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What is the Heaviest Heart?

Published in Animal Biology 1 min read

The heaviest heart belongs to the blue whale, weighing approximately 400 pounds.

Understanding Heart Weight

It's interesting to consider not just the heaviest heart, but also how heart size relates to body size.

The Blue Whale's Heart

  • The blue whale's heart is an impressive organ, weighing around 400 pounds.
  • Despite its size, it's not the size of a small car, as some people believe.
  • This massive heart is needed to pump blood throughout the blue whale's enormous body.

Heart to Body Mass Ratio

While the blue whale has the absolute heaviest heart, it's important to understand the concept of heart-to-body-mass ratio.

  • The animal with the largest heart-to-body-mass ratio is the dog.
  • This means that, proportionally, a dog's heart is larger compared to its overall body size than that of many other animals, including the blue whale.
Animal Heart Weight (approx.) Interesting Fact
Blue Whale 400 pounds Heaviest heart in the animal kingdom
Dog Varies Largest heart-to-body-mass ratio

Conclusion

The blue whale has the heaviest heart by weight. However, the animal with the highest heart-to-body mass ratio is the dog.