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Feresa attenuata (Pygmy Killer Whale)

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Image credit: Garth Mix, GMIX Designs

Taxonomy & Nomenclature
Scientific Name Feresa attenuata
Taxonomic Rank Species
Original Description Gray, 1874
Scientific Synonyms (since 1950)
Common Name
Pygmy Killer Whale
All Common Names English: pygmy killer whale
Spanish: Orca pigmea
Taxonomic Parents Kingdom: Animalia
  Phylum: Chordata
    Subphylum: Vertebrata
      Class: Mammalia
        Subclass: Theria
          Infraclass: Eutheria
            Order: Cetacea
              Suborder: Odontoceti
                Family: Delphinidae
                  Genus: Feresa
Taxonomic Children
Taxonomic # 180461
Taxonomic data is courtesy of the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS)

Physical Description / Field Identification

Pygmy killer whales reach maximum proportions of 2.6 m and 225 kg, males being larger than females. Newborns are about 80 cm long. The body of the pygmy killer whale is slender; the head is rounded and has no beak. The color of the body is dark gray to black, with a prominent narrow cape that dips slightly below the dorsal fin, and a white to light gray ventral band that widens around the genitals. Also, the lips and snout tip are sometimes white. The upper jaw contains 8-11 pairs of teeth, and the lower jaw has 11-13 pairs.

Can be Confused With

Pygmy killer whales are most easily confused with melon-headed whales, and less commonly with false killer whales. Flipper shape and the contour of the cape are the best features to use in distinguishing pygmy killer and melon-headed whales (rounded tips in the pygmy killer whale, pointed tips in the melon-headed whale, and humps on the leading edge in the false killer whale). Additionally, its movements tend to be slow and lethargic compared to the melon-headed whale.


Distribution

Range:Tropical

This is a tropical/subtropical species that inhabits oceanic waters around the globe, generally not ranging north of 40°N or south of 35°S. They are rarely seen in shallow waters. The range of Pygmy killer whales is poorly known.

Atlantic Ocean– Pygmy killer whales have been reported in the Bay of Biscay; in the waters off Senegal; off the coast of the southeast U.S.; in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean; on the coasts of Veracruz, Mexico and Brazil; and in the southwest Atlantic.

Pacific Ocean– The pygmy killer whale has been sighted in the eastern tropical Pacific and along the coast of South America in Peruvian and Ecuadorian waters; in Hawaiian waters; and in the western Pacific including Sagami Bay, Japan and Thailand.

Indian Ocean– Pygmy killer whales have been seen in the Indian Ocean, including the Arabian Sea and in the waters near the Maldives and Sri Lanka.

Links to Distribution Map at Sea Around Us Project

Map of OBIS-SEAMAP Data Points

Existing observations across multiple datasets within OBIS-SEAMAP are indicated with red points.
Species distributions (pink background polygon if present) were digitized by Kristin Kaschner as part of the Sea Around Us Project predominantly from Jefferson et al (1993).

Reference
Jefferson, T.A., S. Leatherwood, and M.A. Webber. 1993. FAO species identification guide. Marine mammals of the world. Rome, FAO. 1993.320. p. 587 figs.

Ecology and Behavior

Habit:Oceanic

There is little known of the biology of the pygmy killer whale. Groups generally contain 50 or fewer individuals, although herds of several hundred have been seen. Not much is known of the reproductive biology of this species.

Feeding and Prey

Little is known regarding the diet of pygmy killer whales, but they eat mostly fish and squid. They occasionally attack other dolphins, at least when the dolphins are involved in tuna fishery interactions in the eastern tropical Pacific.


Threats and Status

Main threats:

Fisheries bycatch

Entanglement in debris/fishing gear

Conservation status:

The IUCN lists this species as data deficient, in that there is not enough data to evaluate its conservation status. In the U.S., this species is not listed as an endangered species.

Pygmy killer whales have been killed both directly in harpoon and driftnet fisheries (Caribbean Islands, Sri Lanka, Indonesia) and incidentally in various types of fishing gear. This species does not appear to be particularly abundant anywhere that it has been sighted – it may be naturally rare.

For current information on the conservation status of this species, please consult the following websites.


References

Donohue, M.A. AND W.L. Perryman. 2002. Pygmy killer whale Feresa attenuata. Pp. 1009-1010 in W.F. Perrin, B. Würsig and J.G.M. Thewissen, eds. Encyclopedia of marine mammals. Academic Press.

Leatherwood, S., D. McDonald, W.P. Prematunga, P. Girton, A. Ilangaakoon, AND D. McBreartyC. 1991. Records of the "blackfish" (killer, false killer, pygmy killer, and melon-headed whales) in the Indian Ocean. UNEP Marine Mammal Technical Report 3:33-65.

Ross, G.J.B., AND S. Leatherwood. 1994. Pygmy killer whale Feresa attenuata Gray, 1874. Pp. 387-404 in S.H. Ridgway and R. Harrison, eds. Handbook of marine mammals, Volume 5 The first book of dolphins. Academic Press.

Van Waerebeek, K., AND J.C. Reyes. 1988. First record of the pygmy killer whale, Feresa attenuata Gray, 1875 from Peru, with a summary of distribution in the eastern Pacific. Zeitschrift fur Saugetierkunde 53:253-255.

Williams, A.D., R. Williams, AND T. Brereton. 2002. The sighting of pygmy killer whales (Feresa attenuata) in the southern Bay of Biscay and their association with cetacean calves. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 82:509-511.

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