Whales are huge animals that look very much like fish.  However, whales are definitely not fish.  They belong to the group of animals called mammals.  Dogs, monkeys, elephants, and human beings are examples of other mammals.  Mammals have highly developed brains and are the most intelligent animals in the world. 

One particular type of whale is the largest of all animals on Earth.  Others are only three to five meters long, still pretty big for a sea creature. You will learn more about whales as you investigate the selected sites.

Some common facts about whales are:

• A whale's tail is horizontal as opposed the tail of a fish which is vertical.
• Whales have lungs just like us and must surface to breathe.  Some whales can hold their breath for over an hour.
• Just as any other mammal, whales give birth to live young .
• Baby whales nurse by drinking mother's milk produced by the mother whale's body. Most fish, on the other hand lay eggs and don't feed their young.
• Whales, just like other mammals, are warm-blooded.  Their body temperature remains about the same at all times.  Fish are cold-blooded.  Their body temperatures are the same as the temperature of the water they are in.

Selected sites:
 

• http://whales.magna.com.au/HISTORY/kill.html
• http://www.antarctic.com.au/encyclopaedia/bio/Whales.html
• http://www.antarctic.com.au/encyclopaedia/hist/HistWhale.html
• http://www.antarctic.com.au/encyclopaedia/bio/Whaling.html
• http://www.whalingmuseum.org/whaling.htm
• http://www.mtn.co.za/whaleroute/historyofwhaling.html
• http://www.umassd.edu/SpecialPrograms/DFinnerty/Whaling.html
• http://www.oldtrail.org/Linked/Whaling/Whaling.html#2
• http://www.kwm.org/collections/exhibits/heroes/home.htm
• http://www.kwm.org/home.htm
• http://whales.magna.com.au/faq/index.html#002
• http://www.whalingmuseum.org/bounty.htm
• http://new-brunswick.net/new-brunswick/whales/tides.html
• http://new-brunswick.net/new-brunswick/whales/
• http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/Trails/1551/whales.htm
• http://www.fundynet.com/Fauna/WhaleRpts/orca/
• http://www.dti-web.com/ecosystems/watch.html

The above sites are there to assist you in your investigation.  Many of the sites link to yet other sites so you will have to remember to bookmark any sites that you find useful so that you can refer to them when necessary.

Activity 1:

 1.  How long has man been involved in whale hunting?  Locate information about the earliest whale hunters.  What did they kill whales for?  What parts of the world were involved?  (You may want to scan each site to see what they are about.)  Trace the history of whaling using a time line, outline, or series of short paragraphs.  Your team must make this visual aid large enough to be seen by the rest of the class.

Other suggestions:  You are not limited to the above mentioned methods for documenting your work. You may do a Power Point presentation or a video taped report/skit/interview about the history of whaling.  You decide on the method.

Back to selected sites

 2.  I bet that you did not know that African Americans played a very important role in the whaling industry in this country.  As you explore the following site  http://www.kwm.org/collections/exhibits/heroes/home.htm.
answer the questions below.  Each member of the team should answer some of the questions and be able to report to the class.There are no other sites listed that deal with this subject.  Feel free to explore other sites that are relevant.  Click on the images to enlarge them.

Some subjects that you might want to explore:

• Who was Paul Cuffe?  Why was he so important to the whaling industry?
• Where did all of these African American whalers come from?  Where any of them from the USA?
• What were some of the duties of a whaler?  What might he be expected to do?
• What was done to a whale after it was caught?  Make sure you click on the links since they will give you more information.
• Besides Paul Cuffe, were there any other men that rose to prominence in the whaling industry?
• How did whalers pass the time when not processing whales?  Describe some of the things they did especially SCRIMSHAW. Perhaps you could provide a sample of your own by carving a bar of soap into a whaling related item.  Again, don't forget that Ms. Meredith is available to you for advice/assistance.
• What else did whalers do to while away the many hours in which they did nothing?
• How did Lewis Temple's invention revolutionize the whaling industry?  Check out the selected bibliography about Lewis Temple and the whaling industry.  One of you might try to locate one or more of these books on the public library shelves.  Taking one out and reporting on it will earn extra credit for yourself and for your team.
• What hardships did whaling voyages cause on those men that had families?  Were all of the men married?  Did any of the women go with them?
• What was Bequia?  Why was it important?  Check out the bibliography link.  Extra credit may be earned by locating and reporting on any of the listed books.

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Research the following topics with your team members:

• What are some products that have been made from whales?  You need to find some of the older uses and compare them with how they are used today. 
• What was the main product produced from whaling?  What did man replace it with?  what effect did this have on the industry?
• What countries still hunt whales?  Why?  What products are produced?  Do we need whales to produce these things?
• What types of whales do these countries hunt and kill?  Why? 

Back to selected sites

Activity 4:
 

• How have whaling techniques changed over the centuries?  List all of the changes or improvements that you can find.  Document how these changes improved the whaling industry? Create a model of any invention you find.(harpoon etc...)

Back to selected sites

Activity 5: 
 

Search through the sites and list as many different types of whales you can find.  List them in some sort of order such as size, weight, type etc...Make sure you list length, weight, physical characteristics, and what each was used for.  By physical characteristics I mean things such as what makes a blue whale different from an Orca etc.
 

• Where are these whales found?
• How many of each type are left?
• Were you suprised about some of the animals classified as whales?
• What is the scientific name for whales?

Activity 6:

Recently we read and discussed the Bay of Fundy and the coast of Maine.  One of the many activities that people have gotten involved in is whale watching.

• Just what is whale watching?  What is involved?
• What sort of whales can be seen off the coast of Maine and in/near the Bay of Fundy?
• What are the largest whales spotted?which are the smallest?
• What type of whale is most commonly seen?

• What comes out of the whale's body when he surfaces?  If you say water you are only partially correct. 
• What is the correct name for the hole that he breathes through?

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