What is the birth weight and length of toothed whales?

Marine behemoths with teeth, such as sperm whales, killer whales, dolphins and porpoises.

Black whale: Body size: 2. 1-2.4m at birth, 8.5 (female) -9.8m (male) in adulthood, weighing 7500- 1 10,000 kg.

Morphological characteristics: the dorsal fin is obviously tall (female 0.9 m sickle, male 1.8 m triangle), and the kiss is blunt and short, which is not obvious. The pectoral fin is large and oval, and the male body length can often reach two meters. The contrast between black and white is one of the most recognizable features. It is mainly black, but it is white under the caudal fin of the eyes, on both sides of the genitals and on the abdomen. There are gray spots on the back of dorsal fin. There are 10- 12 jaws on both sides, which are large and curved inward.

Natural History: According to textual research, there are two kinds of killer whales on the east coast of the North Pacific from Washington State to Alaska, one is resident and the other is transitional. Their ecology, body color and appearance are different. Residents near the US-Canada border mainly eat fish, while transitional people eat marine mammals. Its social structure is very stable, and it is the most stable person except human beings. Individuals can stay in the birth group all their lives. There are males and females, young whales and so on. Each group has its own dialect, which can be recognized. Each group can have 1-55 whales. Generally, the resident group is larger than the transitional group.

Distribution: In the world, there are some records of entering Danshui River, but most of them are found in the coastal waters of cold water areas.

Confusion: This species is large, with special black-and-white patterns, and easy to identify, but in the distance, a group of killer whales without towering dorsal fins of male individuals may be similar to patterned dolphins and pseudo-killer whales. ● Top gray whale

Gray whale is considered as the oldest whale in the world. It has existed on the earth for millions of years and feeds on baleen whales, so it belongs to the baleen whale family.

Morphological characteristics: Adult gray whales have an average length of 12- 15m, an average weight of 30-40 metric tons, a blubber thickness of 15-25cm, a V-shaped head, a slightly arched head, and a variegated gray body with many barnacles and whale lice parasitic on it. The pectoral fin is small, paddle-shaped and sharp at the end.

Natural history: every year, gray whales migrate northward to the polar feeding area in April-165438+10, and migrate southward to the breeding area in June-February-April, mainly living in shallow waters or lagoons; Adult whales reach sexual maturity at about 5- 1 1 year. After mating in the breeding area, the pregnant female whale will return to the breeding area to give birth to a single gray whale after 12- 13 months of pregnancy. The peak breeding season is February-March, and the newborn whales are dark gray with no barnacles or whales. At birth, he weighed 500- 1000 Jin and was about 4-5 meters long. Because the fat content in the mother's milk is 55%, the young whale grows very fast at birth. According to the feeding condition, the young whale can grow half an inch (about1.5cm) every day and gain 25-50kg. The lactation period of gray whales is about 9 months. (Figure Mother and Child)

Behavior: Gray whales swim slowly, about 4-9 km/h, but they have very active behaviors, such as floating peep: Gray whales often raise their heads vertically above the water and peep around for more than 30 seconds. It is generally believed that gray whales observe curious things through this action. When in shallow water, gray whales simply put their tail fins on the bottom of the sea.

Whale tail beating waves: Gray whales raise their tails and beat the water, which is a social behavior. Male whales do the same thing when courting. Jump and surf: the gray whale will jump, spin and fall back into the water when it is about 3/4 away from the water, and splash a lot when it enters the water; Gray whales will do this action repeatedly in their living environment, usually jumping 2-3 times in a row, but there has been a record of jumping 20 times in a row.

Gray whales like surfing in shallow waters, sometimes swimming sideways on the sea, which is very leisurely; In deep diving, the whale's tail will be raised, but not in shallow swimming. Before diving for a long time, it will first surface 15-30 seconds, and spray continuously for 3-6 times. When diving, the jet column can reach 3-4.5 meters, and its shape is heart-shaped or V-shaped. The feeding mode is benthic amphipods as the main food. Gray whales will sweep the bottom of the sea with the right side of their heads and bodies (some will use the left side), sweep up the benthic crustaceans deposited on the bottom of the sea and suck them away, and then filter the water and sludge from the baleen whales through their tongues, so the right baleen whales of gray whales are shorter and more seriously damaged.

Distribution and migration: Gray whales were originally distributed in the North Pacific and the North Atlantic, but in the North Atlantic, they became extinct in 17 and 18 centuries due to human whaling activities. There are currently two ethnic groups in the North Pacific. One is the east coast ethnic group: the migration route is from the breeding area in the southern California Peninsula in Mexico to the feeding areas in the Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea and West Beaufort Sea in Alaska; 1. West Coast Ethnic Group: The main migration route observed at present is from the Sea of Korea to Siberia. According to this ethnic group, it is also facing the fate of extinction. Fishermen in fishing ports such as Taitung and Hualien in Dongtai Bay Province also seem to have found traces of gray whales. Whether there are gray whales in Taiwan Province Province needs further confirmation.

Renew friendship: After the commercial whaling disaster in the early 20th century, the number of whales and dolphins decreased sharply. Through various media reports, people began to be alert to this crisis and gradually understood the importance of animal protection and ecological balance, so many actions and organizations to save cetaceans came into being, and many people joined the ranks of rebuilding the bridge between cetaceans and humans.

Successful Conservation Case-Grey Whales According to previous records and reports, grey whales once spread all over the world, but now only two groups have been confirmed: one on the west coast of the North Pacific and the other on the east coast of the North Pacific. /kloc-in the mid-1970 s, commercial whaling was rampant, which led to a sharp decline in the number of Pacific gray whales in North America and was on the verge of extinction. With the great concern of the public and biologists, the United States passed the Law on the Protection of Marine Mammals on 1972, and put the gray whale on the protection list. Soon, with the joint efforts of human beings, the number of gray whales increased. Today, there are about 25,000 gray whales on the east coast of the Pacific Ocean, and it is possible to return to the peak number!

1in March, 973, the first large baleen whale domesticated in the world, the young grey whale named Gigi, was sent back to the sea and returned to its original colony after recovery; Gigi was very young when he was arrested. He was only 2,000 kilograms when he was sent to SeaWorld in San Diego, California for domestication. But Gigi is growing fast. A day is 1.5 cm long and 50 kg long, which is quite amazing. Three months later, Gigi grew to 8.5 meters and could not hold it in a 7,000-kilogram pond, so he had to send it back to the sea. This is the first time that humans have safely released whales into the sea without hurting them.

1988 10, saved three gray whales trapped in the Bering Strait in Alaska, unforgettable! At that time, due to the cold weather, the sea was prone to thick ice, and three gray whales were busy eating, not noticing that they had been isolated from the sea by thick ice. As the temperature drops, more and more seawater turns into thick ice, which almost completely closes them, and the situation is very critical. Until the local Eskimos found them, they called other villagers to work together to break the ice layer and let the gray whales poke their heads out to breathe. They used a water cycle to pump water day and night to prevent the sea from freezing again, but failed to save the sea. Through news reports, enthusiastic people from all over the country have joined the rescue team. 10 On June 28th, a huge icebreaker arrived. At this time, the gray whale was tired. Unfortunately, the smallest one died on June 26, 5438+00, and the rescue operation had to be accelerated. The last one was transported by icebreaker on June 28th 10. This is an unprecedented global victory to save whales!

● Top pygmy sperm whale Kogia simus Owen, 1866 from Latin simus. "Flat nose" means 1 meter, 2.7 meters for adults, and weighs 2 10 kg.

Type and characteristics: it looks like a small sperm whale, slightly smaller, with a gray back and a white belly, and branchial fissure on the head side. The dorsal fin is larger in height and base (more than 5% of the body length), sickle-shaped, with its tip bent backward and located in the middle back. There are several short and irregular folds under the throat. There are 7- 12 pairs of mandibular teeth (even 13 pairs), and 3 pairs of degenerated upper teeth are occasionally seen.

Natural History: Usually the number of dough heads is less than 10. Shy and inactive, when frightened, she will immediately excrete beautiful feces and abscond. Sexual maturity occurs when the body length is 2. 1-2.2 meters, and the growth period is 5-6 months. The main reason for eating food is that I occasionally eat small fish and crustaceans. According to the analysis of stomach contents, they can dive below 300 meters. Distribution: limited to temperate and tropical seas.

Confusion: Because the dorsal fin is high, sickle-shaped and located in the middle back, it is easy to be confused with other dolphins from a distance. Because of its blunt head and iron gray back, it is easy to be confused with killer whales and melon whales, but the latter two often form large groups and swim faster.

General introduction of whales:

Whales are giant creatures in the ocean and mammals surrounded by dolphins. (But it is bigger than a dolphin, with a short mouth, flat forelimbs, degenerated hind limbs, shellfish fins, a wide and flat tail and water spray holes. It belongs to cetaceans (toothed whales, baleen whales and extinct archaea)-baleen whales and extinct archaea. Cetaceans, which can't be attributed generally, are classified into the family Dolphinidae.

It is widely distributed and can be seen in almost all waters around the world. It is maritime, and it adopts more group activities in behavior and seldom acts alone. Like dolphins, they like to have fun while foraging, such as jumping and beating waves, lifting whale tails, beating waves with whale tails, snorkeling and so on.

Whale species:

Whales inhabiting the Southern Ocean are divided into baleen whales and toothed whales, about 12 species. The larger baleen whales are blue whales, fin whales, blackboard whales, fin whales, giant arm whales and right whales. The larger toothed whales are sperm whales and killer whales.

Among them, the largest is the blue whale, and the largest number is the fin whale. Giant-armed whales and right whales are now almost captured and killed, and there are few survivors.

Whales are widely distributed in the southern ocean, and they appear almost south of the Antarctic convergence zone. Their distribution is closely related to that of krill. Blue whales are mainly distributed in ice floes, giant arm whales and black Hu whales live in the southernmost tip, arm whales can overwinter in Antarctic waters, and right whales are mainly distributed in sub-Antarctic areas; Toothed whales are distributed in the Antarctic convergence zone and migrate with the seasonal changes.

Living habits of whales:

Fin whales are used to living alone, and both males and females exist in the same sea area. Male fin whales can also use "singing" to attract female fin whales hundreds of kilometers away to mate with male fin whales in food-rich breeding grounds. Because the whale's "singing" frequency is similar to that of some military or commercial sonar, sonar is likely to interfere with the reproduction of fin whales, thus making it more difficult for this species with low reproduction rate.

The narwhal has a white abdomen and a black back with blue-gray or black-gray spots. It has a horn about 1 ~ 2 meters long on its head, which is actually a tooth. At present, most people think that the narwhal's tusks are only signs of secondary sexual characteristics, similar to the mane on the head of a male lion on land. (Habits to be investigated)

Whales were originally thought to be animals that walked on all fours on land. Later, because of the problem of foraging, monogamy was implemented in the sea. For example, "winged whales" usually live alone, while other whales live in groups. Their gestation period is generally around 12 months, with one child and one son. Calf suckles 10 month, and its life span is about 60~70 years old.

Whales swim back to certain waters in the cold zone and warm generation, and have a fixed swimming route. After living in cold areas in summer and supplementing nutrition, they begin to move to warm waters for breeding in autumn.

Whales eat shrimp, squid and fish, while killer whales eat penguins, seals, dolphins and whales, especially whale tongues. Wild killer whales are violent, but they can be tamed when they are raised from an early age, and they have high IQ and can be used for performances.

(Note: Killer whales eat a lot. It has been recorded that a killer whale ate 13 dolphins and 15 seals. )

Toothed whales are a kind of cetaceans, which are different from baleen whales and beaked whales. All kinds of cetaceans in this suborder are similar in that they all have fine teeth in their mouths. The important food of toothed whales is fish and squid, and some species have the habit of preying on marine mammals and seabirds.

Anatomical features

Toothed whales have only one breathing hole, which is located in front of the head and close to the lips. Compared with baleen whales, toothed whales are smaller. Except for sperm whales, they are typically less than10m in length and have obvious beaks (except killer whales, pseudo-killer whales and sperm whales).

behavior characteristics

The call of animals

Most members of the Toothed Whale suborder can make calls, which are varied.

sports

Toothed whales swim quickly and flexibly, and races have the behavior of riding wolves.

Social behavior

Most toothed whales live in groups, and the population is huge, sometimes reaching thousands. The shape of toothed whales varies greatly, with the smallest species being only about 1 m and the largest being more than 20 meters. There are conical teeth in the mouth, but the shape and number of different kinds of teeth are also very different. The least is 1 single tooth, the most is dozens, and some are hidden in gums, so it is also one of the important bases for classification. There are only 1 external nostril, so only one stream of water can be ejected when breathing. The skull is asymmetrical left and right. There are five fingers on the flippers. The sternum is bigger. No collarbone. No cecum. They mainly feed on squid and fish, and some can prey on large animals, such as seabirds, seals and other whales. There are about 34 genera and 72 species of toothed whales in 8 families in the world, including freshwater dolphin family, physeteridae, snout whale, narwhal, dolphin family, dolphin family and giant whale.

Distribution of toothed whales (2)

Mesoplodon is a genus of beaked whales, including 65,438+065,438+0 species, all distributed in marine areas. A beaked whale in the southern hemisphere is distributed around the polar regions, while long-fin whales live in the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean. Hertz beaked whales live in temperate waters in the south, which seems to be around the polar regions, but it can also be found in temperate waters in the North Pacific Ocean. Several other species of the genus also live in the North Pacific Ocean, including: Gingko Tooth-nosed Whale, distributed in warm temperate to tropical waters; Hu's middle-beaked whale, distributed in cold temperate zone; Stone middle-beaked whales are distributed in the waters between sub-polar and cold temperate zones. In the North Pacific, Soxhlet's middle-billed whale lives in the waters between the subarctic region and the cold temperate zone. Jay's middle-beaked whales live in warm temperate zone to hot kelp, but the distribution of early middle-beaked whales is very strange; It lives in the temperate zone of the North Pacific and the coast of South Africa. Of course, the distribution of these species may be much larger than what we know at present. Another unusual distribution type belongs to the Coriolis middle-beaked whale, which is distributed in various waters in the southern hemisphere, but also appears along the North Sea coast of the Netherlands. Berber's beaked whales live in tropical and warm temperate regions of various oceans.

Some taxonomists classify Langmuir's beaked whale as Mesoplodon, while others claim that it belongs to Indopacetus itself, because all relevant knowledge comes from only two skulls, one from the east coast of Australia and the other from the east coast of Africa, so little is known about its type and distribution. Recently, a new beaked whale was observed in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, which may be the elusive Langmuir beaked whale or a completely different new species. Among dolphins, Lagenorhynchus is the most species, which is distributed between the North Atlantic waters and the South Pole in the sub-arctic region of the North Atlantic. The hourglass striped dolphins live in polar regions, subtropics and near the Atlantic Ocean. Spotted dolphins can be found on the south coast of South America, the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean. Black dolphins are distributed in most continental shelf areas in polar and temperate regions and some small islands in the southern hemisphere. In the northern hemisphere, white-billed dolphins and Atlantic white-edged dolphins live in the North Atlantic; The former haunts the northern waters and reaches the sub-Arctic. The latter is distributed in temperate seas, and their distribution ranges overlap. Pacific striped dolphins appear in the temperate coastal areas of the North Pacific Ocean. Dolphins belong to Mammalia, Cetaceans, Toothed Cetaceans and Dolphins, with nearly 62 species, which are distributed in all oceans of the world. It is 1.2 ~ 4.2 meters long and weighs 23 ~ 225 kilograms. Dolphins generally have sharp mouths, with about 10 1 fangs in the upper and lower jaws. They mainly feed on small fish, squid, shrimp and crab. Dolphins like to live a "collective" life, and the number ranges from a few to hundreds. Dolphin is a marine mammal with superb skills and intelligence. After training, I can play table tennis, jump in the ring of fire and so on. Dolphin's brain is the most developed among animals except humans. Human brain accounts for 2. 1% of his body weight, and dolphin brain accounts for 1.7% of his body weight. The dolphin's brain consists of two completely separate parts. When one part is at work, the other part gets enough rest, so it can stay awake for life. Dolphins judge the distance, direction, position, shape and even the nature of objects by echolocation. Some people do experiments, blindfold dolphins and wade in muddy water. They can catch up with the food thrown at them quickly and accurately. Dolphins not only have amazing hearing, but also superb swimming and unusual diving skills. Some tests show that the diving record of dolphins is 300 meters deep, while people can only dive 20 meters without diving suits. As for its swimming speed, it is unmatched by human beings. The speed of dolphins can reach 40 kilometers per hour, which is equivalent to the medium speed of torpedo speedboats.

In the kingdom of cetaceans, there are the most species of Dolphinidae, and there are more than 30 known species in the world. Although some species are called whales, such as killer whales and fake killer whales, they are actually members of the dolphin family.

Dolphin is a clever animal. They don't run away from people like timid animals in the forest, and they don't show their teeth when they meet people like wild animals in the mountains. Dolphins always show a very docile and amiable appearance and approach people. Compared with dogs and Malays, they are sometimes even more friendly to humans.

We have heard many stories about dolphins saving people from drowning, and reports about dolphins playing with people are often heard, and some stories even become sensational news. After learning and training, dolphins can even imitate the voices of some people. In 1970s, three American scientists taught two dolphins 25 words. Recently, four scientists, including Dr. Owens of the Pacific Foundation, trained two dolphins and spent three years teaching them 700 English words. However, some scientists believe that the "language" or "dialect" of animals should not be described too strangely.

But dolphins do have unusual intelligence. Its brain size and quality are also among the best in the animal kingdom. At present, scientists have two different views on the intelligence of animals: one thinks that chimpanzees are the most evolved and capable of all animals; The other thinks that the intelligence and learning ability of dolphins are similar to those of apes, or even higher. Therefore, some people call dolphins "wisdom in the sea".

In order to prove that dolphins can learn, as early as 1959, a man named Lili did an experiment on a dolphin. He inserted electrodes into the pleasure center and pain center of dolphins. When current stimulates the pleasure center or pain center of dolphins through electrodes, it will produce pleasure or pain. Then the dolphins are trained to touch the metal pieces on their heads and control the on-off of the current. If the electrode is inserted into the pain center of the dolphin, as long as it is trained for 20 times, the dolphin will choose to cut off the power supply to make the pain disappear. If you are a monkey, you need hundreds of trainings to learn to control the switch. This shows that dolphins have stronger learning ability in some aspects.

Dolphins are friends of human beings, and they are very willing to get close to human beings. Dolphins at Mon Kemi Beach in Australia have established friendship with human beings, which has brought great joy and surprise to people. Maybe there will be more dolphins in the future, and they will establish contact with humans in more places. This wish is not an illusion: with the deepening of people's research on dolphins, we will uncover more secrets about dolphins, and then our communication with dolphins will be easier, more intimate and more friendly!

Speaking of dolphins, people have heard that they have extraordinary wisdom and ability. In the aquarium, dolphins can perform various wonderful jumping movements according to the instructions of the trainer. They seem to understand the information transmitted by human beings and take action. People can't help but wonder how smart this beautiful marine animal is. So, how high is the wisdom and ability of dolphins? Is it possible for them to increase communication with humans? Starting with the structure and ecological characteristics of dolphin brain, this paper discusses its wisdom.

Mammalian Diving Champion-Sperm Whale

Sperm whales belong to physeteridae, the largest species of Toothed Whales. The longest for men is 23m, and the longest for women is17m. Their bodies are conical, their heads account for about 1/3 of their body length, and their maxilla is blunt, far exceeding their mandibles. Because of its huge head, it is also known as the "giant whale".

The top-heavy body of sperm whale is very suitable for diving. In addition, they like to eat huge cephalopods, most of which live in the deep sea. Sperm whales often "hold their breath" 1.5 hours because of chasing giant squid, and can dive to the deep sea of 2200 meters, so they are the champions of mammalian diving.

The English name of sperm whale comes from the word Spermaceti. This is because its square giant has oily wax in a special storage device, and the whale wax organ in its head acts as a super conductor. It has an extremely sensitive detection system, namely "sonar", which can listen to its echo with the click of ultrasonic waves, so as to search for food in the dark deep sea, and use "sonar" instead of underdeveloped small eyes.

Sperm whales often struggle with the largest invertebrate king squid. The largest king squid 18 meters, weighing 30 tons. Someone once saw a fierce battle between sperm whales and giant squid in the tropical ocean. They came from the deep sea to the shallow sea. Either the sperm whale ate the king squid, or the king squid suffocated the giant whale with his wrist. In that case, the sperm whale will become a "good meal" for the king squid.

Sperm whales' love for giant squid is the source of Long Xianxiang, one of the most precious seafood. Sperm whales swallow giant squid in one gulp, but they can't digest squid's parrot mouth. They gradually form a thick dark substance in the small intestine, weighing 100- 1000 grams, or 420 kilograms. Its maximum diameter is165cm, and this substance is called "long Xiang Yan". It is stored in the colon and rectum. It stinks when I first took it out. After storage for a period of time, it gradually smells better than "musk". "Long Xianxiang" is the best substance to keep the fragrance of perfume, and it is used as a fixative.

In addition, the huge skull cavity of sperm whale contains a large amount of whale brain oil (colorless and transparent liquid), which is squeezed and crystallized into white and odorless crystals called whale wax. It is a good industrial raw material, which can be used to make candles, soaps, medicines and cosmetics, and can also extract advanced lubricating oil. Sperm whale meat is delicious, edible and tanned.

Sperm whales are distributed all over the world, mainly in tropical and temperate waters, usually between 40 degrees north and south latitude. They are distributed in the waters of China. They often wander in groups of 5-20, with more males and fewer females. Generally, the swimming speed is 2.5-3 nautical miles per hour, and it can reach 7- 12 nautical miles when it is frightened.

Sperm whales are viviparous and suckling. Pregnancy 16 months, lactation for one year.

On April 8, 1978, a male sperm whale ran aground in Jiaonan County, Shandong Province. It is 14 meter long and weighs 22 tons. Initially identified as 37 years old. This whale is a specimen made by Qingdao Institute of Oceanography, China Academy of Sciences. Now it is on display in Qingdao Seafood Museum, attracting many tourists and making people linger.

The whale's skeletal system was also erected and exhibited to the audience in May 1995. This is the most complete toothed whale skeleton system in China, which shows the fact that whales entered the sea from land during the long historical journey.

The sperm whale looks strange, with a heavy head and a light tail, like a giant tadpole. Its huge head accounts for about 1/4- 1/3 of its body length, and the whole head seems to be a big box. Its nose is also very strange, only its left nostril is smooth, and it is located above the left front, and its right nostril is blocked, so the fog column it breathes is sprayed to the left front at an angle of 45.

Sperm whales like to live in groups, often forming small groups of 5- 10, and sometimes forming large groups of hundreds. Sometimes they play naughty with each other at sea. But its temperament is completely different from that of blue whales and humpback whales. It is very fierce and powerful, and once other animals are bitten by it, it is difficult to escape. Sperm whales preying on king squid is the most thrilling battle. In a fight, the two sides will jump out of the water together, just like a flat mountain. Generally speaking, the former often wins, but sometimes the latter escapes with a smoke screen. It was found that the king squid in the sperm whale's belly was not bitten by teeth, and some people stayed in the sperm whale's belly for a day and a night without dying. This shows that sperm whales have strong teeth, but they don't chew food entirely by their teeth.

Sperm whales sometimes "conceive" freaks, usually gray or slightly black wax, which smells bad when it is just taken out of the body, amber after drying, sweet and sour. This is the famous Long Xianxiang. Long Xianxiang itself doesn't have much fragrance, but it smells like musk when it burns, and it is farther than musk. The things smoked by it have a lasting fragrance, hence the name sperm whale.

Sperm whales are also diving champions among marine animals. They can go in and out of the deep sea thousands of meters deep and stay for nearly an hour. So why can sperm whales dive so deep? Some people think that this may be related to its preference for hunting king squid. In order to get this delicious food, sperm whales have to dive into the deep sea often, and over time they have formed an adaptation to the deep sea environment.