Goose-Beaked Whale

(Ziphius cavirostris) a mammal of the family Ziphiidae; it is also known as Cuvier’s beaked whale. The body measures up to 8 m long; the males are slightly smaller than the females. Goose-beaked whales have a conical beak and a low sloping forehead. The color of the whales varies, though most are gray; the head and part of the back of older whales are white. Goose-beaked whales inhabit the warm and temperate waters of all oceans. In the USSR they are found in the seas of the Far East near the Kurile and Komandorskie islands. They feed on cephalopan mollusks. Goose-beaked whales are solitary animals and are rarely seen. They have no commercial value.