baleen whale
Noun: A type of large whale characterized by having baleen plates in its mouth instead of teeth. These plates are made of keratin and are used to filter small food particles, like plankton and krill, from seawater.
The term "baleen whale" is used to categorize and describe a major group of whales scientifically known as Mysticeti. It is used in contrast to "toothed whale" (Odontoceti).
Examples: * The blue whale, the largest animal on Earth, is a baleen whale. * Baleen whales are typically larger than toothed whales and have two blowholes. * Scientists study the feeding patterns of the baleen whale.
- In Scientific Classification: The term is used to refer to the parvorder Mysticeti within the order Cetacea.
- Example: The evolutionary split between toothed whales and baleen whales occurred millions of years ago.
- Mysticete (noun): The scientific term for a baleen whale.
- Baleen (noun): The material itself—the fringed plates made of keratin that hang from the upper jaw of these whales and are used for filter feeding.
- Example: A whale's baleen acts like a giant sieve.
- Whalebone whale (an older, now less common term).
- Mysticete (scientific synonym).
The term "baleen whale" has a single, specific zoological meaning and is not used with other distinct definitions.
There are no common idioms or phrasal verbs specifically using the term "baleen whale." It is a technical biological term.
- whale with plates of whalebone along the upper jaw for filtering plankton from the water