Cetaceans: Whales, dolphins and porpoises. Quiz

Answer: Sea Monster

The Latin for whales & dolphins is 'cetus', simply meaning 'large sea creature'. There are around 86 species of cetacean found worldwide.

Answer: Odontocetes and Mysticetes

Mysticete means 'moustached whale' due to the hairy baleen plates used to sift plankton and krill etc. Odontocete refers to all toothed whales such as the sperm whale and killer whale.

Answer: Sperm whale and spinner dolphin

Members of the odontocetes use their teeth in the process of echolocation, the lower jaw performing an important antenna-like function.

Answer: Median notch

Flukes provide interesting information for scientists identifying individual whales. Scarring and pigmentation provide a personal 'thumb print' unique to each animal.

Answer: Orcas

Killer whales are not actually 'whales' at all, but are of the sub-order of delphinidae - dolphins. They have a gestation period of approximately 17 months (varying with different populations) and are sentient, self aware beings. But then so are all cetaceans...

Answer: Japan

At the height of the wave of media attention shortly after the film's release, approximately 30,000 dolphins were being slaughtered annually in the coastal towns of Japan. The number has been reduced slightly since 2008, with an annual quota of around 800 individuals being killed in Taiji - the particular town focused on in 'The Cove', rather than 3000 as previously documented.

Answer: Moray Firth (Scotland) and Cardigan Bay (Wales)

Bottlenose dolphins are HIGHLY intelligent. It is almost a cliche to say so, but it is true. Their brains are larger and more complex than ours. They have parts that ours do not, and share some that we do. Their spindle neurones that deal with emotional output, self awareness, thought processes, and cognitive processes (to name but a few!) are plentiful.

In fact, they have more than we do. They also have more folds and undulations in their brain surface (sulci and gyri) than that of the human brain.

These folds are what we call 'grey matter'.

Answer: Humpback whale

There are various ideas behind this nickname. One is that their graceful subaqua moves lead them to look like enormous winged beings. Also, their singing has captured the hearts of the most hardened men and women over the years. With their kindly natures, the humpback has its place in the human heart firmly cemented!

Answer: Bottlenose dolphins

Harbour (or common) porpoises are the smaller, shy cousins of the bottlenose dolphin. They are under 2m in length, have blunt snub rostrums, and a very white underbelly. Unlike dolphins, they have tiny spade-like teeth!

Answer: Minke whale

The minke whale is the smallest of the baleen whales. They are incredibly curious, and are a species that very much benefits the whale watching industry. They are also favoured by the whaling industry, sadly, due to their fascination with vessels bobbing out at sea.