Blue whales weighed up to 200 tons before whaling days. Sixty to 100 million years ago the ancestors of today's whales were land dwelling, warm-blooded, air breathing mammals who successfully returned to the seas to live. Alaskan waters boast 10 species of baleen whales and 5 toothed whales. Glacier Bay waters boast 2 of the baleen whales, the minke and humpback, and 1 toothed whale, the orca. The whales' appeal mixes familiarity and strangeness.
Whales live in family groups, aid each other in distress, and talk to each other.
Some serious observers credit whales with rational thought. Minke whales are thought to be quite migratory and are more at home in cold northern waters than most baleen whales. Cod and pollock are their main diet here. Farther south minkes favor krill. The upper size limit of minke whales in northern waters is 33 feet.