Beluga whale
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An illustration based on the real animal.
A little discovery to share.
A beluga can bend its neck and move its head from side to side.
THE REAL WORLD
The real Beluga whale
- Scientific name
- Delphinapterus leucas
- Japanese name
- シロイルカ（ベルーガ）
- Group
- Ocean animals
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Artiodactyla
- Family
- Monodontidae
- Genus
- Delphinapterus
Where the name “Beluga whale” comes from
Its genus name, Delphinapterus, means a dolphin without a fin.
NOAA FisheriesIt lives in the cold seas of the Arctic and nearby areas. It has a thick layer of fat under its skin and a chunky body.
Young ones are gray and turn white as they grow. It has no dorsal fin, which makes it easier to swim in icy waters.
It makes many different sounds, such as whistles, so it is called the 'canary of the sea'.
How the Beluga whale lives
It uses sound to navigate and find prey. It sucks in prey and swallows most of its food whole. In summer, some populations rub against coarse gravel in shallow water to shed old skin.
NOAA FisheriesUniversity of Michigan Animal Diversity WebBasic data
- Range
- The Arctic and surrounding regions
Where the Beluga whale has been recorded
Records: GBIF.org (CC0 and CC BY 4.0 records, retrieved 2026-11-07). Map: Natural EarthSee the records on GBIF
Watch wild animals from a distance. Do not touch or feed them, and take care of the places where they live.
Names around the world
- 日本語
- シロイルカ（ベルーガ）
- 简体中文
- 白鲸
- 繁體中文
- 白鯨
- 한국어
- 흰고래
- Español
- Beluga
- Français
- Bélouga
- Deutsch
- Weißwal
- Português (Brasil)
- Baleia-branca
- Italiano
- Beluga
- العربية
- حوت أبيض
- Bahasa Indonesia
- Paus Beluga
- Tiếng Việt
- Cá voi trắng
- Русский
- Белуха
- Türkçe
- Beyaz balina
- ไทย
- วาฬเบลูกา
- বাংলা
- বেলুগা তিমি
- اردو
- بیلوگا وھیل
Names come from Wikidata and iNaturalist records. Where a language has no recorded name, we use the scientific name.
Sources and how we check
- 名古屋港水族館 — ベルーガChecked: 2026-11-03
- NOAA Fisheries — Beluga whaleChecked: 2026-11-03
- University of Michigan Animal Diversity Web — Delphinapterus leucasChecked: 2026-11-03
We check each fact against its source. The illustrations simplify how the real animal looks.
The classification (class, order, family, genus) follows Wikidata records, checked against GBIF. Classifications can change as research goes on.
The basic data are the values given in each source. They vary with how the animal is measured, whether it is male or female, and whether it lives in the wild or in captivity.
This page was translated from the original Japanese with the help of AI.
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