The killer whale is one of the most impressive animals on Earth. With their enormous dimensions and predatory characteristics, they are commonly known as killer whales. However, this nickname, coming from the direct translation from English killer whale, has undeservedly given them a bad name in certain cultures.
To help you get to know these whales better and appreciate their qualities, from Ecologist Verde we want to present you the taxonomy, the main characteristics and how the killer whales are classified.
Killer whale taxonomy: taxonomic classification
The orcaOrcinus orca) is a odontocete cetacean that is included within the family Delphinidae. It is the only living species of the genus Orcinus and the largest of the dolphin family.
Killer whale taxonomy or "killer whales" is the following:
Animalia Kingdom
Killer whales are multicellular and heterotrophic animals.
Edge: Chordata
Killer whales are vertebrate animals.
Class: Mammalia
Killer whales are warm-blooded animals, with a respiratory system based on pulmonary respiration and with mammary glands supplied with milk to feed their young.
Order: Cetacea
Group with ancestrally terrestrial animals but used to living in aquatic ecosystems today.
Suborder: Odontoceti
This suborder differs from toothed whales from baleen whales. Thus, the killer whale is included as a toothed cetacean.
Family: Delphinidae
Members of this family are called dolphins or oceanic dolphins (dolphins and porpoises).
Genus: Orcinus
The term "orca" comes from the Greek and refers to "whale."
Species: Orcinus orca
This is the exact scientific name of the killer whale.
Killer whale characteristics
After knowing the taxonomy of killer whales, we will talk about characteristics of killer whales or orcas, such as their appearance, behavior, food, habitat, intelligence, reproduction, etc., some very interesting data to get to know them better.
General aspect
Killer whales are characterized by a patch on the eyes, on the chest and with white lateral areas and a black back, a long and straight dorsal fin and perfect teeth to catch prey and chop them for food.
Size, weight and speed
In terms of their dimensions, orcas stand out and differ from other dolphins due to their impressive size. Of robust corpulence, orcas can exceed 9 meters in length and 6,000 kilos, somewhat smaller in the case of females. From birth, the young have a weight of about 180 kilos and 2 meters in length. In terms of speed, orcas can reach 50 km / h, although the usual is between 5 and 10 km / h, without diving very deep.
Communication
They are great predators with a communication system based on particular vocalizations in each individual. This allows them to hunt in a group, as their communication is amazing and has been studied for decades.
Habitat
These cetaceans are present in all the world's oceans, although it is more common to see killer whales in cold areas.
What do orcas eat
These predators eat about 5% of their total body weight on a daily basis and spend 60% of their time searching for prey, being able to attack other large marine mammals. Some of their common prey are sea lions, seals, sharks, walruses, turtles, penguins, and even whales, putting them at the top of the food chain.
Behavior and intelligence
A special curiosity of the species is that it has the largest brain of the cetaceans, after the sperm whale. In addition, they are a highly intelligent species capable of imitating other animals and even teaching their young specific behaviors and skills, such as intentionally stranding on beaches to hunt seals and sea lions.
Reproduction
Female killer whales become sexually mature when they are between 4.6 m and 4.9 m in length and between 6 and 10 years of age. In contrast, male killer whales mature sexually when they reach between 5.5 m and 6.1 m in length and between 10 years and 13 years.
Usually, they can give birth to a single calf at each delivery and their gestation frequency is between 5 and 6 years, since the gestation period can vary, normally, between 15 and 18 months. At birth, the young are between 2 m and 2.7 m long and weigh about 200 kg.
Life expectancy
Finally, with a life expectancy of approximately 60 years for males and 90 for females, orcas are also one of the longest-lived animals.
Orcas classification: the 3 groups
Depending on their customs and places where they live, there are three different types of killer whales, each with its own habits and peculiarities, such as specific sounds or dialects to communicate.
Resident killer whales
The resident killer whales they live near the coasts, without traveling long distances, and they live in groups with approximately 5 individuals united by strong family ties. To recognize them, just look at its curved fin with a rounded, sphere-shaped tip. Finally, their diet is based on fish and squid.
Killer whales passersby
Passing killer whales, in general, do not stay in specific places, but rather they travel long distances. In this case, we can identify these killer whales by the fins located on their dorsal part, with a rather triangular and sharp tip. They generally live in small groups of about 3 orcas. In contrast to the residents, in these killer whales it is common to observe the abandonment by the children of the family group or even males alone. These cetaceans feed on seals, sea lions, turtles, etc.
Sea killer whales
Sea killer whales inhabit areas very far from the coasts, about 25 kilometers from these. Their fins have a curved shape and, in general, they are smaller than the rest. Finally, these types of killer whales form large groups, of between 20 and 75 individuals and their diet is based on sharks, seals, sea lions and other animals of the high seas.
You may also be interested in this other Green Ecologist article on the Difference between killer whale and false killer whale.
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