Long-finned pilot whale

It is an unmistakable species thanks to its melon, which sometimes resembles a hemisphere. The mouth is set underneath and the pectoral fins are long and sickle-shaped, while the dorsal fin is large and slopes back towards the tail fluke, with a base longer than its height. The colouring is ebony black, with the throat and belly often bearing a white pattern. The maximum length is 7 metres, with a weight of 3 tonnes.

It prefers very deep, open-sea waters. In the Mediterranean it is fairly common in the western basin. It reaches a maximum depth of 600 metres. One characteristic behaviour is holding its head out of the water for long periods, tilted forwards.

It generally feeds on cephalopods and, when these are scarce, also on fish; it usually eats an amount of food equal to 5% of its body weight.

It is  highly gregarious, forming groups  of a few dozen to several hundred individuals, which can be seen swimming slowly at the surface.