Long-finned pilot whale

Long-finned pilot whales are, in fact, dolphins, not whales. They have a rounded bulbous head and a broad-based dorsal fin that looks like a witch’s nose or a smurfs hat. Males have a larger, broader -based dorsal fin than females.  They are glossy black in colour with a grey saddle patch behind the dorsal fin and with a white underbelly. Occasionally pilot whales like to spyhop (where they pop their heads out of the water to have a look around) and when they do this, it is evident to see a white anchor shape on their chests. There are two species of pilot whale found in the northern hemisphere, long-finned and short-finned when spotted in the ocean; they are very hard to tell apart unless their pectoral fins are seen; long-finned pilot whales have a more pronounced bend in their pectoral fins. When compared to short-finned pilot whales, long-finned pilot whales also have more teeth and a different skull shape (not visible in the field). 

Key features: 

• Bulbous melon, blunt beak and a pale blaze from eye 
• Broad, rounded dorsal fin, forward of centre 
• Often seen spy-hopping - lifting their head vertically out of the water 
• Prominent, arched tailstock when surfacing