Ziphiidae Family of Beaked Whales

One Beaked Whale of the Ziphiidae Family can be found in this website:

Blainville’s Beaked Whale, Mesoplodon densirostris. A representative of the Ziphiidae Family of Beaked Whales.

Phylogeny: Beaked Whales of the Ziphiidae Family are marine mammals. Like all mammals, they are in the phylum Chordata, the subphylum Vertebrata, the infraphylum Gnathostomata, the megaclass Tetrapoda, and the class Mammalia. They are in the subclass Theria of viviparous (live-bearing) mammals. They are in the order Cetartiodactyla and the suborder Cetancodonta. Beaked Whales are in the infraorder Cetacea, which contains two superfamilies- Mysticeti  (baleen whales), and Odontoceti (dolphins and toothed whales). The Ziphiidae Family is one of seven families in the Odontoceti superfamily. The Ziphiidae Family contains one subfamily, six genera, two subgenera, and twenty-six species. The name Ziphiidae comes from the Greek root word meaning “sword”, and refers to the elongated, sword-like, beak on these whales. Whales in this family are also known as Ziphiids, and those from the genera Hyperoodon and Berardius are called Bottlenose Whales.

Morphology: Like other species of toothed whales or dolphins, Beaked Whales have streamlined bodies with flippers and flukes. They differ in that they have “beaks”, which are generally elongated rostrums, though they actually vary in length. Beaked Whales have a pair of grooves on the throat that converge anteriorly and they have “flipper pockets”, which are convex areas on the body into which the flippers can be tucked. The flukes are large relative to other toothed whales, and generally lack a median notch. Females and juveniles lack teeth. In most species, males have only two teeth. In some species these teeth extend outside the mouth as tusks. Species within this family are best visually distinguished from one another by jaw shape and the position of the teeth. The largest Beaked Whales can reach 12.8 m (42 feet) in length and 11,000 kg (24,000 lbs.) in weight. Some species in this family are so rare that they have never been observed alive.

Habitat and Distribution:  Beaked Whales are generally found in open ocean waters that are at least 300 m (1,000 feet) deep. As air breathing mammals they need to come to the surface to breath, but spend less time at the surface than most other whales. Beaked Whales can reach depths up to 3,940 m (12,927 feet). Beaked Whales are found globally in all polar to tropical seas. At least eight species from this family are found in Mexican waters.

Reproduction: Very little is known about the reproduction of Beaked Whales. As mammals, Beaked Whales are gonochoric (male or female for life) and reproduce sexually with internal fertilization. Females give birth to a single calf after approximately a ten to eighteen month gestation period. The calves will probably nurse for one or more years.

Ecosystem Roles:  Beaked Whales are predators that feed primarily on fish and squid, though some species eat shrimp, sea cucumbers, and even sea stars. Beaked Whales are prey for sharks, Killer Whales, and False Killer Whales. Many exhibit scars from cookie cutter sharks and possibly lamprays.