Protected Marine Species Resources: Listings by Species
Page created: 951226 Last updated: 970404
Page maintainer: Wesley R. Elsberry
Know an interesting marine species link that isn't here? Suggest
it to Wesley R. Elsberry.
I have listed below most species of cetaceans. Links will follow
under each species. The listing follows taxonomic lines, rather than
alphabetized common names or something similar. If you know a common name,
but not a scientific name, try using your browser's search function for the
common name. The taxonomy comes from both Peter Evans' "Biology of Whales
and Dolphins" and Leatherwood and Reeves' "Handbook of Whales and Dolphins".
There are a few discrepancies between the two. I hope I haven't
confused the state of taxonomy too badly here.
I will generally put general resources at the top of any list
of resources, and specialized resources lower down.
- Phylum Chordata
The chordates include the vertebrates, which includes fish, amphibians,
reptiles, birds, and mammals. To those involved in conservation of
invertebrates, all vertebrate work looks like special attention to
"charismatic megafauna".
- Order Cetacea (whales & dolphins)
- Suborder Mysticeti (baleen whales)
Baleen whales capture prey items by straining water through a series of
baleen plates in the mouth, which act as filters to collect the food items.
- Family Balaenopteridae (rorquals)
Fast-swimming, streamlined, lunging feeders. These whales take in a large
amount of water into an expanding buccal cavity, then expel the water through
baleen to trap their prey.
- Genus Balaenoptera
- Species acutorostrata ("Minke Whale")
- Species borealis ("Sei Whale")
- Species edeni ("Bryde's Whale")
- Species musculus ("Blue Whale")
- Species physalus ("Fin Whale")
- Genus Megaptera
- Species novaeangliae ("Humpback whale")
- Family Balaenidae
Cruising, slow-moving, continuous filter feeders.
- Family Eschrichtidae
- Genus Eschrichtius
- Species gibbosus ("Gray Whale")
-
Baleen Whales
- Suborder Odonticeti ("toothed whales")
- Family Platanistidae
- Genus Platanista
- Species gangetica ("Ganges Susu River Dolphin")
- Species minor ("Indus Susu River Dolphin")
- Genus Inia
- Species geoffrensis ("Boutu" or "Amazon River Dolphin")
- Genus Lipotes
- Species vexillifer ("Beiji" or "Chinese Lake Dolphin")
The Beiji is highly endangered, with estimates of perhaps 100 animals
left in the wild, and only 2 in captivity. The endangerment proceeds from
habitat displacement, as the Yangtze River steadily becomes less livable
for both prey items and predators.
- Genus Pontoporia
- Species blainvillei ("Franciscana" or "La Plata Dolphin")
- Family Ziphidae
Beaked whales are deep-water, deep-diving species only rarely (and usually
briefly, if still living) encountered by humans. Most species are known from
one or a few specimens, many of those washed ashore in less than perfect
condition.
- Genus Mesoplodon
- Species bidens ("North Sea Beaked Whale" or "Sowerby's Beaked
Whale")
- Species layardii ("Strap-toothed Whale")
- Species europaeus ("Antillean beaked Whale" or "Gervais' Beaked
Whale")
- Species mirus ("True's Beaked Whale")
- Species grayi ("Camperdown Whale" or "Gray's Beaked Whale")
- Species densirostris ("Blainville's Beaked Whale")
- Species bowdoini ("Andrew's Beaked Whale")
- Species pacificus ("Longman's Beaked Whale")
- Species hectori ("Hector's Beaked Whale")
- Species ginkgodens ("Ginkgo-toothed Beaked Whale")
- Species stejnegeri ("Stejneger's Beaked Whale")
- Species carlhubbsi ("Hubb's Beaked Whale")
- Genus Ziphius
- Species cavirostris ("Cuvier's Beaked Whale")
- Genus Berardius
- Species bairdii ("Baird's Beaked Whale")
- Species arnuxii ("Arnoux's Beaked Whale")
- Genus Tasmacetus
- Species shepherdi ("Tasman Beaked Whale")
- Genus Hyperoodon
- Species ampullatus ("Northern Bottlenose Whale")
- Species planifrons ("Southern Bottlenose Whale")
- Family Physeteridae
- Genus Physeter
- Species macrocephalus ("Sperm Whale")
- Genus Kogia
- Species breviceps ("Pygmy Sperm Whale")
- Species simus ("Dwarf Sperm Whale")
- Family Monodontidae
- Genus Delphinapterous
- Genus Monodon
- Species monoceros ("Narwhal")
- Family Stenidae
- Genus Steno
- Species bredanensis ("Rough-Toothed Dolphin")
- Genus Stenella
- Species attenuata ("Pantropical Spotted Dolphin")
- Species dubia ("Spotted Dolphin")
- Species frontalis ("Atlantic Spotted Dolphin")
- Species plagiodon ("Spotted Dolphin")
- Species coeruleoalba ("Striped Dolphin")
- Species longirostris ("Long-snouted Spinner Dolphin")
- Species clymene ("Short-snouted Spinner" or "Clymene Dolphin")
- Genus Sotalia
- Species fluviatilis ("Bouto Dolphin" or "Tucuxi")
- Species guianensis ("Guiana River Dolphin")
- Species chinensis ("Chinese White Dolphin")
- Species borneensis ("Borneo White Dolphin")
- Species centiginosa ("Speckled Dolphin"))
- Species plumbea ("Plumbeous Dolphin")
- Species teuzzi ("Cameroon Dolphin")
- Species brasiliensis ("Rio de Janeiro Dolphin")
- Family Delphinidae
- Genus Delphinus
- Species delphis ("Common Dolphin")
- Genus Grampus
- Species griseus ("Risso's Dolphin")
- Genus Tursiops
- Species truncatus ("Bottlenose Dolphin")
- Species gilli ("Bottlenose Dolphin")
- Genus Lagenorhynchus
- Species obliquidens ("White-sided Dolphin")
- Species albirostris ("White-beaked Dolphin")
- Species obscuras ("Dusky Dolphin")
- Species acutus ("White-sided Dolphin")
- Species thicolea ("Falkland Island Dolphin")
- Species cruciger ("Hour-glass Dolphin")
- Species australis ("Peale's Dolphin")
- Genus Lagenodelphis
- Species hosei ("Sarawak Dolphin" or "Fraser's Dolphin")
- Genus Feresa
- Species attenuata ("Pygmy Killer Whale")
- Genus Cephalorhyncus
- Species commersoni ("Commerson's Dolphin")
- Species hectori ("Hector's Dolphin")
- Species heavisidei ("Heaviside's Dolphin")
- Species eutropia ("Whte-bellied Dolphin")
- Genus Orcinus
- Species orca ("Orca" or "Killer Whale")
- Genus Pseudorca
- Species crassidens ("False killer Whale")
- Genus Orcaella
- Species brevirostris ("Irrawaddy River Dolphin")
- Genus Globicephala
- Species malaena("Pilot Whale")
- Species macrorhynchus ("Short-finned Pilot Whale")
- Genus Peponocephala
- Species electra ("Broad-beaked Dolphin")
- Genus Lissodelphis
- Species peroni ("Southern Right Whale Dolphin")
- Species borealis ("Northern Right Whale Dolphin")
- Family Phocoenidae ("porpoises")
- Genus Phocaena
- Species phocaena ("Harbor Porpoise")
- Species dioptrica ("Spectacled Porpoise")
- Species spinipinnis ("Black Porpoise")
- Species sinus ("Cochito")
- Genus Neomeris
- Species phocaenoides ("Black Finless Porpoise")
- Genus Phocaenoides
- Species dalli ("Dall's Porpoise")
- Species truei ("True's Porpoise")
- Genus Neophocaena
- Species phocaenoides ("Finless Porpoise")
- Suborder Archaeoceti
A convenient taxonomic pigeonhole for all fossil whales.
- Genus Ambuloceti
- Genus Pakiceti
- Order Sirenia
- Genus Trichechus
- Species manatus ("West Indian Manatee")
- Mustelidae
- Genus Enhydra
- Species lutra ("Sea Otter")
Online information about Protected Marine Species
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