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 a marine mammal species, order Cetacea, a toothed whale (odontocete) having the largest brain of any animal. The name comes from the milky-white waxy substance, spermaceti, found in the animal's head. The sperm whale is the only living member of genus Physeter. The now outdated synonym Physeter catodon refers to the same species. It is one of three extant species in the sperm whale superfamily, along with the pygmy sperm whale and dwarf sperm whale.

A mature male can grow to 20.5 metres (67 ft) long. It is the largest living toothed animal. For large males, the head can represent up to one-third of the animal's length. It has a cosmopolitan distribution across the oceans. The species feeds primarily on squid but to some extent on fish, diving as deep as 3 kilometres (9,800 ft), which makes it the deepest diving mammal. Its diet includes giant squid and colossal squid. The sperm whale's clicking vocalization is the loudest sound produced by any animal. The clicking is used for sonar and may also be used for other purposes. These whales live in groups called social units. 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 three to six years, and care for the calves for more than a decade. The sperm whale has few natural predators, since few are strong enough to successfully attack a healthy adult; orcas attack units and are capable of killing the calves. The sperm whale can live for more than 70 years.

Historically, the sperm whale was also known as the common cachalot; "cachalot" is derived from an archaic French word for "tooth". Over most of the period from the early 18th century until the late 20th century, the sperm whale was hunted to obtain spermaceti and other products, such as sperm oil and ambergris. Spermaceti found many important uses, such as candles, soap, cosmetics and machine oil. Due to its size, the sperm whale could sometimes defend itself effectively against whalers. In the most famous example, a sperm whale attacked and sank the American whaleship Essex in 1820. As a result of whaling, the sperm whale is currently listed as vulnerable by the IUCN.

Read more at Wikipedia