Goahti

Baleen is a fringed plate attached to the roof of a baleen whale's mouth. These plates work to filter plankton from the water so the whale can eat.

Baleen

Here is how baleen works - When a whale opens its mouth, it takes in seawater and plankton (or krill, which are shrimp-like marine crustaceans that the whale eats). The baleen plates then act like a screen; when the whale expels the water out of its mouth, the baleen plates catch all the krill, which is then swallowed.
Baleen whale species include the humpback whale, right whale, fin whale, and the blue whale.
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The Inuit, traditional hunters of whales, took advantage of the unique filtering system of baleen, using it as a kind of net to fish at the mouths of rivers and streams.

Baleen was also used as a material in creating arts and crafts, such as baskets, boxes, sculptures, and jewelry.

Sources courtesy of: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baleen, salariya.com/web_books/whaling/intro/baleen.html

Image courtesy of: salariya.com/web_books/whaling/intro/baleen.html