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Texas A&M University - Sealife terms Category: Animals and Nature > Sealife glossary Date & country: 02/09/2018, USA Words: 101

Adult
Sexually mature animal that is (or is almost) fully grown.

Amphipod
Shrimp-like crustacean that is a food source for some whales.

Antarctic Convergence
Natural boundary in the oceans around Antarctica, where cold waters from the south sink below warmer waters from the north; lying roughly between 50 degrees to 60 degrees S, it shifts slightly with the seasons.

Anterior
Situated at or near the head.

Anchor Patch
Variable gray-white anchor or W-shaped patch on the chests of some small toothed whales.

Benthic
Relating to the bottom of the sea.

Beach-Rubbing
Rubbing the body on stones in shallow water near the shore.

Biota
The animal and plant life of a region considered as a total ecological entity.

Blubber
Insulating layer of fat beneath the skin of most marine mammals.

Blaze
Light streaking of color, usually starting below the dorsal fin and pointing up into the cape.

Blowhole
Nostril(s) on the top of the head.

Bow-Riding
Riding on the pressure wave in front of a ship or large whale.

Breaching
Act of leaping completely out of the water (or almost completely) and landing back with a splash.

Bull
Adult male whale.

Callosity
Area of roughened skin or horny growth on the head of a right whale.

Calf
Baby cetacean that is still being nursed by its mother.

Cape
Darker region on the back of many cetaceans around the dorsal fin.

Callosities
Fleshy wart-like growths from skin of some whales.

Cetacean
Marine mammal belonging to the order Cetacea, which includes all whales, dolphins, and porpoises.

Chevron
V-shaped stripes.

Circumpolar
Ranging around either pole.

Coastal
Adjacent to ocean shores.

Cow
Adult female whale.

Continental Shelf
Area of sea floor adjacent to a continent, sloping gently to a depth of about 655 feet (200 m); beyond the shelf edge, the sea floor drops steeply (via the continental slope) to the ocean bottom.

Copepod
Small crustacean in the class Copepoda.

Depleted Status
Species whose numbers are below its optimal sustainable population level.

Dimorphism
Two different forms of traits. Sexual dimorphism

Dive pattern
Typical behavior and timing of a whale's blow and dives.

Dorsal Ridge
Hump or ridge that replaces a dorsal fin in some cetaceans.

Dorsal fin
Raised structure on the back of most cetaceans.

Dorsal
Toward the upper side.

Echolocation
System used by many cetaceans to orientate, navigate, and find food by sending out sounds and interpreting the returning echoes.

Endangered Status
Species in danger of extinction in all or significant portion of its range, as defined by the Endangered Species Act.

Euphausiid
Small shrimp-like crustacean in the order Euphausiacea. Also called krill.

Falcate
Sickle-shaped and curved backward.

Fluking
Act of raising the flukes into the air upon diving.

Flukes
Horizontally flattened tail of cetaceans (containing no bone).

Flipper-Slapping
Raising a flipper out of the water and slapping it onto the surface.

Gestation
The carrying of young in the uterus until birth.

Gregarious
Social.

Gum Teeth
Horny protuberances on the gums of Dall's Porpoise, forming a tough ridge between the real teeth.

Herd
Coordinated group of cetaceans; term often used in connection with larger baleen whales.

Juvenile
Young cetacean that is no longer being nursed by its mother but is not yet sexually mature.

Keel
Distinctive bulge on the tail stock near the flukes; it can be on the upper side, underside, or both.

Krill
Small, shrimp-like crustaceans that form the major food of many baleen whales. There are more than 80 species.

Lactation
Production of milk by female; duration of suckling.

Logging
Lying still at or near the surface.

Locally Common
Uncommon or absent over most of range, but relatively common in one or more specific localities.

Melon
Bulbous forehead of many toothed whales, dolphins, and porpoises; believed to be used to focus sounds for echolocation.

Migration
Regular journeys of animals between one region and another, usually associated with seasonal climatic changes or breeding and feeding cycles.

Mysticeti
See Baleen Whale.

Neritic
Pertaining to the near-shore, shallow-water zone of a sea over the continental shelf.

Oceanic
Anywhere in the ocean beyond the edge of the continental shelf, usually where the water is deeper than 655 ft (200m).

Odontoceti
See Toothed Whale.

Pack Ice
Mass of floating pieces of ice driven together to form a solid layer.

Pantropical
Occurring globally between the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn.

Parasite
Organism that benefits from another organisms while harming it.

Permanent Ice
Core areas of ice around both poles; this ice does not melt, but is surrounded by outer zones of ice that form each autumn and disperse each spring.

Pelagic
Living in the upper waters of the open sea far from land.

Pectoral Fin
See Flipper.

Pod
Coordinated group of cetaceans; term often used in connection with larger toothed whales.

Population
Group of animals of the same species that is isolated from other such groups and interbreeds.

Porpoising
Leaping out of the water while moving forward at speed.

Polar
Of the areas around the poles.

Polygynous
One male mates with more than one female.

Posterior
Situated at or near the tail.

Race
Interbreeding group of animals that is genetically distinct from other such groups of the same species; races are usually geographically isolated from one another.

Range
Natural distribution of a species, including migratory pathways and seasonal haunts.

Resident
Stays in one area all year round.

Rooster Tail
Spray of water formed when certain small cetaceans surface at high speed; it is caused by a cone of water coming off the animal's head.

Rorqual
Strictly speaking, a baleen whale of the genus Balaenoptera; however, many experts also include the Humpback Whale (genus Megaptera) in this group.

Rostrum
Upper jaw of the skull (may be used to refer to the beak or snout).

Saddle Patch
Light patch behind the dorsal fin on some cetaceans.

School
Coordinated group of cetaceans; term often used for dolphins.

Sexual maturity
Age at which animal is first capable of breeding.

Seamount
Isolated undersea mountain (usually a volcano) with the summit lying well below the ocean surface.

Snout
See Beak.

Sonar
System used by many cetaceans to echolocate.

Species
Group of similar animals, reproductively isolated from all other such groups and able to breed and produce viable offspring.

Spyhopping
Raising the head vertically out of water, then sinking below the surface without much splash.

Spout
See Blow.

Stranding
Act of a cetacean coming onto land, either alive or dead; mass stranding involves a group of 3 or more animals.

Submarine Canyon
Deep, steep-sided valley in the continental shelf.

Subspecies
Recognizable subpopulations of a species, typically with a distinct geographical distribution.

Taxonomy
Classification of organisms according to how they are related to one another.

Temperate
Mid-latitude regions between the tropics and the polar circles, with a mild, seasonally changing climate; cold temperate regions are toward the poles, warm temperate regions are nearer the tropics.

Throat Grooves
Grooves on the throat present in some groups of whales.

Threatened Status
Species likely to become endangered within foreseeable future in all or significant part of its range.

Transient
Always on the move rather than staying in one area; usually refers to Killer Whales.

Tropical
Pertaining to low latitudes of the world between the tropic of Cancer and Capricorn.

Tubercles
Circular bumps along the edges of the flippers and dorsal fins of some cetaceans; also the knobs on a Humpback Whale's head.

Ventral grooves
In certain baleen whales, the furrows extending back from the chin.

Vestigial
Pertaining to part of an animal that is in the process of being evolutionarily lost and is small, imperfectly formed, and serves no function.

Ventral
Relating to the underside.

Wake-Riding
Swimming in the frothy wake of a boat or ship.

West-Wind Drift
Principal circumpolar current around Antarctica, flowing in an easterly direction.

Whale
General name applied to any large cetacean and a specific name applied to certain smaller ones.

Whalebone
See Baleen/baleen plate.

Whale Lice
Small, crablike parasites that live on some species of whale.

Whaling
The intentional hunting and killing of whales for their meat, blubber, baleen, and other products.