As you may already know, whales are actually mammals — not fish. This has a few implications that make them stand out when compared to their other aquatic neighbors. First, whales are warm-blooded and give live births to their young ones as opposed to laying eggs and feed them milk. Instead they have lungs which means they have to come to the surface every time they want to breathe air. Although whales are mammals and do breathe air, they still obviously eat and sleep underwater. So, this brings up the question: how long can whales hold their breath underwater?
Again, we know that whales do breathe air, so how long can whales stay underwater on one breath? Whales can hold their breath for a very long time, and this ranges species to species. The average whale can hold its breath for about 60 minutes. The Sperm whale can hold its breath longer than the average whale, for about 90 minutes. It lasted minutes and broke the record for diving mammals. Other whales can also hold their breath for a very long time.
A sperm whale can spend around 90 minutes hunting underwater before it has to come back to the surface to breathe. In , a male sperm whale was killed off the coast of South Africa after surfacing from a dive lasting minutes. When marine mammals sleep and swim at once, they are in a state similar to napping. Young whales and dolphins actually rest, eat and sleep while their mother swims, towing them along in her slipstream--a placement called echelon swimming.
At these times, the mother will also sleep on the move. In fact, she cannot stop swimming for the first several weeks of a newborn's life. If she does for any length of time, the calf will begin to sink; it is not born with enough body fat or blubber to float easily. Lots of swimming will tire an infant, producing a weak animal susceptible to infection or attack. Adult male dolphins, which generally travel in pairs, often swim slowly side by side as they sleep. Females and young travel in larger pods.
They may rest in the same general area, or companionable animals may pair for sleeping while swimming. While sleeping, the bottlenose dolphin shuts down only half of its brain, along with the opposite eye. The other half of the brain stays awake at a low level of alertness. This attentive side is used to watch for predators, obstacles and other animals. It also signals when to rise to the surface for a fresh breath of air.
After approximately two hours, the animal will reverse this process, resting the active side of the brain and awaking the rested half. This pattern is often called cat-napping. Unlike humans, whales do not appear to need much sleep! Most whales sleep in short bursts and will nap for 10 to 15 minutes at a time.
However, some whales have been observed to slumber for up to an hour. Whales, along with other marine mammals have amazing modifications and behaviors that allow them to thrive in the harsh environment of the ocean, with some whales being able to remain underwater for nearly four hours at a time!
Being able to stay underwater for long periods of time allows for whales to carry on biologically important activities, like searching for food, and for traveling safely in waters where the dangers of boat collisions occur. How long can whales hold their breath? Do whales have lungs? A group of humpback whales exhaling through their blowholes What whale can hold its breath the longest? How deep can whales dive? How do whales breathe?
Closeup of the blowhole How can whales hold their breath for so long? How often do whales breathe? How do whales sleep?
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