Arianna Baptiste, Pauline J. Petway Elementary School
Cumberland County Winner
Species on the Edge Art and Essay Contest winner. Humpback whale. Arianna Baptiste
My Life as a Humpback Whale
Have you ever heard of a humpback whale? Well I am one. My name is Wolly J. and I swim with my family, the world famous Wilson Pod. You can find us in oceans and seas all over the world.
I should probably tell you a little bit about myself. I am a very large mammal. I'm about 50 feet long and about 80,000 pounds. I have a fin on my back, long flippers on my body, and a tail called a fluke. Even though I look navy blue, my body is black on my top side, and white underneath.
Now, let's eat. I like to eat krill and small fish. We use bubble net feeding to catch our food. I blow bubbles under the fish. Then, I swim up through the bubbles with my mouth wide open. I swallow thousands of fish in one gulp. YUMMY!
Remember I told you that I swim with the world famous Wilson Pod. We are a singing group. We sing long beautiful songs by squeaking, grunting, and making other sounds. We force air through our nose to make music. The singing is what makes us famous.
When I am having fun swimming and singing, I have to be careful in the ocean. I'm an endangered species. There are whalers that harpoon us and take us out of the ocean. There are loud explosions that cause injuries to our ears. We also get caught in fishing gear and are unable to escape. My family members die every year because of this.
Please help us by telling your friends and family to keep our oceans clean and to help stop the whaling. Keep us alive so we can make our beautiful music.
Arianna Baptiste
Pauline J. Petway Elementary School
Vineland,NJ
Teacher: Ms. Sheri Andersen