Killer Whale: Is it a whale or a dolphin? Let's figure it out together.

The sea is an inexhaustible source of secrets and mysteries, many of which disturb even venerable scientists. But there are also simple animal lovers, who are not haunted by much simpler problems. For example, killer whale. Is it a whale or a dolphin? Let's answer this question!

To begin with, this animal belongs to the number of aquatic mammals, it belongs to the family of dolphin. Refers to the genus of killer whales and is its only representative. The closest relatives were found only in the Paleocene sediments of the Italian Tuscany.

Who is this killer whale? Is it a whale or a dolphin? The philistine will certainly answer this question incorrectly, since the wrong name of this animal is common in the society.

This is the nickname "whale killer", which he is awarded in special literature and in the pages of the yellow press. Until now, the Latin name of a mammal has not been approved. Today is the name Orca Gray, 1846.

It's a predatory dolphin, not a whale! The male can grow up to ten meters in length, weigh about eight tons, and the dorsal fin can reach one and a half meters. Females are about half as large.

Pectoral fins - wide and rounded, while in other dolphins they are pointed and narrow. It is because of this sign that scientists for a long time could not decide to which animals the killer whale should be counted: is it a whale or a dolphin?

This peculiar dolphin is distinguished by a massive and heavy head, with teeth 10 to 13 cm long in its mouth. They are specifically designed to attack even large-scale prey. By the way, at the moment of attack, the killer whale can reach speeds of up to 60 km / h.

Contrary to popular belief, the color of this mammal is strictly individual, greatly different in different individuals. As a rule, the back is black, and the belly is white. Distinctive feature - over the eyes there are white spots. Completely white specimens are not so rare.

It is widespread "whale" -catcher (photo of which is in the article) widely, meeting practically in all seas. It keeps near the coast, preferring not to swim to the open sea beyond 800 km. There are no killer whales in the Black Sea and the Laptev Sea. In our country, it can be found in the Commander's district and the Kurils.

Each population has such a narrow food specialization that often uninformed animals are credited with a variety of atrocities. So, you can meet the question of who the killer whale is: whale or shark?

This is due to the fact that some populations can safely hunt for herrings all their life, while others attack exclusively seals. No wonder that the closest relatives of killer whales are marine shark predators! However, on the latter they also attack, and this happens quite often.

Such oddities, expressed in an incredible variety of diet, Canadian scientists cleared up. They found out that all killer whales are divided into two types: "residents" and transit individuals. The first type constantly lives within the limits of one aquatorium, hunting for fish and sea shellfish. They rarely attack big game.

But the transit individuals - these are the very "killer whales". They constantly wander, as they follow flocks of dolphins, whales, walruses and seals. They love to hunt for penguins, knocking them whole with ice floes.

Now the question of who such a killer whale (this is a whale or dolphin) should not cause you to hesitate!