Whalebone isn't actually bone at all. It's a special material that hangs in long, flexible plates inside the mouths of certain whales, like humpbacks and right whales. These whales use whalebone (properly called baleen) like a giant strainer: they gulp enormous mouthfuls of ocean water, then push the water back out through the baleen plates, which trap tiny shrimp-like creatures called krill and small fish for the whale to swallow.

Each baleen plate is smooth, strong, and bendable, almost like a thick, sturdy fingernail. Before the invention of plastic and spring steel, people valued whalebone highly because it was one of the few materials that could flex without breaking. Corset makers used thin strips of whalebone to give their garments structure. Umbrella makers used it for the ribs that held umbrellas open. It appeared in everything from fishing rods to buggy whips.

The whaling industry that hunted these whales nearly drove several species to extinction before people realized what was happening. Today, international laws protect most whale species, and scientists study baleen to understand how these magnificent creatures feed and thrive in the ocean.