Species: Globicephala macrorhynchus
Short-finned Pilot Whale
Species
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Encyclopedia of Puget Sound
Classification
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Craniata
Class
Mammalia
Order
Cetacea
Family
Delphinidae
Genus
Globicephala
NatureServe
Classification
Other Global Common Names
Calderón - globicéphale du Pacifique
Informal Taxonomy
Animals, Vertebrates - Mammals - Whales and Dolphins
Formal Taxonomy
Animalia - Craniata - Mammalia - Cetacea - Delphinidae - Globicephala - occur in the eastern Pacific (see IUCN 1991).
Ecology and Life History
Habitat Type Description
Marine
Migration
false - false - false - Makes seasonal offshore-inshore migrations (inshore mainly in spring off southern California) (Leatherwood and Reeves 1983). See also Stacey and Baird (1993).
Non-migrant
false
Locally Migrant
false
Food Comments
Recorded stomach contents include squid (LOLIGO OPALESCENS) (Seagars and Henderson 1985).
Reproduction Comments
Breeding/parturition apparently vary geographically (see IUCN 1991). Gestation lasts about 15 months; young take solid food beginning at 6 months but may continue to nurse for two to several years; females probably stay in their mother's group for life; sexually mature at average age of about 9 (females) to 15 (males) years; females may stop breeding in their 30s; may live several decades (see Stacey and Baird 1993 for further details).
Ecology Comments
Commonly in groups of a few to several hundred (average around 20-25); often with dolphins (especially bottlenose). Mass standings sometimes occur.
Length
600
Conservation Status
NatureServe Global Status Rank
G5
Global Status Last Reviewed
1996-11-15
Global Status Last Changed
1996-11-15
Distribution
Conservation Status Map
<img src="http://www.natureserve.org/explorer/servlet/GetMapGif?CA.BC=__&US.CA=SNR&US.DE=__&US.FL=SNR&US.GA=__&US.MD=__&US.NY=S4&US.NC=__&US.OR=__&US.SC=SNR&US.TX=S1" alt="Conservation Status Map" style="width: 475px; height: auto;" />
Global Range
H - >2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles) - H - Cosmopolitan in tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate waters; in North America, north mainly to the mid-Atlantic states and central California (sometimes to Alaska). Generally regarded as abundant within the range (IUCN 1991). See IUCN (1991) for further details.
Global Range Code
H
Global Range Description
>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)