5?)@#'A+%&=
The skeletal remnants of the
pelvis and hind legs are
evidence that whales evolved
from four-legged terrestrial
animals.
-./0'#)
A whale’s spine has
55-57 vertebrae,
including 7 cervical (in
the neck). Humans
have 33 vertebrae,
including 7 cervical.
Almost all mammals
have 7 cervical
vertebrae (with the
exception of manatees
and two-toed sloths),
no matter how long the
neck.