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[[File:Antarctic Minke Whale.jpg|250px|left]]
[[File:Douglas Mawson 1914a.jpg|250px|left]]
The '''[[minke whale]]''' is a species of minke whale within the suborder of baleen whales. It is the second smallest rorqual after the common minke whale and the third smallest baleen whale. Although first scientifically described in the mid-19th century, it was not recognized as a distinct species until the 1990s. Once ignored by the [[whaling]] industry due to its small size and low oil yield, the [[Antarctica|Antarctic]] minke was able to avoid the fate of other baleen whales and maintained a large population into the 21st century, numbering in the hundreds of thousands. Surviving to become the most abundant baleen whale in the world, it is now one of the mainstays of the industry alongside its cosmopolitan counterpart the common minke. It is primarily restricted to the Southern Hemisphere (although vagrants have been reported in the North Atlantic) and feeds mainly on euphausiids.
Sir '''[[Douglas Mawson]]''' was an Australian geologist, [[Antarctic]] explorer, and academic. Along with [[Roald Amundsen]], [[Robert Falcon Scott]], and Sir [[Ernest Shackleton]], he was a key expedition leader during the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration. The Mawson Station in the [[Australian Antarctic Territory]] is named in his honor.


Antarctic minke whales are the main prey item of Type A [[Orca|killer whales]] in the Southern Ocean. Their remains have been found in the stomachs of killer whales caught by the Soviets, while individuals caught by the Japanese exhibited damaged flippers with tooth rake scars and parallel scarring on the body suggestive of killer whale attacks. Large groups of killer whales have also been observed chasing, attacking, and even killing Antarctic minke whales.
Mawson turned down an invitation to join [[Robert Falcon Scott]]'s [[Terra Nova Expedition]] in 1910; Australian geologist Griffith Taylor went with Scott instead. Mawson chose to lead his own expedition, the Australasian Antarctic Expedition, to King [[George V Land]], and [[Adélie Land]], the sector of the Antarctic continent immediately south of Australia, which at the time was almost entirely unexplored. The objectives were to carry out geographical exploration and scientific studies, including a visit to the [[South Magnetic Pole]]. Mawson raised the necessary funds in a year, from British and Australian governments, and from commercial backers interested in mining and [[whaling]].


'''([[Minke whale|Full Article...]])'''
'''([[Douglas Mawson|Full Article...]])'''

Revision as of 00:26, 3 April 2025

Douglas Mawson 1914a.jpg

Sir Douglas Mawson was an Australian geologist, Antarctic explorer, and academic. Along with Roald Amundsen, Robert Falcon Scott, and Sir Ernest Shackleton, he was a key expedition leader during the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration. The Mawson Station in the Australian Antarctic Territory is named in his honor.

Mawson turned down an invitation to join Robert Falcon Scott's Terra Nova Expedition in 1910; Australian geologist Griffith Taylor went with Scott instead. Mawson chose to lead his own expedition, the Australasian Antarctic Expedition, to King George V Land, and Adélie Land, the sector of the Antarctic continent immediately south of Australia, which at the time was almost entirely unexplored. The objectives were to carry out geographical exploration and scientific studies, including a visit to the South Magnetic Pole. Mawson raised the necessary funds in a year, from British and Australian governments, and from commercial backers interested in mining and whaling.

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