The Beluga or White Whale, Delphinapterus, has another name that you might hardly expect to find applied to a whale. This animal is sometimes called the "sea canary" because it actually makes trilling sounds when it is under the water! The animal's utterances may be described as resonant whistles, squels, and bell-like tones, varied with tickings and clickings, which sound like an orchestra tuning up. At home in the coastal waters of the Arctic and Subarctic seas, the white whale also travels up rivers far above the pull of the tide. It has been observed a number of times in the lower St. Lawrence River, and can be readily recognized by its white skin and the absence of a dorsal fin. Full-grown males average 12 or 14 feet in length. These animals are fast in the water and can speed up to 6 miles per hour. They feed on squid and prawns and will take salmon when the fish enter the rivers in the spring. The name "beluga," which the Russians give to the white whale, comes from their word for "white." This species is one of the few whales that have a distinct neck, and it is capable of turning its head to some extent. It has ten teeth on each side of the upper jaw and eight on each side of the lower. The animal is placed in the family Monodontidae, with the narwhal, since it has many of the same characteristics as that curious creature.