Knitted in the round this is an easy pattern if you already know how to knit stranded colorwork and this pattern assumes that you do know how to knit stranded colorwork. If you have not knitted stranded colorwork before then this is an experienced level pattern.

Instructions are given for head sizes 18” (46 cm), 21” (53 cm), and 23” (58 cm). These correspond to child, small adult and medium-large adult sizes.

Fingering weight yarn. The samples were knitted with Viking of Norway Nordlys / Hobii Metallico and Tencel bamboo held together, and Mayflower Easy Care / Knit Picks Hawthorne
BC: (background color), WC: (whale color)
Size 18” (46 cm), BC 65 yds (59 m), WC 58 yds (53 m)
Size 21” (53 cm), BC 81 yds (74 m), WC 64 yds (59 m)
Size 23” (58 cm), BC 104 yds (95 m), WC 69 yds (63 m)

Whales are at the top of the food chain and have an important role in the overall health of the marine environment. Unfortunately, their large size and mythical aura does not protect them; 6 out of the 13 great whale species are classified as endangered or vulnerable, even after decades of protection. An estimated minimum of 300,000 whales and dolphins are killed each year as a result of fisheries bycatch, while others succumb to a myriad of threats including shipping and habitat loss.
Despite a moratorium on commercial whaling and a ban on international trade of whale products, over 1,000 whales a year are killed by commercial whalers. The blue whale, the largest animal ever known to have existed, was almost exterminated in the 20th century due to commercial whaling.
Warming oceans and loss of sea ice in the Arctic and Antarctic can affect the habitats and food of whales. Large patches of plants and animals that they feed on will likely move or change in abundance as climate change alters seawater temperature, winds, and ocean currents. These changes can mean whales such as humpbacks and blues may have to migrate much further to reach feeding grounds, leaving them with less time to forage for food. The shift in food availability due to climate fluctuations has already hurt the reproductive rates of the endangered North Atlantic Right Whale.
Shipping activity, oil and gas development and undersea military exercises cause noise that can disrupt whale communication or even damage whales’ hearing. Many of the world’s busiest shipping and ferry lanes overlap directly with areas where whales feed, give birth, nurse their young, or travel between feeding and breeding grounds. Collisions with ships, entanglement in fishing gear and pollution injure and kill whales. In many countries, there’s often a lack of political will to prioritize and address these problems, and inaction is largely due to lack of awareness of the scale of the problem and mitigation tools, particularly where bycatch is concerned.