COMMON NAMES: False Killer-Whale

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE circumtropical and temperate; n. to Bristish Isles; s. to NZ.

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Native; S.Group ?; N.Group - Suwarrow (so far); Marine, pelagic, off-shore

KEY FEATURES: Medium-size, slender whale to 6m; newborn to 1.5-2m. COLOUR uniformly dark grey to black with variable grey to greyish-white W-shaped patch on throat and chest; young grey to light grey. HEAD slender tapering to rounded snout, mouth long and straight. FLIPPER short, curved, leading edge with long central hump and out-turned tip (=slight but distinct S-shape), tip sharp. DORSAL FIN at mid-body, tall (~50% body depth), erect, tip rounded or pointed, hide-edge concave. TAIL relatively small, central notch, tips pointed. BEHAVIOUR fast and acrobatic. Approaches boats - bow-rides and wake-rides. Often lifts head out of water, and often breaches and falls back into the water on its side. Well known for mass strandings.

SIMILAR SPECIES: Short-finned Pilot Whale has melon head in older animals (vs. gently tapering head), mouth sharply ascending (vs. slightly ascending), Dorsal Fin high and dolphinlike (vs. low); Dorsal Fin totally forward of midpoint (vs. at midbody); Flipper front edge gently curving (vs central hump and out-turned tip')