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The [[blue whale]], ''Balaenoptera musculus''
The [[blue whale]], ''Balaenoptera musculus''
(with 'musculus' meaning either, ''Very strong'', or ''Little mouse''), also known as the sulphur-bottomed whale (from its yellow underside - the colour coming from a coating of diatoms) or Sibbald's rorqual (after the [[Scotland|Scottish]] natural historian Robert Sibbald) is, at up to 110 feet in length and sometimes nearly 200 tons in weight, the largest animal known to have ever lived.
(with 'musculus' meaning either, ''Very strong'', or ''Little mouse''), also known as the sulphur-bottomed whale (from its yellow underside - the color coming from a coating of diatoms) or Sibbald's rorqual (after the [[Scotland|Scottish]] natural historian Robert Sibbald) is, at up to 110 feet in length and sometimes nearly 200 tons in weight, the largest animal known to have ever lived.
The blue whale feeds upon [[plankton]], particularly the [[euphausiid]] [[crustacean]] ''Euphausia superba'', otherwise known as [[krill]]. The krill itself feeds upon microscopic [[phytoplankton]]. This relationship represents the shortest complete [[food chain]] in nature.
The blue whale feeds upon [[plankton]], particularly the [[euphausiid]] [[crustacean]] ''Euphausia superba'', otherwise known as [[krill]]. The krill itself feeds upon microscopic [[phytoplankton]]. This relationship represents the shortest complete [[food chain]] in nature.