Beluga Whale Traditional Cache

This cache is in the Assiniboine Park Zoo. There is an entrance fee. Placing trackables is not recommended in this high muggle area. Summer hours: Open daily from 9:00 a.m. and gates close at 4:30 p.m. Winter hours: Open daily from 9:00 a.m. and gates close at 3:30 p.m. Please treat our animals and plants with respect. Do not approach or feed animals, pick or damage plants, knock on glass, or throw coins in ponds. Please stay on pathways, and respect safety fences.

Beluga Whale 

Hello, today we will be telling you about Beluga Whales! Belugas are white. The Beluga whale or the white whale is one of the smallest species of whales. Beluga whales have extremely flexible necks (a little creepy). Belugas spend some of their time on the surface slapping their tails. Young beluga whales are called calves. Young beluga whales are gray or even brown, and only fade to white at around age 5. Belugas range in size from 3 to 4.6 meters in length. Some beluga whales have thick folds of blubber along their body. They live in the cold Arctic Ocean. They are called “white ghosts” by the Inuit. Lots of Inuit people like to hunt beluga whales for food and use the bones for tools. Beluga whales are also called sea canaries because they make so many different sounds!  One whale was said to make over 20 different sounds! They eat about 100 different kinds of animals that live at the bottom of the ocean, including crab and squid. The Beluga whale is related to the Narwhal. The Beluga whale can swim backwards. The beluga whale has a small head. Some of the largest male belugas are about 1500 kg and females are about 1360 kg.

Sources: Seaworld.com; worldwildlife.org; Davidsuzuki.com; arkive.org; nationalgeographic.com/kids

By: Bronte, Brooklyn & Ava of Beaverlodge School