Blue Whale
Balaenoptera musculus
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Cordats)
- ClassMammalia (Mamífers)
- OrderCetacea
- FamilyBalaenopteridae (Rorquals)
- GenusBalaenoptera
- SpeciesBalaenoptera musculus (Blue Whale)
The blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) is a species of baleen whale and the largest marine mammal in the rorqual family Balaenopteridae. Reaching a maximum confirmed length of 29.9–30.5 m (98–100 ft) and weighing up to 190–200 t (190–200 long tons; 210–220 short tons), it is the largest animal known to have ever existed. The blue whale's long and slender body can be of various shades of greyish-blue on its upper surface and somewhat lighter underneath. Four subspecies are recognized: B. m. musculus in the North Atlantic and North Pacific, B. m. intermedia in the Southern Ocean, B. m. Wikipedia →
<5% of wildlife watchers report a Blue Whale sighting in Galápagos Islands, based on 7 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
Closest Relatives at Galápagos Islands
Eden's Whale
Balaenoptera edeni
Minke Whale
Balaenoptera acutorostrata
Fin Whale
Balaenoptera physalus
Humpback Whale
Megaptera novaeangliae
Bottlenose Dolphin
Tursiops truncatus
Killer Whale
Orcinus orca
Common Dolphin
Delphinus delphis
Short-finned Pilot Whale
Globicephala macrorhynchus
Sperm Whale
Physeter macrocephalus
Cuvier's Beaked Whale
Ziphius cavirostris
False Killer Whale
Pseudorca crassidens
Dwarf Sperm Whale
Kogia sima
📅 Monthly Probability
☀️ When They're Spotted
Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bahía de Loreto National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 2 | Channel Islands National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Galápagos Islands | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 4 | El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico |
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Blue Whale in Galápagos Islands?
About 2% of wildlife watchers report a Blue Whale sighting in Galápagos Islands, based on 7 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Blue Whale in Galápagos Islands?
July has the highest sighting rate for Blue Whale in Galápagos Islands in our monthly data.