Air whales are part plant and part animal. The top of the air whale is covered with plant life which converts sunlight directly into food and energy. The giant creature also eats plants and animals. It feeds on floating plankton, drifting spores, and swarms of flying insects, plus anything else it manages to capture. It produces hydrogen as a by-product of feeding. The hydrogen is stored in hundreds of inner membrane sacs. The hydrogen provides the lift which lets the air whale float. Compressed hydrogen, vented through tubes scattered around the air whale's body, lets the creature maneuver.