Observing Whales. The Past, Present, and Future of Mysterious Giants

The book tells about the past, present, and future of perhaps the most mysterious creatures on Earth. About what the ancient, early whales looked like, how these land-dwelling animals transitioned to a marine lifestyle millions of years ago, we learn through fossils. The search for fossilized whale bones and work on the anatomical description of existing species brought the author to various points around the globe: from the Atacama Desert in Chile, where the largest ancient whale graveyard in the world - Cerro Ballena - was discovered, to a whaling station in Iceland, from Arctic to Antarctic seas.
Whales remain mysterious creatures. We know very little about them, far too little, but the geological scales of their lives and the parameters of their bodies fascinate us. Moreover, they communicate with each other in incomprehensible languages. They have culture, just like us. Outstanding whale expert Nick Pyenson answers questions about where whales came from, how they live today, and what will happen to them in the age of humans - a new era that some scientists call the Anthropocene.