Show Young Whale Needs About One Jonah a Day for Food Interesting Facts About Abou t the tile A A JONAH a day would be beI I 1 just about right for a young and rapidly growing finner whale That is supposing the finner whale could swallow the which prophet which he But anyhow a whale of this kind I which are arc the ones most hunted for oil nowadays increases in size by the equivalent of a abig big bigman's bigman's mans man's weight every day during his period of most rapid growth This is among the host of fascinating fascinating fascinating fas fas- whale-facts whale amassed in inmany inmany inmany many voyages to both of the earths earth's frozen ends by Prof Johan Hjort seagoing scientist of the University University University sity of Oslo Finner whales mate in early autumn autumn autumn au au- au- au and their young are calved in May The prenatal period is only a little longer than mans man's The whale baby feeds on its mothers mother's milk from May fay until December 1 1 1 WU U v it iI Ji IS Wt JIUU t lasts from then until about the beginning beginning beginning be be- ginning of the following August Thus in two years the blue whale passes from infancy to adulthood although of course it continues to increase in size for a long time after maturity is reached Their growth naturally goes on at nt ata nta a tremendous rate In a single day during the period of most rapid increase increase increase in in- crease in size the young whale puts on every day the weight of a full- full grown man A really large finner finer whale will weigh as much as 1500 men real men real men he-men too the size of the thick Viking whaler captains who pursue them Cruising at ten knots Professor Hjort has calculated they must put forth an effort equivalent to 47 horsepower The Norse biologist added that he has been on ships pursuing such whales at a speed of fourteen knots and and not catching them The oily blubber chief prize in whaling performs a very important biological function for the whales It Itis Itis Itis is to these huge sea mammals what the hump is to a camel camel camel-a a reservoir reservoir reservoir reser reser- voir of food energy-food stored up in times of abundance to be drawn upon in seasons of scarcity Because Because Because Be Be- cause of the tremendous tive fluctuations in the various forms of sea life on which whales feed they must often go for long periods without feeding and often cruise for hundreds of miles without so much as a herring or a shrimp to eat A second function of the blubber is protection from the cold Fat is isan isan isan an excellent non-conductor non of heat so that a whale well wrapped up in his subcutaneous layer of blubber blubber blubber ber can live for weeks and months in polar water at a temperature near or or below freezing Whalebone formerly next in importance importance importance im im- im- im only to oil in the whaling industry is now an object of practically practically practically no value |