Sperm whale

Habitats

The following habitats are found across the Sperm whale distribution range. Find out more about these environments, what it takes to live there and what else inhabits them.

Behaviours

Discover what these behaviours are and how different plants and animals use them.

• Adapted to swimming
• Carnivorous
• Co-operative breeding
• Hierarchical
• Acoustic communication
• Maternal care
• Polygynous
• Predator
• Social
• Sexual dimorphism
• Echolocation and ultrasound
• Viviparous

About

The sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) is the largest of the toothed whales. It is the only living member of genus Physeter, and one of three extant species in the sperm whale family, along with the pygmy sperm whale and dwarf sperm whale of the genus Kogia. Its name derives from a waxy liquid called spermaceti, found in its enormous head. The sperm whale is also known as the cachalot.

Mature males average at 16 metres (52 ft) in length but can reach 20.5 metres (67 ft), with the head representing up to one-third of the animal's length. The sperm whale feeds primarily on giant and colossal squid. Plunging to 3 kilometres (9,800 ft) for prey, it is the deepest diving mammal. Its clicking vocalization, a form of echolocation and communication, can be as loud as 230 decibels underwater, making it the loudest sound produced by any animal. It has the largest brain of any animal on Earth, more than five times heavier than a human's.

The sperm whale is cosmopolitan, living across the world's oceans in small groups called pods. Units of females and their young live separately from sexually mature males. The females cooperate to protect and nurse their young. Females give birth every four to twenty years, and care for the calves for more than a decade. Living up to 70 years, a mature sperm whale has few natural predators. Calves and weakened adults are taken by pods of orcas.

From the early 18th century through the late 20th the species was a prime target of whalers. The head of the whale contains a liquid wax called spermaceti, which was used in lubricants, oil lamps, and candles. Ambergris, a waste product from its digestive system, is still used as a fixative in perfumes. Occasionally the sperm whale's great size allowed it to defend itself effectively against whalers. The species is now protected by a whaling moratorium, and is currently listed as vulnerable by the IUCN.

Read more at Wikipedia