urtesy of Marineland of Florida (top left
and right); and W. A. Watkins (bottom left)._)]

[Illustration: Figure 50.--Right whales frequently throw their tail
flukes high into the air and then slip nearly vertically beneath the
surface. Note that the rear margin of the flukes of this species, unlike
that of the humpback whale, is smooth, broad, and concaved distinctly
towards a deep fluke notch. (_Photos from the northern North Atlantic by
K. C. Balcomb (a-g) and off northeastern Florida by N. Fain, courtesy of
Marineland of Florida (h)._)]

[Illustration: Figure 51.--A stranded right whale at Narragensett Bay,
R.I. Note the narrow, highly arched lower jaw; the extremely long,
narrow baleen plates, reaching lengths of 6.5 feet (2.0 m), or more; and
the bonnet (the protuberance near the tip of the upper jaw). (_Photo
from U.S. National Museum, courtesy of J. G. Mead._)]

[Illustration: Figure 52.--A ventral view of a harpooned female right
whale at Newfoundland. Note that this species, like the bowhead, lacks
the series of ventral grooves which characterize all other baleen whales
of the western North Atlantic. Note also the absence of the vest of
white on the chin, a feature which is characteristic of the bowhead
whale. Some right whales, however, do have extensive regions of white on
the ventral surface, including the chin. (_Photo from U.S. National
Museum, courtesy of J. G. Mead._)]

SPERM WHALE (T)

_Physeter catodon_ Linnaeus 1758

Other Common Names

Cachalot, Sea Wap (St. Vincent).

Description

Male sperm whales have been reported to reach a length of 69 feet (20.9
m), though today individuals larger than 50 feet (15.2 m) are rare.
Females are much smaller, rarely exceeding 38 feet (11.6 m).

A sperm whale is among the easiest of whales to identify at sea even
when comparatively little of the animal is visible. It has a huge head,
which comprises from a fourth to a third of the animal's total length.
(The proportion is considerably higher for males than for females.) The
blunted "squarish" snout, which may project up to 5 feet (1.5 m) beyond
the tip of the lower jaw, houses a large reservoir containing a
high-quality oil called spermaceti.

The single blowhole is located well to the left of the midline and far
forward on the head. As a consequence the small bushy blow, usually less
than 8 feet (2.4 m), emerges forward at a sharp angle from the head and
towards the left. Under good wind co