Globicephala melas
The long-finned pilot whale is not actually a whale, but a
dolphin . Along with the related short-finned pilot whale,
this species was once called a 'pothead', as the bulbous head
was thought to resemble a black cooking pot by the early whalers
that first encountered the species. The Latin name of this
genus, Globicephala, meaning 'globe head' also refers to the
shape of the head. The stocky body is black or dark grey in
colour with a white stripe passing diagonally behind the eye
, a greyish area on the belly, and an anchor-shaped grey patch
on the chin. As the common name of this species suggests,
the sickle-shaped pectoral fins (flippers) are very long,
there is a single blowhole, and the dorsal fin is placed forwards
on the body. The range of this species and the short-finned
pilot whale overlap in some areas, and it can be very difficult
to distinguish between the two, particularly as it is often
difficult to see the flippers.
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