Welcome to the Wonders of Whales!

Kingdom Animalia Phylum Chordata Class Mammalia Order Cetacea Suborder Mysticeti Suborder Odontoceti Balaenidae (Right Whales) Physeteridae (Sperm Whales) Monodontidae (Belugas and Narwahls) Balaenopteridae (Rorquals) Ziphiidae (Beaked Whales) Eschrictiidae (Grey Whales) Delphinidae (Dolphins, Porpoises and Killer Whales) Platanistidae (River Dolphin)

Whales are Mammals Whales breathe air into their lungs. Whales have hair (although they have a lot less than land mammals, and have almost none as adults). Whales are warm-blooded (they maintain a high body temperature). Give birth to live young. Whales have mammary glands to nourish their young. Whales have a four-chambered heart.

Order Cetaceans Cetaceans include the whales, dolphins and porpoises. There are over 76 species of Cetaceans. Whales belong to the order Cetacea (from the Greek word "ketos" which means sea monster).

Whale Anatomy

Kingdom Animalia Phylum Chordata Class Mammalia Order Cetacea Suborder Mysticeti Suborder Odontoceti Balaenidae (Right Whales) Physeteridae (Sperm Whales) Monodontidae (Belugas and Narwahls) Balaenopteridae (Rorquals) Ziphiidae (Beaked Whales) Eschrictiidae (Grey Whales) Delphinidae (Dolphins, Porpoises and Killer Whales) Platanistidae (River Dolphin)

Sub-Order Odontocetes Toothed whales - have teeth although in some species the teeth never emerge from the gums They have one blowhole (nostril). Toothed whales have an organ called the melon (forehead area). The melon is used for echolocation. There are about 66 species of toothed whales.

Feeding Methods Odontocetes hunt and eat prey: have narrow jaws and conical teeth. Swallow prey whole. Use cooperative feeding- encircle schools of fish- small groups of orcas will even kill much larger baleen whales. Use echolocation to find and catch prey.

Social Groupings Pods are the smallest social groupings and are usually matrilineal. Toothed whales pursue and capture larger prey, including fish and squid. Killer whales hunt in packs and maintain pods of family members. Sperm whales also remain in pods and dive to great depths to capture the giant squid which is the mainstay of their diet. In most circumstances feeding behavior affects pod size.

Porpoises vs. Dolphins Dolphins Porpoises Tooth Shape Connical Dolphins and Porpoises are both whales in the Odontocete suborder. Killer whales are actually a type of dolphin. Dolphins Porpoises Tooth Shape Connical Spade, flatter Dorsal Fin Curved Triangular Rostrum Narrowed Beak No prominent Beak

Odontocete families Monodontidae (Belugas and Narwahls) Delphinidae (Dolphins, Porpoises and Orcas) Platanistidae (River dolphins) Ziphiidae (Beaked whales) Physeteridae (Sperm whales)

Narwahl Sperm whale Killer Whale Bottle nosed dolphin Beluga Whales Boto Dolphin Pilot Whale Porpoise

Kingdom Animalia Phylum Chordata Class Mammalia Order Cetacea Suborder Mysticeti Suborder Odontoceti Physeteridae (Sperm Whales) Balaenidae (Right Whales) Monodontidae (Belugas and Narwahls) Balaenopteridae (Rorquals) Ziphiidae (Beaked Whales) Eschrictiidae (Grey Whales) Delphinidae (Dolphins, Porpoises and Killer Whales) Platanistidae (River Dolphin)

Lack teeth but use baleen to sieve tiny crustaceans, small fish, and other tiny organisms from the water. Baleen is a comb-like structure that filters the whales' food from the water. Baleen whales are larger than the toothed whales. Baleen whales have 2 blowholes (nostrils). Baleen whales do not have the capacity for echolocation, but they are known for their songs. There are 10 species of baleen whales. Sub-Order Mysticetes

Baleen

Feeding methods Gulping/Lunging: By taking an enormous gulp of sea water, large whales can draw in huge volumes of water, sucking in several tons of plankton. Skimming: some baleen whales simply open their mouths and skim the top of the water filtering out their food. Bottom-feeding: this method is only used by Gray whales. Gray whales will descend to the ocean floor and sweep their heads back and forth over the bottom which scares amphipods up out of the silt and into the mouth of the whale.

Social Groupings Mysticetes tend to live as individuals, except mothers with calves and during the mating season. Some Mysticetes will travel and feed in small groups, especially visible during bubble netting but often these groups are short lived.

Balaenopteridae (Roquals) Balaenidae Eschrictiidae

Right Whale Blue Whale Minke Whale Humpback Whale Bowhead Whale Bryde’s Whale

Life Expectancy Large whales may live as long as 100 years, bottlenose dolphins live 50 years, small cetaceans live 15-20 years. Recently a bowhead whale died and was discovered to have a harpoon tip in its blubber layer, of a type used over 150 years ago.

Migration Baleen whales migrate - go towards the poles in the summer and the tropics in the winter. Migrate because birth in warm water is important and to avoid predation by orcas. Toothed whales are nomadic, but not migratory - orcas breed in the polar regions.

Mating Breeding cycle is linked to the seasons- baleen whales have a surge in hormonal activity as they approach breeding areas. No species is monogamous - they are promiscuous or polygamous. Some whales exhibit unique mating behavior. For example, narwhals joust with their tusks to fight for the female.

Pregnancy Gestation is usually 12 months and the mom will return in a year to calf. Sperm whale gestation is 18 months! Since they have to fast during migration, whales usually do not breed in consecutive seasons. Pregnant females are the first to leave the feeding grounds and they are the first to return to the feeding ground.

Birth First weeks, calf stays by mom -tantrums have been witnessed. Milk contains 40% fat- humpbacks nurse for 11 months, fin whales nurse for 5 months. Blue whale calves grow 180 pounds a day! Many nurse for a year and when they return to the breeding ground the mothers leave their young. In toothed whales, males leave the group once they mature. Toothed whales usually nurse for 2 years or longer in some cases, suggesting that nursing is often a social behavior as well as feeding behavior.

Death Mortality is the highest once the calf leaves the mom. Small cetaceans live 15-20 years, bottlenose dolphins live 50 years and large whales may live as long as 100 years! Most common cause of whale death in nature are starvation and disease while migrating. Unfortunately, an increasingly common cause of death is by entanglement in nets, toxic pollution, and boat strikes. A dead ‘whale fall’ provides a smorgasbord to deep sea creatures. Some may be so specialized that they rely on dead whales to complete their lifecycle. These species include sleeper sharks, rattails, hagfish, and amphipods.

And that is just the tip of the iceberg…