| Pygmy beaked whale | |
|---|---|
| Size comparison against an average human | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Cetacea |
| Family: | Ziphiidae |
| Genus: | Mesoplodon |
| Species: | Mesoplodon peruvianus |
| Binomial name | |
| Mesoplodon peruvianus Reyes, Mead, and Van Waerebeek, 1991 |
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| Pygmy beaked whale range | |
The pygmy beaked whale (Mesoplodon peruvianus), also known as the bandolero beaked whale, Peruvian beaked whale and lesser beaked whale, is the smallest of the mesoplodonts and one of the newest discoveries. There were at least two dozen sightings of an unknown beaked whale named Mesoplodon sp. A before the initial classification, and those are now believed to be synonymous with the species. Physical evidence of the species was first described in 1991 from a skeleton and a rotting carcass found in Bahia de La Paz, Baja California in 1990.
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The body of the pygmy beaked whale is the rather typical spindle shape of the genus, although the tail is unusually thick. The melon is somewhat bulbous and slopes down into a rather short beak. The mouthline in males has a very distinct arch with two teeth protruding slightly from the gum line before the apex. The coloration is typically dark gray on the top and lighter below, especially on the lower jaw, throat, and behind the umbililicus. Males may have a distinct pale "chevron" patterns on their backs. The size for this species in only around 4.5 meters (13 feet) long in mature animals, and around 1.6 meters (5 ft) when born.
This beaked whale has been recorded in the eastern tropical Pacific between Baja California and Peru through sightings and strandings. Another specimen, apparently of the same species, washed up in New Zealand, which indicates a presence in the western Pacific as well. No population estimates have been made.
Little is known about the group behaviors of this whale, and small groups have been seen. Stomach contents reveal at least one specimen is a fish eater, as opposed to the squid normally eaten by the genus.
This species may be quite vulnerable to gillnets in Peru, since scientists found six dead adults in a very small sample. However, there is not enough evidence to determine anything about the species.