Balaenoptera musculus

(Linnaeus, 1758)

Blue Whale

Taxonomy

Subclass : Theria
Infraclass : Placentalia
Magnorder : Boreoeutheria
Superorder : Laurasiatheria
Order : Artiodactyla
Suborder : Whippomorpha
Infraorder : Cetacea
Parvorder : Mysticeti
Family : Balaenopteridae
Genus : Balaenoptera

Species status

Living
Found in the wild
Listed in MSW3 2005

Authority citation

Linnaeus, C. 1758-01-01. Systema Naturæ per Regna Tria Naturæ, Secundum Classes, Ordines, Genera, Species, cum Characteribus, Differentiis, Synonymis, Locis. Tomus I. Editio Decima, Reformata. Laurentii Salvii, Stockholm, 823 pp.

Authority publication link

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/25033887

Original name as described

Balaena Musculus

Other common names

Blue Rorqual · Sibbald's Rorqual · Sulphur-bottom Whale · Northern Blue Whale · Pygmy Blue Whale · Antarctic Blue Whale · Southern Blue Whale · Northern Indian Ocean Blue Whale

Type material

lost (number not known)

Type kind

nonexistent

Type locality

"Habitat in mari Scotico" (Scotland, United Kingdom).

Biogeographic realm

Marine

Country distribution

Angola · Argentina · Australia · Bangladesh · Bermuda · Brazil · Cape Verde · Canada · Chile · Cocos Islands · Colombia · Comoros · Cook Islands · Costa Rica · Djibouti · Ecuador · El Salvador · Falkland Islands · Fiji · France · Greenland · Guatemala · Iceland · India · Indonesia · Iran · Ireland · Iraq · Japan · Kenya · Kiribati · Madagascar · Malaysia · Christmas Island · Maldives · Mauritania · Mauritius · Mexico · Morocco · Mozambique · Myanmar · Namibia · Nauru · New Caledonia · New Zealand · Nicaragua · Norfolk Island · Norway · Oman · Pakistan · Palau · Panama · Papua New Guinea · Peru · Philippines · Portugal · Azores · Madeira · Russia · Réunion · Senegal · Seychelles · Solomon Islands · Somalia · South Africa · South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands · Spain · Canary Islands · Sri Lanka · Tanzania · Thailand · East Timor · Tuvalu · United Kingdom · United States · Uruguay · Vanuatu · Yemen · Gabon? · North Korea? · South Korea? · Taiwan? · China?

Subregion distribution

USA(CA,OR,HI,AK)

IUCN Red List status

Endangered

Species Permalink

https://www.mammaldiversity.org/taxon/1006401

Country distribution map

The map below provides a general overview. Most species inhabit only specific regions within countries. Known distribution is shown in green and predicted distribution is in yellow. Hover over the highlighted regions to see the country name.

Names and synonyms

Present and past (if available) associated names to the species. Click on a name to view its details. If the list is long, scroll down to see more.

Physalus latirostris

(W. H. Flower, 1865)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

latirostris

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

available

Type

BMNH (number not known)

Type kind

holotype

Authority page

414

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/28500739

Authority publication

Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London

Physalus (Rorqualus) Sibbaldii

(J. E. Gray, 1847)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

sibbaldii

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

available

Type

BMNH:Mamm:1865.8.23.1 (= BMNH:Mamm:1465a)

Type kind

holotype

Type specimen URI

https://data.nhm.ac.uk/object/c2540914-83c2-4af0-bd22-a8998757a41e https://data.nhm.ac.uk/object/f5375a82-e82c-46a4-9c52-f5420035dba5

Authority page

92

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/12862876

Authority publication

Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London

Name usages

  1. True (1885:591, https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/7306385) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/35039)
  2. Mead & Brownell (2005) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/9684)

Balaena Musculus

(Linnaeus, 1758)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

musculus

Validity status

species

Nomenclatural status

available

Type

lost (number not known)

Type kind

nonexistent

Authority page

76

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/25033887

Authority publication

Stockholm

Name usages

Erxleben (1777:609, https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/15873406) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/36060)

Balaenoptera miramaris

Lahille, 1899

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

miramaris

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

available

Type

MLP 1199

Type kind

holotype

Authority page

119

Authority publication

Revista del Museo de La Plata

Name usages

Lahille (1899:198, https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/35147064) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/37834)

Balaenoptera indica

E. Blyth, 1859

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

indica

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

available

Type

ZSI 19400

Type kind

holotype

Authority page

488

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/40263740

Authority publication

Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal

Name usages

Blyth (1863:93, https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/47534774) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/37155)

Physalus musculus

(Billberg, 1827)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

musculus

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

name_combination

Authority page

41

Authority publication

Stockholm

Name usages

Billberg (1827:41) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67228)

Balœnoptera musculus

Lesson, 1842

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

musculus

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

name_combination

Authority page

202

Authority publication

Paris

Name usages

Lesson (1842:202) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/36812)

Balaenoptera musculus

Lahille, 1899

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

musculus

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

name_combination

Authority page

197

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/35147063

Authority publication

Primera Reunión del Congreso Científico Latino Americano

Name usages

  1. Lahille (1899:197, https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/35147063) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/37834)
  2. Davies (1963:112) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/42155)
  3. Corbet & Hill (1980:113) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/63069)
  4. Honacki, Kinman & Koeppl (1982:303) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/63071)
  5. Mead & Brownell (2005) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/9684)
  6. O'Brien, Menninger & Nash (2006:562) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/7321)
  7. Mittermeier & Wilson (2014:203) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67175)
  8. Mammal Diversity Database (2018:ID #2477) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67336)
  9. Mammal Diversity Database (2019:ID #2477) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67337)
  10. Mammal Diversity Database (2024, https://www.mammaldiversity.org/taxon/1006401) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67250)
  11. Schmidly, Bradley, Yancey & Bradley (2024:57) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67259)
  12. International Union for the Conservation of Nature (2024, https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/2477/156923585) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67246)

Sibbaldus musculus

(V. O. Bailey, 1936)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

musculus

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

name_combination

Authority page

341

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/25806274

Authority publication

North American Fauna

Name usages

Bailey (1936:341, https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/25806274) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/35313)

Balaenoptera musculus indica

Mead & Brownell, 2005

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

indica

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

name_combination

Authority publication

Baltimore

Name usages

Mead & Brownell (2005) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/9684)

Balaenoptera musculus intermedia

Mead & Brownell, 2005

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

intermedia

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

name_combination

Authority publication

Baltimore

Name usages

  1. Mead & Brownell (2005) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/9684)
  2. Mittermeier & Wilson (2014:203) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67175)

Balaenoptera musculus musculus

Mead & Brownell, 2005

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

musculus

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

name_combination

Authority publication

Baltimore

Name usages

  1. Mead & Brownell (2005) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/9684)
  2. Mittermeier & Wilson (2014:203) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67175)

Balaenoptera jubartes

de Lacépède, 1804

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

jubartes

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

available

Authority page

xxxvii, 120

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/51130821 https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/51130952

Authority publication

Paris

Name usages

Lesson (1827:427, https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/54207894) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/36839)

Balaena jubartes

(G. Fischer, 1814)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

jubartes

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

name_combination

Authority page

xxii, 660

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/29130083 https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/29130747

Authority publication

Moscow

Name usages

Fischer (1814:xxii, 660, https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/29130083, https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/29130747) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/12226)

Balaena borealis

(J. B. Fischer, 1829)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

borealis

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

preoccupied

Authority page

524

Authority publication

Stuttgart

Balaena boops

(F. S. Voigt, 1831)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

boops

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

misidentification

Authority page

342

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/27950086

Authority publication

Leipzig

Balaenoptera rorqual

Dewhurst, 1832

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

rorqual

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

preoccupied

Authority page

214

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/2301244

Authority publication

Magazine of Natural History

Rorqualus Boops

(F. Cuvier, 1836)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

boops

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

preoccupied

Authority page

321; Plate 20, Fig. 1

Authority publication

Paris

Rorqualis borealis

(R. Hamilton, 1837)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

borealis

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

misidentification

Authority page

125

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/57246642

Authority publication

Edinburgh

Balaena maximus borealis

(Knox, 1838)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

borealis

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

name_combination

Authority page

5

Authority publication

book

Balaenoptera gigas

J. T. Reinhardt, 1857

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

gigas

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

available

Authority page

10

Authority publication

Copenhagen

Pterobalaena gigas

(P. J. Van Beneden, 1861)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

gigas

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

preoccupied

Authority page

37

Authority publication

Mémoires de l'Académie Royale des Sciences, des Lettres et des Beaux-Arts de Belgique

Name usages

Mead & Brownell (2005) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/9684)

Sibbaldus borealis

(J. E. Gray, 1864)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

borealis

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

preoccupied

Authority page

223

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/28500524

Authority publication

Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London

Balaenoptera Carolinae

A. W. Malm, 1866

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

carolinae

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

available

Authority page

10

Authority publication

Göteborg

Sibbaldius antarcticus

(Burmeister, 1866)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

antarctica

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

preoccupied

Authority page

713

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/28497710

Authority publication

Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London

Balaenoptera gigas

W. Lilljeborg, 1866

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

gigas

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

subsequent_usage

Authority page

262

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/32540852

Authority publication

London

Sibbaldius sulfureus

(Cope, 1869)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

sulfurea

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

available

Authority page

20

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/6587925

Authority publication

Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia

Name usages

  1. True (1885:591, https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/7306385) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/35039)
  2. Mead & Brownell (2005) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/9684)

Rorqualus major

(F. J. Knox, 1870)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

major

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

nomen_novum · preoccupied

Authority page

21, 23; Plate 2, Fig. 1

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/34428557

Authority publication

Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute

Name usages

Mead & Brownell (2005) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/9684)

Balaenoptera intermedia

Burmeister, 1871

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

intermedia

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

available

Authority page

xii

Authority publication

Boletín del Museo Público de Buenos Aires

Pterobalaena Gryphus

(Münter, 1877)

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

gryphus

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

available

Authority page

1

Authority publication

Mitteilungen aus dem Naturwissenschaftlichen Verein von Neu-Vorpommern und Rügen

Balaenoptera Sibbaldi

P. J. Van Beneden, 1887

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

sibbaldi

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

incorrectsubsequentspelling

Authority page

6, 13, 107

Authority publication

Mémoires Couronnés et des Savants Étrangers de l'Académie Royale des Sciences, Lettres et Beaux-Arts de Belgique

Name usages

Lahille (1899:197, https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/35147063) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/37834)

Balaenoptera musculus brevicauda

Zemsky & Boronin, 1964

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

brevicauda

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

nomen_nudum

Authority page

310

Authority publication

Norsk Hvalfangst-Tidende

Balaenoptera musculus brevicauda

Ichihara, 1966

Family

Balaenopteridae

Root name

brevicauda

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

available

Authority publication

book

Name usages

  1. Mead & Brownell (2005) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/9684)
  2. Mittermeier & Wilson (2014:203) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67175)

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