Blue whales · Small prey, enormous bodies

Exploration

Blue whales · Small prey, enormous bodies

Present-day Monterey Bay · Compared with Cenozoic baleen whale size change

Interpretive illustration of a modern blue whale and krill · Not a particular observation or reconstruction of an ancient gigantism event.

Starting with blue whales in present-day Monterey Bay, explore how concentrated prey and baleen filtration help sustain large bodies. Gigantism evolved in several lineages; its timing and causes cannot be reduced to one story.