Head of a solitary adult male Blainville’s beaked whale showing the high bottom jaw line and the erupted teeth. Credit: NOAA Fisheries

Blainville’s beaked whale

(Mesoplodon densirostris)

SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION

  • Kingdom: Animalia
  • Phylum: Chordata
  • Class: Mammalia
  • Order: Cetacea
  • Infraorder: Odontoceti
  • Family: Ziphiidae
  • Genus: Mesoplodon
  • Species: Mesoplodon densirostris

TOP THREATS

  • NOISE POLLUTION
  • ENTANGLEMENT and Bycatch
  • Environmental Stressors

CURRENT STATUS

SPECIES OVERVIEW

Blainville’s beaked whale is one of the most widespread yet least understood beaked whale species. Found in tropical and warm temperate oceans around the world, these elusive deep-diving cetaceans spend the majority of their lives far offshore, making sightings uncommon and scientific study challenging. Adults typically reach 15 to 16 feet in length and are distinguished by their streamlined bodies, small dorsal fins, and the pair of tusk-like teeth that emerge from the lower jaw of adult males.

Blainville’s beaked whales are among the deepest diving mammals on Earth, capable of descending thousands of feet and remaining underwater for more than an hour while foraging for squid and deep-sea fish. Their specialized lifestyle makes them particularly vulnerable to human-generated underwater noise, especially naval sonar, which has been linked to atypical strandings of several beaked whale species. Continued research is essential to better understand their biology and protect the deep-ocean habitats they depend on.

SPECIES RANGE

Blainville’s beaked whales inhabit tropical and warm temperate oceans worldwide. They are primarily found in deep offshore waters near continental slopes, oceanic islands, and submarine canyons where the seafloor drops away rapidly.

THE PROBLEMS

Blainville’s beaked whales face a range of human-caused threats despite living far from shore. They are especially vulnerable to underwater noise, including naval sonar and seismic surveys, which can disrupt their natural diving behavior and have been linked to mass stranding events. Other threats include entanglement in fishing gear, plastic pollution, chemical contaminants, and the growing impacts of climate change on deep-ocean ecosystems.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

Your support helps protect the marine mammal species through Operation GRACE and the National Marine Mammal Foundation’s science-driven research, veterinary expertise, and conservation action. Donations directly support health assessments, rescue and response efforts, and collaborative fieldwork with local experts to better understand threats, improve survivability, and protect the river ecosystems these dolphins depend on.