One of the 4 rorquals on WAnimals
Mammals · Artiodactyla · Balaenopteridae
Sei Whale
Balaenoptera borealis
It faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild in the near future. See full glossary
The sei whale is the third largest baleen whale, after the blue whale and the fin whale, and the fastest of all the great cetaceans. It is slender, with a tall, falcate dorsal fin. It filters copepods and krill by swimming on its side near the surface, rather than taking the great mouthfuls of the other rorquals. Twentieth-century commercial whaling removed close to 80% of the world population when the fleets, having exhausted the blue and fin whales, turned to it.
Weight
15 t – 30 t
Size
12 m – 17 m
Lifespan
65 years
Diet
Carnivore
Feeds mainly on other animals.
Sighting difficulty
Hard
Fun facts
- locomociónIt is one of the fastest whales known and can reach remarkably high speeds over short distances, quite against the popular image of whales as slow animals.
- It is the fastest of the great cetaceans: it can hold more than 50 kilometres an hour over a short burst, a dolphin's speed in a twenty-tonne animal.
- Unlike its relatives, which gulp down enormous mouthfuls of water, it feeds by swimming on its side at the surface with its mouth ajar, straining plankton continuously as the right whales do.
Life cycle & biology
- Skeleton type
- Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (mammal)
- Habitat & environment
- Temperate and subpolar oceanic waters worldwide, far from the coast
- Sexual maturity
- 10 years
- Gestation / incubation
- 11.3 months
- Litter / clutch size
- 1
Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balaenoptera_borealis
Where to find it
See its range on the interactive mapWhere to watch it
Parques y spots de buceo donde se ha documentado esta especie — se muestran 14 de 50 documentados.
Related species
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Sei Whale — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
EndangeredBlue Whale
Balaenoptera musculus
Minke Whale
Balaenoptera acutorostrata
Least ConcernHumpback Whale
Megaptera novaeangliae
EndangeredKiller Whale
Orcinus orca
EndangeredAntarctic Fur Seal
Arctocephalus gazella
EndangeredFin Whale
Balaenoptera physalus
How to help
The sei whale is classified as endangered. Organizations such as UICN, WWF y Wildlife Conservation Society work specifically on its conservation and that of its habitat; looking into their programs is a good starting point if you want to get involved.
It's documented in 9 real protected areas — part of why protecting these places matters for its conservation.
Keep exploring
Based on what we already know about sei whale.
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