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The longest male blue whale was even longer. It was more than 110

feet long. If it was laid down on the ground, it would be as long as nine

or ten long cars standing one behind the other. The blood vessels of a

blue whale are so wide that a man can swim through them comfortably.

If you were in a ship and saw this creature, you would be really frightened.

You would start thinking of scary movies, where large sea creatures

chase ships, attack, and eat up people. When sailors first saw the blue

whale, they were terribly scared of it.

We don’t have to be afraid of the blue whale. People who have studied

these huge creatures have discovered that the whale is actually very

gentle. If it feels that a ship was about to harm its baby, it might give

the ship a whack with its tail. This would damage the ship, but then, all

mothers protect their babies.

The blue whale doesn’t attack human beings. It eats tiny sea creatures

called krill and plankton. It also eats small fish. The blue whale can

swallow over a thousand krill at one time with its tongue, which is

heavier than an elephant. It needs about 3,600 kilograms of food in a

day.

The baby of a blue whale drinks about 50 kilograms of milk every day

and gains 90 kilos every day for the first year of its life.

The blue whale makes a very loud sound that can be heard 848 kilometres

away! It is much louder than the sound of a jet plane taking off. It is the

loudest sound made by any living creature!

It is sad that hunters still catch and kill these gentle giants. They use the

oil from its body, for cooking, making candles and other things. They

mammals — animals that breathe air and give birth to babies; scary — frightening;

blood vessels — tiny tubes through which blood flows in the body; wack — hit;
discovered — found out

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