BALEEN

Baleen

Baleen is a filter-feeder system inside the mouths of baleen whales. The baleen system works when a whale opens its mouth underwater and the whale takes in water. The whale then pushes the water out, and animals such as krill are filtered by the baleen and remain as food source for the whale. Baleen is similar to bristles and is made of keratin, the same substance found in human fingernails and hair. Some whales, such as the bowhead whale, have longer baleen than others. Other whales, such as the gray whale, only use one side of their baleen. These baleen bristles are arranged in plates across the upper jaw of the whale. Baleen is often called ...

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baleen

Noun

  1. The plates in the mouth of the baleen whale, Mysticeti, which it uses to trap its food; formerly used in corsetry
  2. a baleen whale


The above text is a snippet from Wiktionary: baleen
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

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