Spade Toothed Whale
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| Mesoplodon traversii Gray, 1874 |
The Spade Toothed Whale (Mesoplodon traversii) was a name given to a jaw found in Pitt Island, New Zealand in 1872, which was eventually lumped in with Layard's Beaked Whales. Another specimen in the 1950 was found from White Island, New Zealand and lumped in with Ginko-toothed Beaked Whales. In 1986, a damaged calvaria washed up on Robinson Crusoe Island, Chile, and was described as a new species, Mesoplodon bahamondi or Bahamonde's Beaked Whale. Recent genetic analysis has shown that all three finds come from the same species, which should be properly known as M. traversii. This species is remarkable since the external appearance is still completely unknown, and it is likely to be the most poorly known large mammalian species.
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[edit] Physical description
Nothing is known about this species other than cranial and dental anatomy. There are some notable differences between other Mesoplodonts, such as the relatively large width of the rostrum. The distinguishing character are the very large teeth of the animal, 23 cm (9 inches), close in size to those of Layard's Beaked Whale. The teeth are much wider than the Layard's, and a peculiar denticle on the tip of the teeth present on both species is much more pronounced in the Spade Toothed Whale. Despite the rather similar dentition, the Spade Toothed Whale and Layard's Beaked whale are only distantly related. Judging from the size of the skull, the species may be between 5 and 5.5 meters (16 and 18 feet) in length.
[edit] Population and distribution
This species has been found in the eastern and western Pacific, although it has not been found in between.
[edit] Behavior
This species has never been seen alive.
[edit] Conservation
Unknown, but unlikely to be abundant.
[edit] References
- Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals. Edited by William F. Perrin, Bernd Wursig, and J.G.M Thewissen. Academic Press, 2002. ISBN 0-12-551340-2
- Sea Mammals of the World. Written by Randall R. Reeves, Brent S. Steward, Phillip J. Clapham, and James A. Owell. A & C Black, London, 2002. ISBN 0-7136-6334-0.
- Resurrection of Mesoplodon traversii (Gray, 1874) Senior Synonym of M. Bahamondi Reyes, van Waerebeek, Cárdenas and Yáñez, 1995 (Cetacea: Ziphiidae). Written by Anton L. van Helden, Alan N. Baker, Merel L. Dalebout, Julio C. Reyes, Koen van Waerebeek, and C. Scott Baker. Marine Mammal Science 18(3):609-621. July 2002. Available: here
