Photo of a Blue Whale Being Cleanly
Bitten in Half
Kavi Vaidya is a wildlife photographer who has made it his mission to bring awareness
about the beauty of nature. Working with National Geographic as well as other
prominent wildlife photographers, Kavi has taken numerous pictures that have moved
people from all over the world. However, one photo he took of a blue whale being
cleanly bitten in half by another blue whale left everyone speechless and baffled. This is
because there was no apparent explanation for this extremely odd behavior other than
that these two male blue whales were probably engaging in some kind of bizarre
dominance ritual. In fact, almost every piece of research ever written about blue whales
mentions nothing but how they are among the most non-aggressive of all cetaceans –
preferring to run or swim away from danger than fight back or even defend themselves.
Bitten in Half
The blue whale is the largest animal ever to have existed on the planet – measuring up
to 100 feet long and weighing 150 tons. Surprisingly, blue whales are relatively
harmless to humans – in fact, most scientists and wildlife experts even state that the
blue whale is so passive that the animal does not even possess teeth. So, how on Earth
could a blue whale even bite through another blue whale's flesh? Yet, this is exactly
what happened in the photo that Vaidya took – where one blue whale appears to have
bitten clean through another Blue whale's body. This extremely bizarre behavior has
baffled most scientists and wildlife experts ever since.
So, Why Do Blue Whales Chomp on Each Other?
The only valid explanation for this extremely odd behavior that scientists have been able
to come up with is that the two blue whales were engaging in some kind of dominance
ritual. This is because blue whales are sexually inactive while they are feeding in colder
waters, which are usually found near the poles. Why exactly two blue whales would
engage in such a dangerous battle has remained a complete enigma to most scientists,
though. After all, even though blue whales are relatively large animals, they are
nowhere near as dangerous as other whales and marine mammals. Even though blue
whales do possess teeth, the animals do not rely on these to hunt for food. Instead, blue
whales swallow their food whole – and are able to eat up to four tons of tiny crustaceans
known as krill every day.
The Real Reason Behind the Odd Behavior of Adult
Male Blue Whales
Interestingly though, blue whales do have a very distinctive mating ritual. This ritual
involves two large adult male blue whales lifting their tails out of the water and slapping
them against the surface of the water. This ritual is believed to be a way for these male
blue whales to establish dominance over one another. After all, blue whales are
extremely social animals that often travel in large pods. Interestingly though, adult
males are often seen traveling without their pods and are almost always seen traveling
alone. Indeed, scientists believe that it is only the extremely dominant blue whales, who
are able to lift their tails out of the water and slap the surface with them – are able to
mate with the females of their species. Naturally, this theory has yet to be thoroughly
tested and proven through research. However, if it is true – then it would explain why
two adult male blue whales would be willing to risk their lives and engage in such an
extremely dangerous duel.
Conclusion
Blue whales are generally extremely peaceful and gentle animals. However, among
adult male blue whales – the most dominant of these animals are often seen engaging
in a bizarre and seemingly deadly ritual. This ritual involves two large blue whales lifting
their tails out of the water and slapping them against the surface with all their might.
However, scientists believe that this ritual is not meant to harm or even kill the other
blue whale. Instead, this ritual is believed to be a way to mate with the females of the
species. Although this ritual is extremely bizarre, it is also fascinating to learn more
about the lives of these gentle giants.
