The Beautiful Cuvier’s Beak-nosed Whale
Don’t be fooled by its appearence; that’s no dolphin! It’s the Cuvier’s Beak-nosed Whale (Ziphius cavirostris), the most common of the beaked whale famile Ziphiidae. The Cuvier’s Beak-nosed Whale, also known as the goose-beaked whale, can be found in every ocean, although they are seldom seen. This is because they prefer deep waters, often diving below 1000m, and because beaked whales as a whole are shy creatures who retreat from human contact.
Z. cavirostris has become somewhat of a model for beaked whales, given that they are the most populus species and thus easier to study, despite their elusive nature. Goose-beaked whales generally travel in pods of about 15 individuals, although males sometimes travel alone. They are a deep-sea species and perhaps the deepest diving mammal on the planet; individuals have been recorded at depths of almost 3,000m and staying underwater for almost 4 hours at a time.
At such depths, Cuvier’s beak-nosed whales hunt squid, deep-sea fish, crabs and starfish. Like dolphins, they use echolocation to find their prey and communicate with each other, emitting a wide range of whistles, clicks, and groans. This is particularly useful in the deep sea where the absence of light limits the use of vision.
Little is known about the reproductive habits of beaked whales, including Z. cavirostris. They seem to mate and calf year-round, although where and how is a mystery. The average lifespan is 35 years, and predators may include sharks and orcas as evidenced by the white scars characteristic of older individuals.
In addition to being one of the more elusive whale species, the goose-beaked whale is also one of the smallest. They usually range from 5-7m long and weigh about 3000kg. One of the features that most easily distinguishes the Cuvier’s beaked-nose whale from dolphins and porpoises is their teeth. Unlike their look-alike cousins, this species only has two, which emerge in the form of tusks in males. Occasionally vestigial teeth will break through the gums, but they’re not considered useful in any meaningful way.
Conservation stuatus: This species is considered Least Concern by the IUCN. They can be caught in fishing nets as by-catch or by whalers, although these numbers are low enough to be disregarded. A larger threat is that of sonar, which has been known to drive large numbers of these whales to beach themselves and die of exposure or decompression sickness.
