PYGMY SPERM WHALE (Kogia breviceps): Western North Atlantic Stock

• Main Authors: Stock Definition, Geographic Range
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 1998
• Subjects: Barros; Caldwell; North Atlantic; Sperm whale
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.294.5583; http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/pdfs/sars/ao1998whpy-wn.pdf

The dwarf sperm whale (Kogia breviceps) and the pygmy sperm whale (K. simus) appear to be distributed worldwide in temperate to tropical waters (Caldwell and Caldwell 1989). Sightings of these animals in the northern Gulf of Mexico occur primarily along the continental shelf edge and over the deeper waters off the continental shelf (Mullin et al. 1991; Southeast Fisheries Science Center unpublished data). Recent analyses of hemoglobin, morphometric and dietary data from Florida strandings of both species (Barros et al. 1998) suggests that habitat partitioning may exist between the two species, K. simus occupies more offshore and oceanic waters, whereas K. breviceps inhabits more mid-shelf waters. Interestingly, a recent analysis of South Africa stranding data indicates that in that region K. simus is the nearshore species (Plön et al. 1998). Pygmy sperm whales and dwarf sperm whales are difficult to distinguish and sightings of either species are often categorized as Kogia sp. There is no information on stock differentiation for the Atlantic population.