Species: Globicephala macrorhynchus
Short-finned Pilot Whale
Species
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Encyclopedia of Puget Sound
Articles:
Short-finned pilot whales occur around the world as distinct populations, but records of their occurrence in the Salish Sea are rare. Pilot whales are highly social, with some of the strongest bonds known among cetaceans. Unfortunately this makes them vulnerable to mass strandings and hunting.
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
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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)