Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Sea World in San Antonio Texas-Beluga Whales

Show Family Two here reporting from San Antonio, Texas. One of our favorite things to see so far, was a show that we visited while at Sea World. The show had acrobats, dolphins and beluga whales.



We were so impressed with the interaction between the whales and their trainers!



We thought they were beautiful and graceful animals.



We hope to be able to spend more time seeing them while in California and Florida.



More about Beluga Whales:

Beluga Whales

Beluga whales are warm-blooded mammals that breathe air through the blowhole on the top of their head. Their blowhole is covered by a muscular flap which provides a water-tight seal. Beluga whales cannot breathe through their mouths and can hold their breath for 20-25 minutes. They are extremely social animals, living, hunting and migrating in groups called pods.
The beluga whales are the most vocal of the toothed whale. Arctic fisherman say they can hear the beluga whales’ sounds coming from miles away, and they can feel the vibration of their sounds coming through the hulls of their fishing boats. This behavior has earned them the nickname “sea canary.”


Fun Facts
• The beluga whale is the only whale with a flexible neck.
• A beluga whale uses its pectoral flippers (forelimbs) mainly to steer and stop.
• The beluga whale is also called the white whale. The word beluga comes from the Russian word for white, “belukha.”
• Beluga caviar comes from the beluga sturgeon, not the beluga whale.
• This whale has the ability to swim backward.



Adopt a Beluga Whale


More Facts:
National Geographic for Kids
Sea World Animal Bytes
Beluga Whales Facts
Facts and Fun Activities

Games:
Animated Jigsaw Puzzle
Whale Flip Game
Save the Whales Game

Arts and Crafts:
Origami Whale
Ocean Diorama
Whale Mobile

Coloring Pages
Beluga Whales
Whale Coloring Book
Page with Anatomy labels
Beluga Whale Page

Books and Stories
Interactive story about whales
Beluga Sky
Beluga Days
Beluga Whales up Close
The Little Lost Baby Beluga Whale

Unit Studies and Lesson Plans:
Unit Study from Sea World
Lesson Plans from Scholastic
Whale Migration Maps
Experiment about blubber

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