1. One of the most interesting “whales” on display in the American Museum of Natural History isn’t a whale at all—it’s actually the world’s largest fish.

    The whale shark (Rhinodon typus), which belongs to a group of cartilaginous fishes, earns the name “whale” solely because of its size. Despite their other name—shark—these giants are so gentle that snorkelers and scuba divers seek them out to swim alongside them.

  2. It’s Tuesday’s peek into the archives! Museum staff hang a sperm whale skeleton in the Hall of Ocean Life, 1933. For more photos from our archives, explore the Picturing the Museum collection.© AMNH Library/#314142

    It’s Tuesday’s peek into the archives! 

    Museum staff hang a sperm whale skeleton in the Hall of Ocean Life, 1933. 

    For more photos from our archives, explore the Picturing the Museum collection.

    © AMNH Library/#314142

  3. Have a whale of a weekend! False killer whales via NOAA - Encyclopedia of the Sanctuaries

    Have a whale of a weekend!

    False killer whales via NOAA - Encyclopedia of the Sanctuaries

  4. So what’s the difference between a whale, a dolphin, and a porpoise?

    They are all cetaceans; dolphins and porpoises are actually types of specialized whales. The term “whale” is often used to refer to the large animals in the group. These can be both baleen whales (the filter feeders) and toothed whales (which hunt single prey).

    Dolphins usually have a beak and always have conical teeth that taper to a fine point. Porpoises have no beak and their teeth are flat and spade-shaped.

  5. Whales: Giants of the Deep opens in less than 2 weeks! We can’t wait. headlikeanorange: An Arabian humpback whale (Wild Arabia - BBC)

    Whales: Giants of the Deep opens in less than 2 weeks! We can’t wait.

    headlikeanorange:

    An Arabian humpback whale (Wild Arabia - BBC)

  6. Today’s photo from the archives: Museum staff hanging a sperm whale specimen in the Hall of Ocean Life, as it looked in 1933.© AMNH Library/#314142

    Today’s photo from the archives: Museum staff hanging a sperm whale specimen in the Hall of Ocean Life, as it looked in 1933.

    © AMNH Library/#314142

  7. From the archives: Museum staff view the suspended blue whale model in the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life, February 1969  Explore all the photos from the Picturing the Museum collection here: http://bit.ly/l8nOsp  © AMNH Library/Image # 333998

    From the archives: Museum staff view the suspended blue whale model in the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life, February 1969

     Explore all the photos from the Picturing the Museum collection here: http://bit.ly/l8nOsp 

    © AMNH Library/Image # 333998

  8. The blue whale gets dressed up for a special event. Photo by Rod

    The blue whale gets dressed up for a special event.

    Photo by Rod

  9. Last week, a special team from the Museum’s Exhibition Department vacuumed and brushed the blue whale model hanging in the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life. The Museum’s fiberglass-and-polyurethane sculpture is based on a female blue whale that was found in 1925.  Photo by Rod

    Last week, a special team from the Museum’s Exhibition Department vacuumed and brushed the blue whale model hanging in the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life. 

    The Museum’s fiberglass-and-polyurethane sculpture is based on a female blue whale that was found in 1925. 

    Photo by Rod

  10. On Sept. 7, 2011, a special team from the Museum’s Exhibition Department vacuumed and brushed the famous blue whale model hanging in the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life.  At 21,000 pounds, the Museum’s blue whale is the largest model of the planet’s largest known animal. Though blue whales can weigh over 300,000 pounds, scientists still know remarkably little about the species because these whales spend much of their time in deep or remote waters. Photo by Rod

    On Sept. 7, 2011, a special team from the Museum’s Exhibition Department vacuumed and brushed the famous blue whale model hanging in the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life. 

    At 21,000 pounds, the Museum’s blue whale is the largest model of the planet’s largest known animal. Though blue whales can weigh over 300,000 pounds, scientists still know remarkably little about the species because these whales spend much of their time in deep or remote waters.

    Photo by Rod