Balaenoptera

Balaenoptera; Temporal range: Neogene—Recent
	Fin Whale
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Artiodactyla
Suborder:	Whippomorpha
Infraorder:	Cetacea
Parvorder:	Mysticeti
Family:	Balaenopteridae
Subfamily:	Balaenopterinae
Genus:	Balaenoptera; Lacépède, 1758
Species
	See text

Balaenoptera (from Latin balaena 'whale', and Ancient Greek πτερά (Template:Grc-transl) 'fin') is the largest genus of the rorquals, containing eight extant species, including the recently discovered Balaenoptera omurai in 2003. The only two rorquals which are currently not classified as members of the genus Balaenoptera are the humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) and the gray whale (Eschritius robustus).

Species

Extant species

Common minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata)
- North Atlantic minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata acutorostrata)
- North Pacific minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata scammoni)
Antarctic minke whale (Balaenoptera bonaerensis)
Sei whale (Balaenoptera borealis)
- Northern sei whale (Balaenoptera borealis borealis)
- Southern sei whale (Balaenoptera borealis schlegelii)
Bryde's whale (Balaenoptera edeni)
- Offshore Bryde's whale (Balaenoptera brydei or Balaenoptera edeni brydei) (taxonomy disputed)
- Eden's whale (Balaenoptera edeni edeni)
Blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) — the largest animal in the world that has ever existed
- Northern blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus musculus)
- Antarctic blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus intermedia)
- Northern Indian Ocean blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus indica)
- Pygmy blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus brevicauda)
Omura's whale (Balaenoptera omurai)
Fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus)
- Pygmy fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus patachonica)
- North Atlantic fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus physalus)
- Southern fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus quoyi)
- North Pacific fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus velifera)
Rice's whale (Balaenoptera ricei)

Fossil species

†Balaenoptera bertae
†Balaenoptera cephalus
†Balaenoptera colcloughi
†"Balaenoptera" cortesii
†Balaenoptera davidsonii
†"Balaenoptera" portisi
†"Balaenoptera" ryani
†Balaenoptera siberi
†Balaenoptera sursiplana
†Balaenoptera taiwanica

Gallery

References

↑ "List of marine mammal species and subspecies". Society for Marine Mammalogy. May 2020. Archived from the original on July 14, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2020.

Other websites

Media related to Balaenoptera at Wikimedia Commons

Data related to Balaenoptera at Wikispecies

[1] "List of marine mammal species and subspecies". Society for Marine Mammalogy. May 2020. Archived from the original on July 14, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2020.