That beluga whale certainly doesn't have legs. Here's what it does have.

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Beluga whales aren't hiding legs under their thick, rubbery skin. But a popular image of a surfacing beluga has for years created the curious illusion of a whale with legs and knees. 

The image, which excites the web from time to time, has recently turned up again. These symmetrical, bone-like features surely aren't legs, but they do serve an important purpose for the marine mammals, which naturally reside in frigid Arctic and sub-Arctic waters.

It's blubber. Specifically, long "rails" of extra fatty insulation the mammals store on their sides. Read more...

More about Science, Ocean, Whales, Biology, and Investigation


via Zero Tech Blog

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