Curious Facts: Do Whales Have Teeth? The Answer Might Surprise You!

Whales are a large widely distributed and very diverse group of marine mammals which are fully aquatic and placental.

Whales are of two types, toothed whales and Baleen whales. Toothed whales have a varying number of teeth, depending on the individual species.

Some whales have only two teeth, whereas others can have up to 160 teeth or more. Teeth patterns might differ.

Conical teeth of some toothed whales are specialized in capturing squid or fish. Whales also have high levels of hearing, whether they are above or below the surface of the water. Some species like sperm whales have a good ability of echolocation that they use to catch squid.

Some of the whales who have teeth, like the sperm Whale, killer Whale or orca whale, strap toothed whale, northern bottlenose whale, beluga whale, and short-finned, pilot whale, are all examples of toothed whales (30 teeth). The toothed whale is named for the presence of teeth which the whale uses to swallow on things like squid and fish.

Marine mammals like dolphins and porpoises also have teeth with which they use to capture their prey in the ocean. The largest toothed whale is the sperm whale.

Baleen whales do not have teeth; instead, they have what are known as baleen plates. The blue whale, humpback whale, bowhead whale, North Atlantic right whale, North Pacific right Whale, Southern right whale, and pygmy right whale, are the greatest examples of baleen whales with baleen plates.

These baleen plates, which resemble huge combs or bristles, dangle from the top of a whale's mouth and function as a filter, allowing undesired water to escape and air to enter, as well as allowing prey to enter the mouth of baleen whales.

Baleen whales possess 150-400 baleen plates in their mouth on each side.

When baleen whales gulp down big quaffs of water, the baleen plates function as a filter, removing undesired water. The baleen is flexible and strong with a variety of colors and sizes.

Baleen whales are commonly known as 'filter feeders' because they gulp down prey whole and cannot chew their food. Female baleen whales are larger than males in some species.

The largest baleen species is the blue Whale, which is actually the largest animal on the planet.

If you enjoy this fun facts article, you can also read humpback whale facts and do bears eat honey.

How many teeth do whales have?

Whales are marine animals that have a variety of teeth depending on the species. Some whales have only two teeth, whereas others may have up to 160 or more. Teeth patterns vary across species. Teeth can be found in both the lower and upper jaws of some toothed whales.

Toothed whales or 'odontocetes' are named because they have teeth in their mouths. However, toothed whale teeth are very different from humans.

Most toothed whales may have cone-shaped teeth and use the teeth very differently from other mammals. A toothed whale doesn't actually use its teeth to chew! It just gulps down the food whole as the tooth is unable to chew food.

The narwhal, a toothed whale, has only a single tooth. Toothed whales eat mainly squid.

Toothed whales are however predators i.e. they hunt for their food. Toothed whales may eat fish, seals, or sea lions.

Toothed whales often live together in groups called 'pods'. By living together in groups, toothed whales can hunt for food.

Some species, such as the orca or 'killer whale' have even been seen hunting sharks and humpback whales. Toothed whales produce sounds that can travel in the water. These sounds wave travels and bounce off to the objects in their path give the location to the whale.

From this, the whale can smell the size, shape, distance, and even speed of the object. Whales use echolocation and sounds which are very important because it helps whales navigate the ocean, especially in deep oceans, where they can hunt underwater and on the surface.

Toothed whale species also include dolphins and porpoises, and all porpoises and dolphins have teeth to consume their prey. The toothed whale with the biggest set of teeth is the sperm whale who has around 40-52 cone-shaped teeth, that are 4-8 in (10.16-20.32 cm) in length. However, it varies from species to species.

Toothed whales largely depend upon squid as their food and use echolocation. Toothed whales are often called killer whales as they hunt in pods.

Why do blue whales have hair instead of teeth?

All baleen whales have baleen instead of teeth. The baleen is made of keratin, which is also the same component that makes the hairs and fingernails of human beings.

The reason why the whales do not have full hair is still not clear to date. Baleen is like the soft hair structure present on the upper region of the mouth of the whales, like that of the humpback whale.

Most of the baleen whales possess hair follicles. The bumps which are present on the head of the humpback whale are known as tubercles and also contain a single hair.

Whales have a very small number of hairs, like 30-100 depending on the species. Baleen whales lack teeth but instead have baleen plates that contain bristles.

The bristles which the baleen whale has resemble the teeth present on the comb which are very thin, the thickness depends on the species of that particular whale. These whales catch prey by swimming towards prey and then opening their mouth wide enough to eat them.

These bristles form a filter when they intertwine.

The whales of this particular group got their name from their baleen 'Mysticeti'. The bristles present on the baleen let the water pass through them easily but trap the prey of the whale.

These large animals costume thousands of small creatures of marine life in one go. When the whale's food gets captured by the baleen plate of the whale, the whale can very easily bring the food into the mouth using its tongue.

As the baleen lets the water go, it saves the prey for the whale to eat. Scientists even call the filters of the baleen whales 'feeders' as they capture only the prey.

What are a whale's teeth called?

Whales use their teeth to attack their prey. Teeth are present in some whales, and by extension in all porpoises and dolphins. Toothed whales are classified into 65 distinct species. Toothed whales possess just one blowhole. They are smaller in size compared to baleen whales. The sperm whale is traditionally the largest toothed whale present.

The whales of this suborder tend to use their teeth in an unusual way. Some swallow their prey whole, while others chew it. Whales use their teeth to demonstrate their dominance. Whales have a variety of teeth.

Some whales have only two teeth, whereas others may have up to 240 or more. Some toothed whales possess teeth in both their lower and upper jaws. Other whales only have teeth in their lower jaws.

Toothed whales hunt with a variety of equipment. As they hunt, these whales create visual sceneries and produce vocal noises. Before attacking, they may crowd the victim into a close group.

Other whales like to swim beside a large prey group and grab the weakest one. Sperm whales can be called a species of toothed whales. These types of whales can dive very deep, up to 3,000 ft (914.4 m) into the seas to catch food.

When hunting, toothed whales utilize echolocation. They utilize echolocation to create noises that can be used to navigate underwater and search for food.

These whales produce noise by pushing air through the sinuses they have. When the noises strike an item, they reverberate through the whales' mouth and the middle ear. Whales are a huge, widely dispersed, and varied species of aquatic and placental marine animals.

Why do whales have baleen instead of teeth?

There are two types of whales found on earth, one with teeth and the other with baleen i.e. they do not have teeth. Both these species roam the oceans. Baleen whales, like the blue whale, lack teeth as a species. Baleen whales possess two enormous blowholes, which are considerably bigger than those of toothed whales.

Depending on the species of whale, some of the bristles are delicate and others are coarse. Blue whales are the most well-known baleen whales.

When the baleen whales pursue their food underwater, they swim towards it and keep their mouths spread wide. They can capture groups of tiny fish and even other small animals in this manner.

By pressing their mouths on the baleen bristles, the whales sift the animal out and throw the saltwater. The bristles efficiently prevent the animal from running away. Because of this behavior when baleen whales grab their prey, some scientists refer to them as 'filter feeders.'

Baleen whales cannot chew their prey since they lack teeth, instead, they tend to swallow the creatures whole underwater. For this reason, the whales hunt small animals.

The prey of the blue whale is about 2 in (5.08 cm) or less. The throats of baleen whales are very small, unlike toothed whales.

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