Dictionary

flue whale en · NOUN

Etymology

Blend of fin whale + blue whale.

Meanings

1. A hybrid of a fin whale and a blue whale.
   • Calambokidis, who has spent more than 50 years studying cetaceans, suspects Whale 52 may be a hybrid: part blue whale, part fin whale. Such a creature, often called a flue whale, is growing more common as warming seas push blues into new breeding grounds, where they are increasingly likely to mate with their fin relatives. 2025 April 2, Avery Schuyler Nunn, “What ‘the world’s loneliest whale’ may be telling us about climate change”, in Grist, archived from the original on 05 Apr 2025:
   • What does a hybrid whale look like? Sometimes nicknamed “flue whale” (a combination of the words “fin” and “blue”), these hybrids can present traits of both parent species. 2024 April 11, Odélie Brouillette, “Unravelling the Mysteries of Hybridization in Blue Whales”, in Whales Online, archived from the original on 17 Jun 2025:
   • Experts have floated some theories around this whale’s dulcet tones: does it have some malformation that makes its voice higher than other whales? Or could it be a hybrid of two species – perhaps it’s a flue whale, the offspring of a blue and fin whale? 2026 February 3, Melissa Hobson, “The US Navy detected a strange sound in the ocean. These scientists think it could be coming from the loneliest animal on the planet”, in BBC Wildlife Magazine, archived from the original on 10 Feb 2026:

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