Ginkgo-Toothed Beaked Whale
The Ginkgo-Toothed Beaked Whale is only known from strandings - ten in the North Pacific, one from the South Pacific, and two from the Indian Ocean.
Classification: This species was classified by two Japanese scientists, Nishiwaki and Kamiya, in 1957. The common and specific name, ginkgodens, refers to the shape of its teeth, which resemble the leaves of the Japanese ginkgo tree.
Local Names: Japanese Beaked Whale; Ichoha Kujira (Japan); Ginkgo Beaked Whale.
Description: Adult males are dark grey in colour, and females are lighter with pale undersides. The teeth on the lower jaw are found towards the middle of the beak and erupt only in mature males. The longest female measured 4.9m, the longest male 4.7m.
Recognition at sea: Unknown.
Habitat: The Ginkgo-Toothed Beaked Whale inhabits tropical to warm temperate waters.
Food & Feeding: Unknown.
Behaviour: Unknown.
Longevity: Unknown.
Estimated Current Population: Unknown.
The Influence of Man: Indivuiduals have been caught in Japan's small cetacean fisheries.
Source: CETACEA
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