Body very large, up to 85 feet (25.9 m) long.[7] Body basically bluish with mottlings of grayish white. Baleen all black. Head broad and nearly U-shaped, viewed from above. Head flat in front of blowhole, viewed from side. Dorsal fin small (to 13 inches [33 cm]), triangular to moderately falcate, in the last one-third of back. Distribution primarily from temperate seas to pack ice; rare in tropics. Distribution more northerly during summer. Flukes occasionally raised slightly on long dive.
[Footnote 7: These figures are all near maximum sizes recorded for the North Atlantic. For all species which have historically been exploited by whale fisheries present maximum sizes may be significantly less than these figures.
It should also be noted that differences in methods of measurements often account for discrepancies in reported lengths.]
Body large, up to 79 feet (24 m) long. Body mostly dark gray or brownish gray; undersides of flukes and flippers and belly white; grayish-white chevron frequently on back behind head. Right lower lip white; right upper lip sometimes white; left lip dark. Head V-shaped, viewed from above. Right front one-third to one-fifth of baleen plates, yellowish white. Other baleen bluish gray with yellowish-white stripes. Dorsal fin to 24 inches (61 cm), slightly more than one-third forward from tail; forms angle of less than 40° with back. Distribution extensive but not very common near pack ice and in tropics. Distribution more northerly during summer. Flukes not raised on dive.
Body up to 62 feet (19 m) long. Body appears shiny; dark gray on back, often with ovoid grayish-white scars; white on front of belly; undersides of flippers and flukes dark. Baleen grayish or ash black with fine, light-gray bristles. Dorsal fin to 24 inches (61 cm), strongly falcate, well more than one-third forward from tail; forms angle of more than 40° with back. Distribution extensive; are not very common in cold waters and may have a greater tendency than fin whales to enter tropical waters. Distribution more northerly in summer. Flukes not raised on dive.
Body up to 46 feet (14 m) long. Body dark gray overall. Head has series of three ridges from area of blowhole to snout. Baleen slate gray with coarse dark bristles. Dorsal fin to 18 inches (45.7 cm), falcate, well more than one-third forward from tail, often irregularly worn on rear margin. Distribution primarily tropical and southern temperate. Flukes not raised on dive.