Cetacean, Blue Whale

This enormous creature has a fluke tail and a wide mouth filled with baleen.

ECOLOGY

Environment any oceans
Organization solitary, pair, or pod (3–18)
Treasure none

The imposing blue whale is one of the largest animals in the sea, though it is generally docile toward anything it doesn’t perceive as a threat. A filter-feeder, the blue whale does not look at humans or ships as potential meals, instead preferring to eat millions of tiny invertebrates known as krill, which it sucks through its baleen in massive gulps. The most dangerous thing about a blue whale, other than its sheer size, is its powerful tail, which can capsize boats and kill humanoids. These enormous mammals can be found in all of the world’s oceans and seas. An adult blue whale is 100 feet long and weighs 200 tons.

Among the largest animals in the world, cetaceans are as varied as the seas in which they make their homes. From the deadly white whale to the often-friendly dolphin, these air-breathing aquatic mammals are perfectly adapted to life on the open ocean, and aside from their need to occasionally surface to breathe air, they are as versatile swimmers as the fish upon which they feed. Cetaceans are split into two categories: toothed whales and baleen whales. Toothed whales eat fish, scooping up whole schools in their wide mouths, while baleen whales filter their tiny-sized food through a comb-like structure. Only toothed whales use echolocation; they possess a lumpy organ on the front of their head called a melon that aids in this ability.

Whalers often hunt cetaceans for their blubber, which whalers render down into oil. Whalers also prize cetaceans’ bones and teeth, which artisans use to craft weapons and art objects using a method of carving called scrimshaw.

Despite their massive size, cetaceans can be relatively docile, but predatory species or threatened members of any species make formidable foes in combat, as their size, speed, and relative intelligence make them more of a challenge than most mundane sea creatures.