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Krill are shrimp-like arthropods that make up a large portion of the zooplankton in many regions of the ocean. Krill are near the base of the oceanic food web feeding on phytoplankton. In turn, enormous swarms of krill feed the largest creatures in the ocean: blue and other baleen whales, sea birds, squid, and fish.

Blue whales, the largest animals that ever lived, eat up to four tons of krill a day to fuel their huge bodies. In fact, krill – about two inches long –make up the majority of their diet. Blue and humpback, and other baleen whales, are filter feeders. They take in huge gulps of seawater dense with krill straining out the water though their baleen and then swallowing their catch.