bowhead whale

noun

bow·​head whale ˈbō-ˌhed- How to pronounce bowhead whale (audio)
variants or bowhead
: a very large baleen whale (Balaena mysticetus of the family Balaenidae) of cold waters of the northern hemisphere that is related to the right whales, may reach a length of 45 to 60 feet (13.5 to 18 meters), and has an extremely large head with an arched lower jaw

Examples of bowhead whale in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Orcas have also been observed working in groups to push animals off ice floes, kill a bowhead whale and even take down a blue whale, writes National Geographic. Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 Mar. 2024 These include such animals as the bowhead whale—with its 200-year lifespan—and the naked mole rat—which can live 30 years, while similar rodents live just a few. Tim Newcomb, Popular Mechanics, 2 Aug. 2023 In the course of his career, George continued monitoring the bowhead whale population. Alena Naiden, Anchorage Daily News, 11 July 2023 And Nicklen’s photograph of a bowhead whale represents to him one of our greatest allies in decarbonization: not only are whales’ bodies enormous stores of carbon, their feces fuels phytoplankton which soak up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Nell Lewis, CNN, 29 Mar. 2023 The largest outlier is the bowhead whale. Jack Tamisiea, Scientific American, 31 Jan. 2023 Polar bears usually prey on seals, though a significant portion of the Southern Beaufort Sea population has come to depend on bowhead whale scraps left on beach sites after Iñupiat hunters butcher their harvests. Yereth Rosen, Anchorage Daily News, 24 Dec. 2022 But in November, just two days before Thanksgiving, a Cessna Caravan arrived in the Inupaiq community of Anaktuvuk Pass up in the Brooks Range carrying more than 2,000 pounds of bowhead whale. Zachariah Hughes, Anchorage Daily News, 4 Dec. 2022 At the other extreme, some specimens of bowhead whale appear to be more than 120 years old, judging from the age of harpoons lodged in their flesh. George Church, Discover Magazine, 16 Oct. 2012

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bowhead whale.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1869, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of bowhead whale was in 1869

Dictionary Entries Near bowhead whale

Cite this Entry

“Bowhead whale.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bowhead%20whale. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

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