Whales

Blue whales produce sounds that travel 1,200 miles.

That's the farthest away of any animal on earth. The crazy thing is, you can't hear the noise. "The low-pitch sounds can reach 15 hertz," says Dave Mellinger, associate professor at Oregon State University, "while the human ear can detect noises only as low as 20 hertz." The blue whale's massive size—it's the largest animal on earth, surpassing any dinosaur that ever lived—allows it to produce sounds that are louder and lower in frequency than their fellow ocean dwellers.  

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Watch footage of a blue whale in this clip from the BBC's award-winning documentary Planet Earth .

Visiting Oklahoma? Check out the Catoosa Blue Whale, one of America's top roadside attractions, located 15 miles outside of Tulsa.

Compare the blue whale with other animals that have garnered equally impressive superlatives.