Killer Whale Under Water Swimming

Why can whale hold their breath for so long? There are a few things that play in whales’ favor when it comes to holding their breath underwater. They have a very efficient respiratory system where their lungs can make the most out of each breath, giving them the ability to stay underwater for hours at a time. For perspective, humans breathe around 12-20 times per minute when resting, but only absorb 5% of the oxygen in a single breath. Compare this to a whale who can absorb as much as 90% of the oxygen in each breath. This means that a whale acquires much more oxygen than a human in a single breath to start with.

Whales’ lungs have the ability to store oxygen in a special protein found in muscles called myoglobin. They also conserve energy underwater by slowing their heart rate and limiting blood supply to only a few organs.