Dwarf killer whale
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Dwarf killer whale | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Subclass: | Elasmobranchii |
| Order: | Cetacea |
| Family: | Delphinidae |
| Genus: | Orcinus |
| Species: | orca |
| Binomial name | |
| Orcinus orca |
|
The Dwarf killer whale is a type of killer whale found in Antarctic waters believed by some scientists to be a distinct species from the larger killer whales found throughout the world's oceans. Primarily eating fish rather than mammals, this ecotype averages less than 6 metres in length.
Robert L. Pitman describes using aerial photogrammetry to determine the size of numerous Type C killer whales, supporting earlier Soviet research which suggested that one or possibly two distinct species of killer whale exist in the Southern Ocean.[1][2]
[edit] References
- ^ Pitman, Robert L. et al. A Dwarf Form of Killer Whale in Antarctica Journal of Mammalogy 88(1):43-48, 2007, CryptoMundo.com
- ^ Pitman, Robert L. and Ensor, Paul. "Three forms of killer whales (Orcinus orca) in Antarctic waters" Journal of Cetacean Resource Management 5(2):131–139, 2003
 |
This Cetacean-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
