Northern duck whale
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Northern duck whale ( Hyperoodon ampullatus ) |
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| Hyperoodon ampullatus | ||||||||||||
| ( Forster , 1770) |
The northern duck whale or Dögling ( Hyperoodon ampullatus ) is a species of whale from the family of the beaked whales (Ziphiidae). Since it also lives in European waters, unlike many other species in its family, it has been relatively well researched.
features
The northern duck whale reaches a maximum length of 9.8 meters, with a weight of about 6.5–7.5 t; the females are only a maximum of 8.7 m tall. The animals have a cylindrical body, a large, rounded forehead and a short, pronounced, dolphin-like snout. Particularly noticeable in adult males is the strongly arched, whitish forehead, whereby the color changes with age. While young animals are brown in color, old animals are yellowish-gray in color. The flukes are small and pointed, the triangular or sickle-shaped, brown to black fin is noticeably far back. Older animals have a lighter color of the fin. Females and young animals are toothless, the males have 2–4 conical, protruding teeth at the tip of the lower jaw. These only break through at the age of 15–17 - well after reaching sexual maturity.
distribution
The Northern Duck Whale is common in deeper, cold to temperate waters of the North and Central Atlantic and the Arctic . Its habitat ranges from the Davis Strait and the coast of Nova Scotia across the North Atlantic, Iceland and the Faroe Islands to Svalbard and the British Isles . It occurs in the Central Atlantic off the Azores . The northern duck whale has also been seen in the North Sea as a rare wanderer . In 1902, for example, a duck whale was stranded alive on the North Sea island of Langeoog, but eventually died. In 1993 a dead duck whale was even washed up on the beach at Hiddensee - the animal had ended up in the Baltic Sea . In general, the animals occur more frequently in the north of their range. They also go hiking, in spring and summer they look for colder areas, in late summer they move south.
Way of life
Northern duck whales mainly live in the open sea in areas with more than 1000 m water depth and temperatures between −2 and 17 ° C. They are rarely found on the continental shelf or near the coasts. They live in schools of at least two to ten, sometimes up to several hundred animals, seasonally separated according to sex and age. Breastfeeding mothers can also be found alone with their offspring. The animals dive deep and long, diving straight down. Diving depths of up to 1450 meters and diving times of 14–70 minutes, in individual cases up to two hours, have been reported. This represents the longest known diving time among whales. Northern duck whales are curious, young animals approach noticeable noises, for example ship engines. This fact, combined with the habit of gathering around wounded or juvenile animals, made them easy prey for whalers in the past.
food
The diet of these animals consists mainly of squid , but they also eat fish such as herrings, as well as starfish and sea cucumbers , mussels and other bottom-dwelling invertebrates .
Reproduction
Northern duck whales live in polygynous groups; one male mates with several females. After a gestation period of around twelve months, a young animal up to 3.5 m long is usually born in spring or early summer. After around a year, it is weaned and reaches sexual maturity at around 7.5 meters or 7 to 9 years for males and 6.7 to 7 meters or 8 to 14 years for females.
threat
Especially Norwegian whalers hunted duck whales in the European Arctic Ocean since the end of the 19th century , as the large whales were almost extinct at that time . Initially 3,000 duck whales were caught annually, but by the 1960s the number of duck whales caught dropped to zero as the species was almost extinct. The northern duck whale has been fully protected since 1977. As a result, the stocks have recovered somewhat. It is estimated that more than 40,000 of these animals are alive again today.
Statistics on the catch of pilot whales, duck whales and white-striped dolphins in the Faroe Islands have existed since 1584 . Here - where it is called døglingur - the duck whale comes close to the land every August or September month, often near the villages of Hvalba and Sandvík on Suðuroy . Small groups stranded spontaneously. On August 28, 2000 there was the largest stranding with 13 animals.
Trivia
On January 20, 2006, a northern duck whale lost its way into the Thames caused a sensation. Elaborate rescue attempts were in vain. The authorities later announced that the next time a large whale in the Thames would be killed immediately to save it from suffering. The event inspired rock band The Good, the Bad & the Queen to write a song called Northern Whale .
Individual evidence
- ↑ The generic name Hyperoodon means "teeth in the upper jaw". This goes back to an error made by the biologist Lacépède in 1804 (see Ralf Kiefner: Wale & Delfine worldwide . 1st edition. Year Top Special, Hamburg 2002, ISBN 3-86132-620-5 , p. 273-274 . ).
- ↑ a b c d e Ralf Kiefner: Wale & Delfine worldwide . 1st edition. Year Top Special, Hamburg 2002, ISBN 3-86132-620-5 , p. 273-274 .
- ^ Herbert Grohmann: Sperm whales at the east end of Wangerooge. Message in Langeoog News from January 11, 2016.
- ↑ Monika Seynsche: Ten years ago: Entenwal in der Thames: Excursion with a sad outcome on the Deutschlandfunk website on January 20, 2016, accessed on July 8, 2018.
Web links
- Hyperoodon ampullatus inthe IUCN 2013 Red List of Threatened Species . Listed by: Taylor, BL, Baird, R., Barlow, J., Dawson, SM, Ford, J., Mead, JG, Notarbartolo di Sciara, G., Wade, P. & Pitman, RL, 2008. Retrieved on December 29, 2013.