How are big grey whales?
• An adult male grey whale can grow to 14.6 m in length—longer than a city bus! • Females are slightly bigger than males. Both males and females weigh up to 30,000 kg. What do grey whales eat? • These enormous animals eat large quantities of tiny animals. Scientists believe an adult grey whale consumes an average of about 1,100 kg of food per day. • The main component of their diet is small, shrimp-like animals called amphipods that live on muddy ocean floors. Amphipods are minute compared to grey whales. • Grey whales also eat tubeworms, mysids (another shrimp-like animal), small fishes, ghost shrimps, herring eggs, and crab larvae (especially larvae of porcelain crabs) which are a seasonally important food source for them in British Columbia. How do grey whales eat? • Grey whales use suction to draw food into their mouths. • A feeding grey whale turns so that one side of its mouth faces the ocean bottom. The whale opens its mouth slightly and pulls in its huge tongue. This draws in s
