Pygmy Sperm Whale

Kogia breviceps

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Cetartiodactyla
Family: Kogiidae
Genus: Kogia
Species: Kogia breviceps

The pygmy sperm whale (Kogia breviceps) is a small, robust whale about 3.5 m long, with a squarish head, a narrow underslung lower jaw and a small, hooked dorsal fin set behind the middle of the back. A pale bracket-shaped mark behind the eye resembles a fish's gill slit.

It feeds mainly on deep-water squid, octopus and crustaceans and spends long periods lying motionless at the surface. When startled it can release a cloud of reddish-brown ink-like fluid from its intestine to confuse predators.

In the Philippines pygmy sperm whales are known mostly from strandings, which suggests they are more widespread than sightings indicate. Their low profile and quiet behaviour make them hard to spot at sea except in very calm conditions.

Photo: Daniel Benák, CC BY 4.0, via iNaturalist