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Whale tails
South Burlington, Vermont

'Reverence' (Whales Tails)

A pair of black granite tails dive into a sea of grass in landlocked Vermont.
A transient killer whale power lunging—a hunting technique—off the California coast. A small subset of transient orcas specialize in taking down large marine mammals.
animals

Meet Outer Coast Killer Whales, Big Game Hunters of the Deep

Scientists say the animals have a distinct culture and vocal dialect, and specialize in taking down large prey.
Rochelle Baker November 8, 2021
Egypt is home to fossils that include a range of ancient marine animals, such as this early whale from Wadi al-Hitan, southwest of Cairo.
science

Meet the Egyptian Scientists Studying 'Ghosts' of the Desert

The country's extensive fossils include early ancestors of whales, the largest mammals on the planet.
Jessica Leigh Hester September 21, 2021
deserts

Podcast: Valley of the Whales

Join us for a daily celebration of the world’s most wondrous, unexpected, even strange places.
The Podcast Team July 7, 2021
animals

Podcast: Ubatuba Whale(s)

Join us for a daily celebration of the world’s most wondrous, unexpected, even strange places.
The Podcast Team June 21, 2021
Pianoro, Italy

La Balena della Val di Zena

A great white whale sculpture now sits in the location where the remains of a prehistoric cetacean were found.
The whale on the sign forms a heart with its spout
Florence, Oregon

Exploding Whale Memorial Park

Fifty years after a “blast blasted blubber beyond all believable bounds,” this idyllic natural area commemorates the carnage.
In non-pandemic times, the bar is packed for chantey night.
sailors

This Connecticut Inn Has Hosted Sea Chantey Singalongs for Half a Century

Landlubbers are very welcome.
Allison Hadley April 15, 2021
A whale chase depicted in the log of the ship <em>Washington</em> kept by James G. Coffin in the early 1840s.
animals

The Beautiful, Brutal World of Whaleship Art

The logbooks kept by 19th-century Nantucket whalers offer a colorful peek into the gruesome industry.
Jessica Boyall January 25, 2021
Orcas in the Pacific Northwest, such as this one off Vancouver Island, face numerous risks, including vessel strikes.
science

Orca Post-Mortems Tell the Story of a Population Facing Numerous Threats

The apex predators mean a great deal both ecologically and culturally.
Luna Shyr January 25, 2021
'Saved by a Whale’s Tail'
Spijkenisse, Netherlands

'Saved by a Whale’s Tail'

This unique sculpture proved invaluable when it saved a train from careening off the tracks.
A crew tackling the massive of task of dissecting a whale in Antarctica circa 1935.
animals

Over 200 Years, Humans Have Hunted Some of Antarctica's Animals Almost to Extinction

"We left the dead things, raw and meaty, lying on the beach," one sealer recalled.
Daniella McCahey and Alessandro Antonello December 8, 2020
Nigel Larkin and Phil Rye work on the right whale skeleton.
natural history museums

What It Takes to Dismantle and Move a 40-Foot Whale Skeleton

Including welding skills, knowledge of anatomy, and infinite patience.
Luna Shyr November 5, 2020
Captain George Pollard House
Nantucket, Massachusetts

Captain George Pollard House

The island home of an unlucky whaling captain whose story inspired a great American novel.
List

10 Wondrous, Waterless Whales

From massive, still-oozing skeletons to a behemoth made of thousands of pounds of recycled plastic.
Jessica Leigh Hester August 19, 2020
List

Fish Out of Water

From soaring sculptures to smoked spreads, here are 14 places to see aquatic life without getting wet.
Jessica Leigh Hester August 13, 2020
This aerial photograph shows the scale of sea ice environment where it meets the Arctic Ocean. Somewhere within this expanse of water, an umiaq must intercept a bowhead whale within 3 yards.
animals

As the Arctic Warms, the Iñupiat Adapt

"What choice do we have?"
Atlas Obscura August 6, 2020
Whalers Cabin in Point Lobos State Reserve.
Carmel-by-the-Sea, California

Whalers Cabin Museum

This cabin from the 1850s is one of the first structures built by Chinese immigrants in California.