Pseudorca crassidens

• Main Authors: Russell A. Mittermeier, Don E. Wilson
• Format: Other/Unknown Material
• Language: unknown
• Published: Lynx Edicions 2014
• Subjects: Biodiversity; Taxonomy; Animalia; Chordata; Mammalia; Cetacea; Delphinidae; Pseudorca; Pseudorca crassidens; Falsa; Killer Whale; Orca; Schwertwal; orque
• Online Access: https://zenodo.org/record/6611084; https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6611084

30. False Killer Whale Pseudorca crassidens French: Fausse-orque / German: Kleiner Schwertwal / Spanish: Falsa orca Other common names: False Pilot Whale Taxonomy. Phocaena crassidens Owen, 1846, “in the great fen of Lincolnshire beneath the turf [subfossil], in the neighborhood of the ancient town of Stamford,” England, UK. There are some distinct cranial differences among populations of P. crassidens in waters off Australia, Scotland, and South Africa, and one population off Hawaii appears to be demographically isolated. Nevertheless, genetic variability among populations in the major oceans is low. Monotypic. Distribution. Worldwide in tropical and warm temperate oceanic waters mainly from ¢.50° N to ¢.50° S, including semi-enclosed seas such as Gulf of California, Gulf of Mexico, Mediterranean Sea, Arabian Sea, Red Sea, Sea ofJapan, and Yellow Sea. Descriptive notes. Total length 610 cm (males) and 510 cm (females); weight up to 2200 kg (males) and 1200 kg (females). Neonates are 150-200 cm long and weigh ¢.80 kg. The False Killer Whaleis slender in shape with rounded, but not overly bulbous, head and no beak. Flippers have rounded tips and distinct bulge on anterior edge, which gives them a slight “S” shape. Dorsal fin is small and falcate, positioned midway along back. Tailstock is deep, and grooves may be observed in urogenital area. Skin pigmentation is dark gray to black, with a pale-gray patch on chest. Mature male False Killer Whales, in addition to being larger than females, have slightly larger, more protruding melons. Both jaws have 7-12 pairs of large conical teeth. Habitat. Prefer warm, tropical regions, primarily in deep offshore water. Observations of the False Killer Whale in cooler temperate waters are likely outside its normal distribution. It can be found in the Red and Mediterranean seas. It has been observed in waters with depths of 38-4331 m but is most abundant where depths are more than 3000 m. Food and Feeding. The False Killer Whale feeds mainly on cephalopods and large fish, ...