Cetaceans – discover more about this wonderful species
Cetaceans are marine mammals that, like humans, have lungs and whose young feed on milk. These animals have proved to be extremely social and intelligent animals, with complex intra and interspecific interactions (ie within the same species and between species).
So far, about 90 species are known. In general, they can be divided into two large groups: toothed and bearded cetaceans. This division is mainly based on the form of feeding. The toothed cetaceans (Suborder Odontoceti), as the name implies, have teeth and feed on larger prey (such as fish, squid and octopus). Dolphins and sperm whales are part of this group (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) and it's teeth.
Bearded Ones (Suborder Mysticeti) have beards instead of teeth, feeding on smaller animals (such as krill and small crustaceans). The latter use beards to filter the water they ingest. The blue whale and the humpback whale (Figure 2) are some of the examples of this group.
Figure 2. Humpback whale (Megaptera novaengliae) and it's beards.
