Globicephala melas has a disjunct, antitropical distribution in the Northern and Southern hemispheres of the globe. It is absent from equatorial regions. The northern group is distributed in the Atlantic Ocean around Greenland, Iceland, the Barents and North seas, extending south to the north-east coast of the United States and east into the Mediterranean Sea. The southern group is distributed in the Atlantic Ocean as well as the Indian and South Pacific Oceans, particularly around Australia and New Zealand. Ocean currents where G. melas is found include the Benguela, Falkland, and Humboldt currents.

Biogeographic Regions: indian ocean (Native ); atlantic ocean (Native ); pacific ocean (Native ); mediterranean sea (Native )

Other Geographic Terms: cosmopolitan

occurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations

Canada

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Year-round

United States

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Year-round

Global Range: Cool temperate waters of the North Atlantic and temperate and subantarctic waters of the Southern Hemisphere. In the western North Atlantic, ranges from West Greenland and Iceland south to Cape Hatteras (Leatherwood and Reeves 1983). Sub-fossil remains are known from the North Pacific off Japan.

The most characteristic trait of long-finned pilot whales is their large, bulbous, melon-shaped head. Long-finned pilot whales are mostly black with a gray saddle patch behind their dorsal fin and an anchor-shaped mark on their ventral surface. Males can reach up to 8.5 meters, with the average length being 6 meters, and can weigh up to 3,800 kg. Females are smaller, reaching a maximum length of 6 meters, with the average length being 4.8 meters, and can weigh up to 1,800 kg. Initially, calves do not have the bulbous head. The melon grows as the calf matures.

Range mass: males: 3,800 females: 1,800 (high) kg.

Range length: males: 8.5 females: 6 (high) m.

Average length: males: 6 females: 4.8 m.

Other Physical Features: endothermic ; homoiothermic; bilateral symmetry

Sexual Dimorphism: male larger

Length: 8500 cm

• Marine

Long-finned pilot whales prefer cooler saltwater aquatic biomes from 13 to 30 degrees Celsius. Their diving depths can vary tremendously, with a range of from 30 to 1,800 meters. They are found in both pelagic and coastal aquatic biomes.

Range depth: 1,800 to 30 m.

Habitat Regions: saltwater or marine

Aquatic Biomes: pelagic ; coastal

Habitat Type: Marine

Comments: Occurs in cold temperate waters, both pelagic and offshore.

The species associated with this page are major players in the pelagic ecosystem of the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. Stellwagen Bank is an undersea gravel and sand deposit stretching between Cape Cod and Cape Ann off the coast of Massachussets. Protected since 1993 as the region’s first National Marine Sanctuary, the bank is known primarily for whale-watching and commercial fishing of cod, lobster, hake, and other species (Eldredge 1993). 

Massachusetts Bay, and Stellwagen Bank in particular, show a marked concentration of biodiversity in comparison to the broader coastal North Atlantic. This diversity is supported from the bottom of the food chain. The pattern of currents and bathymetry in the area support high levels of phytoplankton productivity, which in turn support dense populations of schooling fish such as sand lance, herring, and mackerel, all important prey for larger fish, mammals, and seabirds (NOAA 2010). Sightings of many species of whales and seabirds are best predicted by spatial and temporal distribution of prey species (Jiang et al 2007; NOAA 2010), providing support for the theory that the region’s diversity is productivity-driven.

Stellwagen Bank is utilized as a significant migration stopover point for many species of shorebird. Summer visitors include Wilson’s storm-petrel, shearwaters, Arctic terns, and red phalaropes, while winter visitors include black-legged kittiwakes, great cormorants, Atlantic puffins, and razorbills. Various cormorants and gulls, the common murre, and the common eider all form significant breeding colonies in the sanctuary as well (NOAA 2010). The community of locally-breeding birds in particular is adversely affected by human activity. As land use along the shore changes and fishing activity increases, the prevalence of garbage and detritus favors gulls, especially herring and black-backed gulls. As gull survivorship increases, gulls begin to dominate competition for nesting sites, to the detriment of other species (NOAA 2010). 

In addition to various other cetaceans and pinnipeds, the world’s only remaining population of North Atlantic right whales summers in the Stellwagen Bank sanctuary. Right whales and other baleen whales feed on the abundant copepods and phytoplankton of the region, while toothed whales, pinnipeds, and belugas feed on fish and cephalopods (NOAA 2010). The greatest direct threats to cetaceans in the sanctuary are entanglement with fishing gear and death by vessel strikes (NOAA 2010), but a growing body of evidence suggests that noise pollution harms marine mammals by masking their acoustic communication and damaging their hearing (Clark et al 2009).

General threats to the ecosystem as a whole include overfishing and environmental contaminants. Fishing pressure in the Gulf of Maine area has three negative effects. First and most obviously, it reduces the abundance of fish species, harming both the fish and all organisms dependent on the fish as food sources. Secondly, human preference for large fish disproportionately damages the resilience of fish populations, as large females produce more abundant, higher quality eggs than small females. Third, by preferentially catching large fish, humans have exerted an intense selective pressure on food fish species for smaller body size. This extreme selective pressure has caused a selective sweep, diminishing the variation in gene pools of many commercial fisheries (NOAA 2010). While the waters of the SBNMS are significantly cleaner than Massachusetts Bay as a whole, elevated levels of PCBs have been measured in cetaceans and seabird eggs (NOAA 2010). Additionally, iron and copper leaching from the contaminated sediments of Boston Harbor occasionally reach the preserve (Li et al 2010). 

Non-Migrant: No. All populations of this species make significant seasonal migrations.

Locally Migrant: No. No populations of this species make local extended movements (generally less than 200 km) at particular times of the year (e.g., to breeding or wintering grounds, to hibernation sites).

Locally Migrant: No. No populations of this species make annual migrations of over 200 km.

Long-finned pilot whales are carnivorous, feeding primarily on mollusks and fish, and eating around 34 kg (75 lb) of food a day. Squid, such as Logio pealei and Illex illecebrous, are favorite foods. Fish, such as mackerel, Atlantic herring, cod, and turbot, are also popular foods. These whales are known to take advantage of the grouping effects of human commercial fishing activities as a way to easily catch prey.

Animal Foods: fish; mollusks

Primary Diet: carnivore (Piscivore , Molluscivore )

Comments: Primarily eats squid (Gannon et al. 1997), occasionally fishes.

Long-finned pilot whales may influence squid and fish populations throughout their range, since those are preferred foods and these whales consume massive amounts of food every day.

Commensal/Parasitic Species:

• stenurosis parasite (Stenurus globicephalae)
• vibrio bacteria (Vibrio alginolyticus)

Humans are known predators of this species. Globicephala melas is hunted for its meat, especially in the Faeroe Islands.

Known Predators:

• humans (Homo sapiens)

Anti-predator Adaptations: cryptic

Gregarious; travels in groups of about 25-50, not uncommonly 100 or more individuals. Pod members comprise a single extended family; mature males neither disperse from nor mate within their natal pod (Amos et al. 1993). Mass strandings common.

The dominant form of communication involves various audible whistles. Whistling remains simple during periods of rest. However, the intricacy of the whistles increases during times of excitement, as well as when the pod is in the process of killing prey. Complex whistles are also heard while the pod is eating and when traveling speeds are high. This indicates that such activities require a greater amount of coordination in the pod. Sounds are also used in echolocation, allowing these whales to orient themselves in space.

Communication Channels: acoustic

Perception Channels: visual ; echolocation

Comments: Active day and night.

Females live longer than males, with a maximum lifespan of 59 years. The maximum lifespan for males is 46 years.

Range lifespan

Status: wild: Male: 46 Female: 59 (high) years.

Range lifespan

Status: captivity: 60 (high) years.

Mating takes place between, not within, pods. Males display an aggressive courtship behavior, including forcefully colliding melon-to-melon at a heightened speed. The mating system is polygynous.

Mating System: polygynous

Mating can occur throughout the year, but the peak of the mating season is in the spring and early summer between April and June. Females are ready to breed when they are 6 years old. Males take longer to mature, reaching sexual maturity at around 12 years of age. Gestation lasts for 16 months, and females give birth to one offspring, weighing approximately 100 kg and measuring about 1.8 meters in length. Weaning occurs between 23 and 27 months of age. There is a four year hiatus between births.

Breeding interval: Females mate every 4 years, typically.

Breeding season: Peak breeding season is in the spring and early summer between April and June.

Range number of offspring: 1 (high) .

Average number of offspring: 1.

Average gestation period: 16 months.

Average birth mass: 100 kg.

Range weaning age: 23 to 27 months.

Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female): 6 years.

Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male): 12 years.

Key Reproductive Features: iteroparous ; year-round breeding ; gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); viviparous

Average birth mass: 109667 g.

Average gestation period: 450 days.

Average number of offspring: 1.

Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male)

Sex: male: 4380 days.

Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female)

Sex: female: 2470 days.

Females are the primary caregivers for calves. Related females usually stay together and form a cohesive pod, whereas mature males travel from one pod to the next.

Parental Investment: precocial ; female parental care ; pre-fertilization (Provisioning, Protecting: Female); pre-hatching/birth (Provisioning: Female, Protecting: Female); pre-weaning/fledging (Provisioning: Female, Protecting: Female); pre-independence (Provisioning: Female, Protecting: Female); post-independence association with parents; extended period of juvenile learning

Breeds in spring or early summer. Gestation lasts 15-16 months (also reported as 14.5 months). One calf is produced about once every 3-4 years, in late summer in the North Atlantic. Young are weaned in about 2 years. Females first reproduce at about 5 years (also reported as 6-10 years). Spermatogenesis begins in mles at 5 years, but functional maturity is not attained before about 15 years.

The skin of pilot whales resists microorganisms thanks to microscopic pores and nanoridges, surrounded by a secreted enzymatic gel which denatures proteins and carbohydrates.

Long-finned pilot whales are considered "data deficient" by the IUCN and the taxonomy of populations worldwide is unresolved. More than one species may be represented by G. melas populations and, if so, it is likely that several of those taxonomic units would be recognized at a higher risk category. Population declines are documented in most populations. A subspecies recognized from Japanese waters became extinct by the 12th century. As a whale species, long-finned pilot whales are listed on Appendix II of CITES.

US Federal List: no special status

CITES: appendix ii

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: data deficient

Canada

Rounded National Status Rank: N4 - Apparently Secure

United States

Rounded National Status Rank: N4 - Apparently Secure

Rounded Global Status Rank: G5 - Secure

Comments: Still abundant in the North Atlantic, but incidental mortality occurs in association with the mackerel fishery in the western North Atlantic (IUCN 1991) (see also ECONCOM). Not subject to exploitation in the southern hemisphere (IUCN 1991). Relatively high cadmium and mercury levels have been reported in animals taken in the Faroes (IUCN 1991). Canadian population faces no immediate threats, but recovery from earlier depletion by drive fisheries has been slow due probably to incidental entrapments, pollutants, and depletion of prey species (Nelson and Lien 1996).

Biological Research Needs: Adequate survey methods need to be developed (IUCN 1991).

Long-finned pilot whales sometimes become entangled in drift nets, a cost to the commercial fishing industry. However, the use of different net designs could make this more avoidable.

One way in which long-finned pilot whales have a positive economic importance for humans is that it serves as a source of food for some humans. However, they are not an important source of food. Long-finned pilot whales are also maintained in captivity for human entertainment and education and are capable of learning to respond to human commands. Although the value of captive whales for education is very controversial.

Positive Impacts: food ; research and education

Comments: Has been heavily exploited for meat and oil in the North Atlantic (Leatherwood and Reeves 1983); see IUCN (1991) for some harvest data. Still subject to drive fishery in Faroe Islands, where annual harvest recently has been about 2000 (IUCN 1991).

Comments: Formerly known as G. melaena, but the ICZN specifically gave melas as an example of a Greek adjective that does not change its ending when transferred to a genus of another gender (see Mead and Brownell, in Wilson and Reeder 1993).

The northern and southern populations sometimes have been regarded as separate species (G. melas and G. edwardi, respectively). Mead and Brownell (in Wilson and Reeder 2005) recognized these as subspecies of G. melas.