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Whales, dolphins and porpoises make up the classification order Cetacea, which contains two suborders, Mysticeti and Odontoceti. The baleen whales are members of the Mysticeti suborder, while the toothed whales, dolphins and porpoises make up the suborder Odontoceti. Altogether, the two suborders contain eighty-one known species, separated into thirteen different families. In each family are a number of species, each classified further into sub-families, or genera, of which there are 40. What Are Cetaceans?
There are many misconceptions about cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises), the most common of which is the idea that cetaceans are fish. Theyre not they are mammals, like you and me. Millions of years ago, they lived on land; their bodies were covered in hair, they had external ears, they walked on four legs, they based live young. As mammals, cetaceans have these characteristics that are common to all mammals: They are warm-blooded animals. They breathe in air through their lungs. They bear their young alive and suckle them on their own milk.
They have hair though generally only a few whiskers. Another way of discerning a cetacean from a fish is by the shape of the tail. The tail of a fish is vertical and moves from side to side when the fish swims. The tail of a cetacean is horizontal and moves up and down instead. The Cetaceans Adaptations for Sea Life Over a period of millions of years, the cetacean returned to the sea there was more food there, and more space than on land. Because of this increase in space, there was no natural limit to the cetaceans size (i.
e. the amount of weight its legs could hold) since the water provided buoyancy. It had no longer any need for legs. During this time, the cetacean lost the qualities that fitted it for land existence and gained new qualities for life at sea.
Its hind limbs disappeared, its body became more tapered and streamlined a form that enabled it to move swiftly through the water. For the same reason, most of its fur disappeared, reducing the resistance of the giant body to the water. The cetaceans original tail was replaced by a pair of flukes that acted like a propeller. As part of this streamlining process, the bones in the cetaceans front limbs fused together. In time, what had been the forelegs became a solid mass of bone, blubber and tissue, making very effective flippers that balance the cetaceans tremendous bulk. After the cetaceans hair disappeared, it needed some way of preserving their body heat.
This came in the form of blubber, a thick layer of fat between the skin and the flesh that also acts as an emergency source of energy. In some cetaceans the layer of blubber can be more than a foot thick. Breathing, Seeing, Hearing and Echolocation Since the cetacean is a mammal, it needs air to breathe. Because of this, it needs to come to the waters surface to exhale its carbon dioxide and inhale a fresh supply of air. Naturally it cannot breathe under water, so as it dives a muscular action closes the blowholes (nostrils), which remain closed until the cetacean next breaks the surface.
When it does, the muscles open the blowholes and warm air is exhaled. To make this easier, the cetaceans blowholes have moved to the top of its head, giving it a quicker chance to expel the stale air and inhale fresh air. When the stale air, warmed from the lungs, is exhaled it condenses and vaporizes as it meets the cold air outside. This is rather like when you breathe out on a cold day and a small cloud of warm air appears. This is called the blow, or spout, and each cetaceans blow is different in terms of shape, angle and height. This is how cetaceans can be identified at a distance by experienced whalers or whale-watchers.
The cetaceans eyes are set well back and to either side of its huge head. This means that cetaceans with pointed beaks (such as dolphins) have good binocular vision forward and downward, but others with blunt heads (such as the Sperm Whale) can see either side but not directly ahead or directly behind. The eyes shed greasy tears which protect them from the salt in the water, and cetaceans have been found to have good vision both in the water and out. Akin to the eyes, the cetaceans ears are also small. Life in the sea accounts for the cetaceans loss of its external ears, whose function is to collect sound waves and focus them in order for them to become strong enough to hear well. However, sound waves travel faster through the water than in the air, and so the external ear was no longer needed, and is no more than a tiny hole in the skin, just behind the eye.
The inner ear, however, has become so well developed that the cetacean can not only hear sounds tens of miles away, but it can also discern from which direction the sound comes. Cetaceans use sound in the same way as bats they emit a sound, which then bounces off an object and returns to them. From this, cetaceans can discern the size, shape, surface characteristics and movement of the object, as well as how far away it is. This is called sonar, or echolocation, and with it cetaceans can search for, chase and catch fast-swimming prey in total darkness. It is so advanced that most cetaceans can discern between prey and non-prey (such as humans or boats), and captive cetaceans can be trained to distinguish between, for example, balls of different colours, sizes or shapes. Cetaceans also use sound to communicate, whether it be groans, moans, whistles, clicks or the complex singing of the Humpback Whale that is becoming so popular on wildlife documentaries and relaxation tapes.
Feeding When it comes to food and feeding, this is where cetaceans can be separated into two distinct groups. The toothed whales or Odontoceti have lots of teeth that they use for catching fish, squid or other marine life. They do not chew their food, but swallow it whole. The cetaceans in this group include the Sperm Whale, dolphins and porpoises. The baleen whales or Mysticeti do not have teeth. Instead they have plates made of keratin (the same substance as our fingernails) which hang down from the upper jaw.
These plates act like a giant filter, straining small animals (such as plankton, krill and fish) from the seawater. Cetaceans included in this group include the mighty Blue Whale, the Humpback Whale, the Bowhead Whale and the Minke Whale. Bibliography NONE web
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