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Physeteroidea
Physeteroidea is a superfamily (taxonomy), superfamily that includes three extant taxon, extant species of whales: the sperm whale, in the genus ''Physeter'', and the pygmy sperm whale and dwarf sperm whale, in the genus ''Kogia''. In the past, these genera have sometimes been united in a single family, the Physeteridae, with the two ''Kogia'' species in the subfamily Kogiinae; however, recent practice is to allocate the genus ''Kogia'' to its own family, the Kogiidae, leaving the Physeteridae as a monotypic (single extant species) family, although #Evolution, additional fossil representatives of both families are known. Characteristics The sperm whale (''Physeter macrocephalus'') is the largest species of toothed whale, with adult bulls (males) growing to be about long, and weighing about . The two kogiid species are much smaller, around in length, and weighing . The bodies of physeteroids are robustly proportioned, with paddle-shaped flippers. The lower jaw is always relat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sperm Whale
The sperm whale or cachalot (''Physeter macrocephalus'') is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator. It is the only living member of the Genus (biology), genus ''Physeter'' and one of three extant species in the sperm whale superfamily Physeteroidea, along with the pygmy sperm whale and dwarf sperm whale of the genus ''Kogia''. The sperm whale is a pelagic mammal with a worldwide range, and will migrate seasonally for feeding and breeding. Females and young males live together in groups, while mature males (bulls) live solitary lives outside of the mating season. The females cooperate to protect and Lactation, nurse their young. Females give birth every four to twenty years, and care for the calves for more than a decade. A mature, healthy sperm whale has no natural predators, although calves and weakened adults are sometimes killed by Cetacea#Social relations, pods of killer whales (orcas). Mature males average in length, with the head represent ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zygophyseter
''Zygophyseter varolai'' is an extinct sperm whale The sperm whale or cachalot (''Physeter macrocephalus'') is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator. It is the only living member of the Genus (biology), genus ''Physeter'' and one of three extant species in the s ... that lived during the Tortonian age of the Late Miocene 11.2 to 7.6 million years ago. It is known from a single specimen from the Pietra Leccese Formation in Italy. It was a member of a stem group of fossil macroraptorial sperm whales (often shortened to "raptorial") also including ''Brygmophyseter'', ''Acrophyseter'', and ''Livyatan''. It probably grew to be around in length and shared some characteristics with other raptorials, such as large teeth with tooth enamel that were functional in both the upper and lower jaws which the modern sperm whale (''Physeter macrocephalus'') lacks. It also had a rostrum (anatomy), beak, the ability to Animal echolocation, echolocate prey, and c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brygmophyseter
''Brygmophyseter'', known as the biting sperm whale, is an extinct genus of toothed whale in the Physeteroidea, sperm whale family with one species, ''B. shigensis''. When it was first described in 1994, the species was placed in the genus ''Scaldicetus'' based on tooth morphology (biology), morphology, but this was later revised in 2006. A month later since the naming of ''Brygmophyseter'', another study classified this species into the genus ''Naganocetus'', which is considered to be a junior synonym. The only known specimen, a nearly complete skeleton, was dated to be around 16–15 million years old (middle Miocene). ''Brygmophyseter'' is thought to have been long, and it probably had 11 or 12 teeth in the upper and lower jaws. ''Brygmophyseter'' is part of a group of macroraptorial sperm whales (often shortened to "raptorial") which tended to be apex predators using their large teeth to catch struggling prey such as whales. It had a spermaceti organ which was probably used ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Whale
Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully Aquatic animal, aquatic placental mammal, placental marine mammals. As an informal and Colloquialism, colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea, i.e. all cetaceans apart from dolphins and porpoises. Dolphins and porpoises may be considered whales from a formal, Cladistics, cladistic perspective. Whales, dolphins and porpoises belong to the order Cetartiodactyla, which consists of even-toed ungulates. Their closest non-cetacean living relatives are the hippopotamuses, from which they and other cetaceans diverged about 54 million years ago. The two parvorders of whales, baleen whales (Mysticeti) and toothed whales (Odontoceti), are thought to have had their Most recent common ancestor, last common ancestor around 34 million years ago. Mysticetes include four Neontology, extant (living) Family (biology), families: Balaenopteridae (the rorquals), Balaenidae (right whales), Cetotheriid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pygmy Sperm Whale
The pygmy sperm whale (''Kogia breviceps'') is one of two extant species in the family Kogiidae in the Physeteroidea, sperm whale superfamily. They are not often sighted at sea, and most of what is known about them comes from the examination of Cetacean stranding, stranded specimens. Taxonomy The pygmy sperm whale was first species description, described by naturalist Henri Marie Ducrotay de Blainville in 1838. He based this on the head of an individual washed up on the coasts of Audierne in France in 1784, which was then stored in the Muséum d'histoire naturelle. He recognized it as a type of Physeteroidea, sperm whale and assigned it to the same genus as the sperm whale (''Physeter macrocephalus'') as ''Physeter breviceps''. He noted its small size and nicknamed it "''cachalot a tête courte''"–small-headed sperm whale; further, the species name ''breviceps'' is Latin for "short-headed". In 1846, zoologist John Edward Gray erected the genus ''Kogia'' for the pygmy sperm wha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kogiidae
Kogiidae is a family comprising at least two extant species of Cetacea, the pygmy (''Kogia breviceps)'' and dwarf (''K. sima)'' sperm whales. As their common names suggest, they somewhat resemble sperm whales, with squared heads and small lower jaws, but are much smaller, with much shorter skulls and more notable dorsal fins than sperm whales. Kogiids are also characterized by a "false gill slit" behind their eyes. A number of extinct genera have been named. Taxonomy There is some amount of uncertainty over if Kogiidae belongs in the sperm whale family. Research still suggests a close relationship between Kogiidae and sperm whales using mitochondrial DNA, which supports Kogiidae as part of the sperm whale family. This relationship is supported by similarities of the anatomical structures in the head, responsible for sound production, in particular the presence of a spermaceti organ. Other phylogenetic research raises further questions over a potential relationship between kog ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Animal Echolocation
Echolocation, also called bio sonar, is a biological active sonar used by several animal groups, both in the air and underwater. Echolocating animals emit calls and listen to the Echo (phenomenon) , echoes of those calls that return from various objects near them. They use these echoes to locate and identify the objects. Echolocation is used for animal navigation , navigation, foraging, and predation, hunting prey. Echolocation calls can be Frequency modulation, frequency modulated (FM, varying in pitch during the call) or constant frequency (CF). FM offers precise range discrimination to localize the prey, at the cost of reduced operational range. CF allows both the prey's velocity and its movements to be detected by means of the Doppler effect. FM may be best for close, cluttered environments, while CF may be better in open environments or for hunting while perched. Echolocating animals include mammals, especially odontocetes (toothed whales) and some bat species, and, using s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dwarf Sperm Whale
The dwarf sperm whale (''Kogia sima'') is a sperm whale that inhabits temperate and tropical oceans worldwide, in particular continental shelves and slopes. It was first described by biologist Richard Owen in 1866, based on illustrations by naturalist Sir Walter Elliot. The species was considered to be synonymous with the pygmy sperm whale (''Kogia breviceps'') from 1878 until 1998. The dwarf sperm whale is a small whale, and , that has a grey coloration, square head, small jaw, and robust body. Its appearance is very similar to the pygmy sperm whale, distinguished mainly by the position of the dorsal fin on the body–nearer the middle in the dwarf sperm whale and nearer the tail in the other. The dwarf sperm whale is a suction feeder that mainly eats squid, and does this in small pods of typically one to four members. It is preyed upon by the killer whale (''Orcinus orca'') and large sharks such as the great white shark (''Carcharodon carcharius''). When startled, the whal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kogia
''Kogia'' is a genus of toothed whales within the superfamily Physeteroidea comprising two extant and two extinct species from the Neogene: *Pygmy sperm whale, ''Kogia breviceps'' *Dwarf sperm whale, ''Kogia sima'' *†'' Kogia pusilla'', Italy, Middle Pliocene *†'' Kogia danomurai'' Pisco Formation, Peru, latest Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ... References Cetacean genera Taxa named by George Robert Gray {{whale-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Toothed Whale
The toothed whales (also called odontocetes, systematic name Odontoceti) are a parvorder of cetaceans that includes dolphins, porpoises, and all other whales with teeth, such as beaked whales and the sperm whales. 73 species of toothed whales are described. They are one of two living groups of cetaceans, the other being the baleen whales (Mysticeti), which have baleen instead of teeth. The two groups are thought to have diverged around 34 million years ago (mya). Toothed whales range in size from the and vaquita to the and sperm whale. Several species of odontocetes exhibit sexual dimorphism, in that there are size or other morphological differences between females and males. They have streamlined bodies and two limbs that are modified into flippers. Some can travel at up to 30 knots. Odontocetes have conical teeth designed for catching fish or squid. They have well-developed hearing that is well adapted for both air and water, so much so that some can survive even i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Miocene
The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recent" because it has 18% fewer modern marine invertebrates than the Pliocene has. The Miocene followed the Oligocene and preceded the Pliocene. As Earth went from the Oligocene through the Miocene and into the Pliocene, the climate slowly cooled towards a series of ice ages. The Miocene boundaries are not marked by distinct global events but by regionally defined transitions from the warmer Oligocene to the cooler Pliocene Epoch. During the Early Miocene, Afro-Arabia collided with Eurasia, severing the connection between the Mediterranean and Indian Oceans, and allowing the interchange of fauna between Eurasia and Africa, including the dispersal of proboscideans and Ape, hominoids into Eurasia. During the late Miocene, the conn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fossil
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved in amber, hair, petrified wood and DNA remnants. The totality of fossils is known as the ''fossil record''. Though the fossil record is incomplete, numerous studies have demonstrated that there is enough information available to give a good understanding of the pattern of diversification of life on Earth. In addition, the record can predict and fill gaps such as the discovery of '' Tiktaalik'' in the arctic of Canada. Paleontology includes the study of fossils: their age, method of formation, and evolutionary significance. Specimens are sometimes considered to be fossils if they are over 10,000 years old. The oldest fossils are around 3.48 billion years to 4.1 billion years old. Early edition, published online before prin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
