Marine Mammals

If you’ve ever watched whales surfacing with a dramatic blow from their blowholes, you’ve probably wondered: How often do whales come up for air?

By Nico Avelle

It’s a question that puzzles many ocean lovers: How do whales sleep without drowning? Unlike us, whales are voluntary breathers, meaning they have to consciously come up for their next breath. That makes their sleeping habits pretty unique among marine mammals.

By Nico Avelle

If you've ever wondered, "Are whales mammals?" the answer is a resounding yes. Despite their fish-like appearance, whales belong to the order Cetacea and share many features with other mammals. From breathing air to nursing their young, these marine giants check every mammalian box.

By Nico Avelle

You might think that all aquatic otters must be the same. But did you know that there are major river otter vs. sea otter differences?

By Ada Tseng

One of the most unique about whales is that they're the largest animals to ever exist on Earth — even bigger than the largest dinosaurs to have ever roamed the planet. That's right: The biggest whale of today dwarfs the T. rex.

By Ada Tseng

The bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus) is found in the icy waters of the Arctic. These are the longest-living mammals; some bowhead whales live for over 200 years. That's older than many countries' independence!

By Nicole Antonio & Mack Hayden

For the past few years, orcas attacking boats have been making headlines, most recently off the coasts of Spain in the Atlantic Ocean. These incidents, involving a group of orcas known as the Iberian orcas, have been occurring since 2020.

By Desiree Bowie

Leopard seals are the second largest species of seal in the Antarctic after the southern elephant seal. They're fast, powerful and eat basically anything that moves. Their only natural predator? The killer whale.

By Jesslyn Shields

Humpback whales can be as long as a city bus and weigh as much as two. They love to breach and water slap with their fins and tails, making them a perennial favorite for whale watchers.

By Katie Carman

Sperm whales are one of the largest creatures in the ocean. And they have the biggest brain on the planet. So are they also the smartest? We'll tell you.

By Wendy Bowman

Their mamas may be the only ones who can tell them apart, but there are major differences between these cousins, one being the type of water in which they can survive.

By Michelle Konstantinovsky

Seals have long been known as dry-land clappers, but the first-ever percussive clapping observed by scientists has blown seal clapping theory out of the water. Or should we say under the water?

By Tara Yarlagadda

Sea otters are adorable, back from the brink of extinction and will totally bite you.

By Jesslyn Shields

Manatees are so gentle and sweet they'll break your heart, but in 2021, there have been more manatee deaths than in any year in previously recorded history. Why are these gentle giants dying in such unprecedented numbers?

By Michelle Konstantinovsky

It is the largest animal ever to exist on the planet.

By Tara Yarlagadda

A dolphin doesn't breathe automatically, so during sleep, one side of its brain stays awake to ensure the mammal rises to the surface and breathes.

By Loraine Fick

Penguins stand for months on the coldest ice in the world without their feet freezing, thanks to special blood circulation.

By Loraine Fick

It looks excruciating, and nobody knows exactly why it happens.

By Jesslyn Shields

Do humpback whales get tired of singing the same old song, or do they simply start over when it gets too complicated?

By Jesslyn Shields

A new study paints a grave future for the killer whale, all because of the now-banned chemicals polychlopinated biphenyls - PCBs.

By Kristen Hall-Geisler

A dolphin named Billie learned a dolphin-show trick from some captive dolphins, taught her wild friends how to do it and started a fad.

By Jesslyn Shields

Breaking news: Dolphins and porpoises don't actually look very much alike.

By Jesslyn Shields

The platypus may look a bit absurd and bizarre, but its milk might hold the secret to fighting antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

By Jesslyn Shields

Thanks to the excesses of narcoterrorist Pablo Escobar, Colombian waterways now house a population of these invasive African giants.

By Jesslyn Shields

It's the first evidence researchers have of the whales using their "unicorn horns" to capture prey.

By Kate Kershner