beluga (bəl
`gə) or white whale, small, toothed northern whale whale, aquatic mammal of the order Cetacea, found in all oceans of the world. Members of this order vary greatly in size and include the largest animals that have ever lived. Cetaceans never leave the water, even to give birth.
..... Click the link for more information. , Delphinapterus leucas. The beluga may reach a length of 19 ft (5.8 m) and a weight of 4,400 lb (2,000 kg). It has a small, round head, with a short, broad, beaklike snout, and a flexible neck; its flippers are short, broad, and rounded, and it lacks a dorsal fin. It produces a variety of noises and is sometimes called a sea canary. The young are born with dark fur but become almost pure white in maturity. Belugas winter in the Arctic Ocean, feeding upon crustaceans, fish, and squid; they are often found in groups of several hundred individuals. They mate in spring, and in summer they enter northern rivers. The young are born after a gestation period of 14 months, one calf every second year. The beluga is hunted by the Eskimo for food and by commercial whalers for its hide, which is known as porpoise hide. Beluga is also the common name of the largest of the sturgeons sturgeon, primitive fish of the northern regions of Europe, Asia, and North America. Unlike evolutionarily advanced fishes, it has a fine-grained hide, with very reduced scalation, a mostly cartilaginous skeleton, upturned tail fins, and a mouth set well back on the
..... Click the link for more information. . Beluga whales are classified in the phylum Chordata Chordata (kôrdā`tə,–dä`–)
..... Click the link for more information. , subphylum Vertebrata, class Mammalia, order Cetacea, family Monodontidae.
Species (Delphinapterus leucas) of whale found in the Arctic Ocean and adjacent seas, in both deep offshore and coastal waters. It may also enter rivers that empty into far northern seas. A toothed whale with a rounded forehead and no dorsal fin, the beluga is about 13 ft (4 m) long. Born dark blue-gray or blackish, it fades to white or cream at 4–5 years of age. It feeds on fish, cephalopods, and crustaceans and usually lives in groups of five to 10. It has been hunted commercially for its oil, hide, and flesh, and is used in the Arctic as food for humans and dogs.
beluga
`gə) or white whale, small, toothed northern whale whale, aquatic mammal of the order Cetacea, found in all oceans of the world. Members of this order vary greatly in size and include the largest animals that have ever lived. Cetaceans never leave the water, even to give birth...... Click the link for more information. , Delphinapterus leucas. The beluga may reach a length of 19 ft (5.8 m) and a weight of 4,400 lb (2,000 kg). It has a small, round head, with a short, broad, beaklike snout, and a flexible neck; its flippers are short, broad, and rounded, and it lacks a dorsal fin. It produces a variety of noises and is sometimes called a sea canary. The young are born with dark fur but become almost pure white in maturity. Belugas winter in the Arctic Ocean, feeding upon crustaceans, fish, and squid; they are often found in groups of several hundred individuals. They mate in spring, and in summer they enter northern rivers. The young are born after a gestation period of 14 months, one calf every second year. The beluga is hunted by the Eskimo for food and by commercial whalers for its hide, which is known as porpoise hide. Beluga is also the common name of the largest of the sturgeons sturgeon, primitive fish of the northern regions of Europe, Asia, and North America. Unlike evolutionarily advanced fishes, it has a fine-grained hide, with very reduced scalation, a mostly cartilaginous skeleton, upturned tail fins, and a mouth set well back on the
..... Click the link for more information. . Beluga whales are classified in the phylum Chordata Chordata (kôrdā`tə,–dä`–)
..... Click the link for more information. , subphylum Vertebrata, class Mammalia, order Cetacea, family Monodontidae.
beluga
or hausenLarge species of sturgeon (Huso huso, or Acipenser huso) that inhabits the Caspian and Black seas and the Sea of Azov. It reaches a length of 25 ft (7.5 m) and a weight of 2,900 lbs (1,300 kg), but its flesh and caviar are less valuable than those of smaller species.
beluga
or white whale)
Beluga, or white whale (Delphinapterus leucas).
(credit: E.R. Degginger/EB Inc.)
beluga
1. a large white sturgeon, Acipenser (or Huso) huso, of the Black and Caspian Seas: a source of caviar and isinglass
2. another name for white whale
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