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Flensing a
blue whale
1930's - Whales and Whaling pictures 64
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Such
images always remind me of Gulliver at the point where he is tied
down by the inhabitants of Lilliput. Fortunately for Gulliver
however, he did not suffer the fate of this great blue whale. The
chief flenser seen on the back of the whale has made the first cut
to remove the blubber blanket - the name given to the great sheet
of fatty tissue that effectively wraps the whale. This serves as
an enormous food store and also insulates the whale against the
icy cold Antarctic seas, unfortunately though, what is so valuable
to the whale is also its downfall as it is also so valuable to
man. The precariousness of the chief flensers
position can be seen well in this picture as can the thickness of
the whale's blubber blanket.
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