Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Pilot whales: how many species are there?

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Grzimeks encyclopedia from 1969 [1] contains a small section on pilot whales saying that the exact number of species is uncertain. Neverthel...
Monday, November 29, 2010

Largest animal on earth: the blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus)

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The blue whale is the largest animal on earth. It can get 100 feet long and weigh up to 150 tons ( Discovery Education ). Linnaeus construc...
Sunday, November 28, 2010

Big-headed blower: Physeter macrocephalus

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Physeter macrocephalus is the the scientific name for the sperm whale . Physeter macrocephalus was one of the four sperm whale species that...
Saturday, November 27, 2010

Click-click-click-pause-click

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Whales communicate by clicks, much as humans do these days. While the latter use the Internet, the former rely on underwater acoustics. Ther...
Friday, November 26, 2010

A big-winged New Englander: Megaptera novaeangliae

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Megaptera novaeangliae is the the scientific name for the humpback whale . Philip Hoare—in search of the history of humans and whales—tells...
Thursday, November 25, 2010

From Greek ketos over Latin cetus to the whale-contexting prefix

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The Greek word ketos and the Latin noun cetos , derived therefrom, mean whale or sea-monster [1]. Various scientific terms, in use today, s...

Hell Town, a nickname for Provincetown on Cape Cod

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Native Americans had live on Cape Cod for Millennia. When the Pilgrims arrived—in search for their utopia—they rejected the Cape as fit only...