Bowhead whale is a large whale that lives in the Arctic Ocean. Male bowheads grow up to about 60 feet (18 meters) in length, and females are slightly larger. The bowhead whale is black with patches of white on the chin. Some bowhead whales have white patches on the belly, and whitish rings around the flippers or tail. Like the closely related black right whale, the bowhead has a flat, wide, finless back. Bowhead whales were called Greenland right whales by early American whalers.