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Australian Wildlife

  False Killer Whale (Pseudorca crassidens)





False Killer Whale | Pseudorca crassidens photo
False Killer Whale

Image by U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration - License: Public Domain.    (view image details)

False Killer Whale | Pseudorca crassidens photo
False Killer Whale (Pseudorca crassidens), Sea Life Park, Hawaii

Image by Stefan Thiesen Buntrabe - Some rights reserved.    (view image details)

False Killer Whale | Pseudorca crassidens photo
Pseudorca crassidens and Tursiops truncatus

Image by Ricardo Fernandes - Some rights reserved.    (view image details)







FALSE KILLER WHALE FACTS

Description
The False Killer Whale is a large black or dark gray dolphin with pale gray underside. The body is long with a narrow dorsal fin with rounded tip, and long pointed flippers. The snout is bulbous. There is a pale ring around the eye. It has similar shape to a Killer Whale hence the common name. It swims in schools of 10 to 100 animals and is often seen with other cetaceans, especially Bottlenose Dolphins.

Other Names
Orca Falsa, Blackfish

Size
Maximum length: 5m - 6m. Weight: 1300 kg

Habitat
ocean waters ranging in temperature from 9 to 31 degrees C

Food
squid and fish

Breeding
A single calf is born after a gestation period of 15 months. The calf is weaned after about 24 months. False Killer Whales can live up to 60 years.

Range
all tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate seas

distribution map showing range of Pseudorca crassidens in Australia

Credits:
Map is from Atlas of Living Australia website at https://biocache.ala.org.au licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.



Classification
Class:Mammalia
Order:Cetacea
Family:Delphinidae
Genus:Pseudorca
Species:crassidens
Common Name:False Killer Whale