Georgia Aquarium - Beluga Whales

Awesome display, but it's seems that the tank seems small for the size of these puppies...

The beluga whale is found in the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of the world including Russia, Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Norway and other northern European countries. It prefers to remain in shallow coastal water, but may move offshore and can dive as deep as 3,000 feet. This whale can hold its breath for 20 to 25 minutes.

The beluga will spend the summer in the cold polar seas and move into warmer, more southern waters during the winter to mate and calve. However, some individuals may remain in the north throughout the winter, living under the ice while maintaining a breathing hole as the sea surface freezes. They maintain the hole by breaking the ice as it forms using the dorsal ridge that runs along their back. Polar bears standing on the ice around the breathing hole prey on belugas by grabbing them as they surface for air.

See Georgia Aquarium's beluga whales in the Georgia-Pacific Cold Water Quest gallery.

http://www.georgiaaquarium.org/animalguide/coldwaterquest/belugawhale.aspx

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• beluga
• whales
• Georgia
• Aquarium
• atlanta
• crescibene
• 2010
• July
• vacation