Longman’s Beaked Whale
Scientific Name : Indopacetus Pacificus
- IUCN: Not Endangered/ Least Concern
- Other names: Indo-Pacific beaked whale
- Swahili name: Nyangumi ndomo Longman
- Length: Max 9m
- Weight: About 2,500kg
- Life expectancy: Unknown
- Abundance: Offshore tropical waters in the Indian Ocean and the Pacific
- Occurance: Year-Round; in Kenya December
- Primary prey: Possibly squid
- Conservation status: Unknown
- Quick key identification: Relatively large whale with a steep forehead and distinct beak that is dark and contrasted with white or light shaded head. Dark band from flippers to eye and blowhole. V-shaped grooves on throat and white underbelly. Tail flukes are the same brown to bluish grey colour as the body on both sides. Can be confused with Southern bottlenose whale. Have only one pair of teeth at the tip of the lower jaw.
This whale was mistakenly identified as the tropical bottlenose whale or southern bottlenose whale. They like to be in pods or groups. Tend to dive long, lasting about 11-33 minutes.
