bowhead

American  

[boh-hed] / ˈboʊˌhɛd /

noun

1. a baleen whale, Balaena mysticetus, of northern seas, having an enormous head and mouth: an endangered species.

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bowhead British  

/ ˈbəʊˌhɛd /

noun

1. a large-mouthed arctic whale, Balaena mysticetus , that has become rare through overfishing but is now a protected species

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Etymology

Origin of bowhead

First recorded in 1885–90; bow ² + head

Example Sentences

Other whale species include North Pacific gray whales, the North Atlantic right whale, minke, sperm, fin and bowhead whales.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 25, 2025

Scientists currently assume they live about 80 or 90 years, but that’s what we believed about bowhead and right whales until data proved they can live much longer.

From Salon • Dec. 27, 2024

Like bowhead and right whales, these were also almost wiped out by whaling.

From Salon • Dec. 27, 2024

There's also concern that Indigenous harvests of bowhead whale could be impacted.

From Science Daily • Feb. 21, 2024

Though two separate columns sometimes may be visible under windless conditions in the blows of most mysticetes, this feature is exaggerated and is most characteristic in the bowhead and right whales.

From Whales, Dolphins, and Porpoises of the Western North Atlantic A Guide to Their Identification by Caldwell, David