Short-finned Pilot whale (Globicephala macrorhynchus):
Taxonomy
Class: Mammalia
Order: Cetacea
Family: Delphinidae
Genus: Globicephala
Species: Globicephala macrorhynchus
Common name: Short-finned Pilot Whale
Description: The short-finned pilot whale has a long but robust body, dark-grey to black overall, with a light grey patch behind the dorsal fin. The head has a bulbous melon with a barely noticeable beak.The dorsal fin is slightly raised, rounded, with a very broad insertion base, located in the forward part of the body. This fin forms an obtuse angle with the anterior dorsal region. They are more corpulent than any other species of dolphins. The ends of the flippers do not extend past the base of the dorsal fin.
Class: Mammalia
Order: Cetacea
Family: Delphinidae
Genus: Globicephala
Species: Globicephala macrorhynchus
Common name: Short-finned Pilot Whale
Description: The short-finned pilot whale has a long but robust body, dark-grey to black overall, with a light grey patch behind the dorsal fin. The head has a bulbous melon with a barely noticeable beak.The dorsal fin is slightly raised, rounded, with a very broad insertion base, located in the forward part of the body. This fin forms an obtuse angle with the anterior dorsal region. They are more corpulent than any other species of dolphins. The ends of the flippers do not extend past the base of the dorsal fin.
Habitat and distribution: This species inhabits all tropical, subtropical and temperate waters. Its boundaries in the North Atlantic are marked roughly by latitude 39º N, between France and the USA, and include the archipelagos of the Canaries, Madeira and the Azores. It is not found in the Mediterranean, and latitude 34º S marks the approximate southern boundary of its occurrence in the Atlantic (see figure with the distribution map). In the Archipelago of Madeira this species has been seen throughout the entire year, mainly in waters with bathymetric readings between 1000 and 2000 m. It is also regularly sighted in offshore waters of the Archipelago of Madeira.
Short-finned pilot whale global distribution (Taylor et al, 2008)
Feeding: Its diet is based on pelagic cephalopods, although it occasionally eats fish (up to 45 kg per day). When feeding, it is known to make deep dives (which may go beyond 1000 m deep).
Reproduction: Sexual maturity is attained at around 10 years of age. The females give birth to a single calf, following a gestation period of 15 months, with a calving interval of 5 to 8 years. In Madeira, there appears to be a peak in births in the warmer months. Nursing is the principal source of nutrition for the first year of the calf's life and lasts for 2 years at least, and in the case of the last calf, it may go on for up to 15 years.
Ecology: A gregarious species, frequently found in groups ranging from a few to several dozens of individuals. They may demonstrate segregation by sex and maturity. Estimates of the relative abundance of G. macrorhynchus using nautical line-transect method for the North-east Atlantic are known only for Madeira, based on the previous CetaceosMadeira Project LIFE99 NAT/P/006432, Document A, and for the Azores. Unfortunately there is still a lack of data to allow us to estimate the population size. Globicephala macrorhynchus is a deep diver, mainly found in the waters of the continental shelf break and in sea areas with marked topographic features. It is known to form large social schools, containing animals of all sexes and ages, and to travel long distances or be confined to a certain area. They sometimes mix with bottlenose dolphins. In general G. macrorhynchus is nomadic, but resident populations have been documented in a few locations such as Canary Islands. Recently, the photo-identification effort begun under the previous LIFE Project (mentioned above) and continued throughout the MACETUS and EMECETUS Projects suggest a regular presence of pods of this species inhabiting the waters surrounding the archipelago of Madeira. Recent data collected in MACETUS project proves the movement of animals of this species between Madeira and the Canaries Archipelago. Currently, the conservation status of this species in the Autonomous Region of Madeira is Least Concern (LC – Portuguese Vertebrate Red List, ICN 2005). The multinational conservation status IUCN 1994 is Low Risk/Conservation dependent. This species is listed in Annex IV of the Habitat Directive.
Reproduction: Sexual maturity is attained at around 10 years of age. The females give birth to a single calf, following a gestation period of 15 months, with a calving interval of 5 to 8 years. In Madeira, there appears to be a peak in births in the warmer months. Nursing is the principal source of nutrition for the first year of the calf's life and lasts for 2 years at least, and in the case of the last calf, it may go on for up to 15 years.
Ecology: A gregarious species, frequently found in groups ranging from a few to several dozens of individuals. They may demonstrate segregation by sex and maturity. Estimates of the relative abundance of G. macrorhynchus using nautical line-transect method for the North-east Atlantic are known only for Madeira, based on the previous CetaceosMadeira Project LIFE99 NAT/P/006432, Document A, and for the Azores. Unfortunately there is still a lack of data to allow us to estimate the population size. Globicephala macrorhynchus is a deep diver, mainly found in the waters of the continental shelf break and in sea areas with marked topographic features. It is known to form large social schools, containing animals of all sexes and ages, and to travel long distances or be confined to a certain area. They sometimes mix with bottlenose dolphins. In general G. macrorhynchus is nomadic, but resident populations have been documented in a few locations such as Canary Islands. Recently, the photo-identification effort begun under the previous LIFE Project (mentioned above) and continued throughout the MACETUS and EMECETUS Projects suggest a regular presence of pods of this species inhabiting the waters surrounding the archipelago of Madeira. Recent data collected in MACETUS project proves the movement of animals of this species between Madeira and the Canaries Archipelago. Currently, the conservation status of this species in the Autonomous Region of Madeira is Least Concern (LC – Portuguese Vertebrate Red List, ICN 2005). The multinational conservation status IUCN 1994 is Low Risk/Conservation dependent. This species is listed in Annex IV of the Habitat Directive.
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