How Whales Breastfeed Underwater
By: EjazUlHaqBhat
Image: Pexels
Whales nurse their young underwater by having nipples concealed within mammary slits on their belly
Image: Pexels
When a calf is ready to feed, it dives underneath the mother and nudges the mammary slits, releasing the nipples
Image: Pexels
The mother then ejects milk into the calf's mouth, similar to an injection
Image: Pexels
Instead of sucking, the mother's muscles around the mammary glands contract, squeezing milk into the calf's mouth
Image: Pexels
As a general rule, whale milk is rich in fats and comes in very large quantities
Image: Pexels
The blue whale has the largest mammary glands on Earth - each is about 1.5 m long and weighs as much as a baby elephant
Image: Pexels
Blue whale mothers can produce 200 litres of milk per day with a fat content of 35-50%
Image: Pexels
This enables a blue whale calf to gain weight at the incredible rate of 100 kg per day
Image: Pexels
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