UNESCO-IOC Register of Marine Organisms (URMO) - Physeter macrocephalus Linnaeus, 1758

URMO taxon details

Physeter macrocephalus Linnaeus, 1758

Physeter catodon - sperm whale

AphiaID

137119 (urn:lsid:marinespecies.org:taxname:137119)

Classification

Status

accepted

Rank

Species

Parent

Physeter Linnaeus, 1758

Original name

Physeter macrocephalus Linnaeus, 1758

Synonymised names

Physeter catodon Linnaeus, 1758 · unaccepted (synonym)

Environment

marine, ~~terrestrial~~

Original description

Linnaeus, C. (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. [The system of nature through the three kingdoms of nature, according to classes, orders, genera, species, with characters, differences, synonyms, places.]. Impensis Direct. Laurentii Salvii. Holmiae [Stockholm]. 1(10) [iii], 824 p., available online at https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/726886
page(s): 76 [details] Available for editors

Descriptive notes

Distribution in all oceans; Antarctica/Southern Ocean; East Pacific; Eastern Atlantic Ocean; Indo-West Pacific; Western Atlantic Ocean.

Distribution in all oceans; Antarctica/Southern Ocean; East Pacific; Eastern Atlantic Ocean; Indo-West Pacific; Western Atlantic Ocean. [details]

Taxonomic citation

Fordyce, E.; Perrin, W.F. (2025). World Cetacea Database. Physeter macrocephalus Linnaeus, 1758. Accessed through: Land J. van der (ed). (2008) UNESCO-IOC Register of Marine Organisms (URMO) at: https://www.marinespecies.org/urmo/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=137119 on 2025-09-11

Thematic species database citation

Land J. van der (ed). (2008). UNESCO-IOC Register of Marine Organisms (URMO). Physeter macrocephalus Linnaeus, 1758. Accessed at: https://www.marinespecies.org/urmo/aphia.php/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=137119 on 2025-09-11

Taxonomic edit history

Date

action

2004-12-21 15:54:05Z

created

van der Land, Jacob

2005-03-29 08:12:19Z

changed

Claus, Simon

2008-08-20 11:25:36Z

checked

Perrin, William

2009-01-06 23:07:05Z

changed

Perrin, William

[taxonomic tree]

original description Linnaeus, C. (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. [The system of nature through the three kingdoms of nature, according to classes, orders, genera, species, with characters, differences, synonyms, places.]. Impensis Direct. Laurentii Salvii. Holmiae [Stockholm]. 1(10) [iii], 824 p., available online at https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/726886
page(s): 76 [details] Available for editors

original description (of Physeter catodon Linnaeus, 1758) Linnaeus, C. (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. [The system of nature through the three kingdoms of nature, according to classes, orders, genera, species, with characters, differences, synonyms, places.]. Impensis Direct. Laurentii Salvii. Holmiae [Stockholm]. 1(10) [iii], 824 p., available online at https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/726886
page(s): 76 [details] Available for editors

context source (Deepsea) Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO. The Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS), available online at http://www.iobis.org/ [details]

context source (HKRMS) Jefferson TA. (2005). Monitoring of Indo-Pacific Hampback Dolphin (Sousa chinensis) in Hong Kong waters - Data Analysis. Final report. Submitted to the Agriculture &Fisheries and Conservation Department, The Hong Kong SAR Government. [details]

context source (Bermuda) Sterrer, W. (1986). Marine fauna and flora of Bermuda: a systematic guide to the identification of marine organisms. Wiley-Interscience Publication. Wiley. 742 pp (Nemertini part). [details] Available for editors

context source (PeRMS) Reyes, J. (2009). Ballenas, delfines y otros cet�ceos del Per�. Una fuente de informaci�n. Lima- Per�. Squema-Ediciones. 160 pp. [details]

basis of record van der Land, J. (2001). Tetrapoda, in: Costello, M.J. et al. (Ed.) (2001). European register of marine species: a check-list of the marine species in Europe and a bibliography of guides to their identification. Collection Patrimoines Naturels, 50: pp. 375-376 (look up in IMIS) [details]

additional source Mead, J. G.; Brownell, R. L. Jr. (2005). Cetacea. In Wilson, D.E. & D.M. Reeder (eds). Mammal Species of the World. A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed), Johns Hopkins University Press, 2,142 pp. 723--743., available online at http://www.bucknell.edu/msw3/ [details]

additional source Rice, D. W. (1998). Marine mammals of the world. Systematics and distribution. Society for Marine Mammalogy Special Publication. 4., available online at http://www.marinemammalscience.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/MarineMammalsOfTheWorld.pdf [details]

additional source Hershkovitz, P. (1966). Catalog of Living Whales. Bulletin of the United States National Museum. (246): 1-259., available online at https://doi.org/10.5479/si.03629236.246 [details]

additional source Jefferson, T. A., M. A. Webber and R. L. Pitman. (2008). Marine mammals of the world. Academic Press, Amsterdam. [details]

additional source IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, available online at http://www.iucnredlist.org [details]

additional source Perrin, W.F.; W�rsig, B.; Thewissen, J.G.M. (2009). Encyclopedia of marine mammals. Second edition. Academic Press: London. ISBN 978-0-12-373553-9. xxix, 1316 pp. (look up in IMIS) [details]

additional source King, C.M.; Roberts, C.D.; Bell, B.D.; Fordyce, R.E.; Nicoll, R.S.; Worthy, T.H.; Paulin, C.D.; Hitchmough, R.A.; Keyes, I.W.; Baker, A.N.; Stewart, A.L.; Hiller, N.; McDowall, R.M.; Holdaway, R.N.; McPhee, R.P.; Schwarzhans, W.W.; Tennyson, A.J.D.; Rust, S.; Macadie, I. (2009). Phylum Chordata: lancelets, fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals. in: Gordon, D.P. (Ed.) (2009). New Zealand inventory of biodiversity: 1. Kingdom Animalia: Radiata, Lophotrochozoa, Deuterostomia. pp. 431-554. [details]

additional source Schmidly, D. J. and B. W�rsig. 2009. Mammals (Vertebrata: Mammalia) of the Gulf of Mexico, Pp. 1343�1352 in Felder, D.L. and D.K. Camp (eds.), Gulf of Mexico�Origins, Waters, and Biota. Biodiversity. Texas A&M Press, College Station, Texas. [details]

additional source Liu, J.Y. [Ruiyu] (ed.). (2008). Checklist of marine biota of China seas. China Science Press. 1267 pp. (look up in IMIS) [details] Available for editors

additional source Bearzi, G.; Pierantonio, N.; Affronte, M.; Holcer, D.; Maio, N.; Notarbartolo Di Sciara, G. (2011). Overview of sperm whale Physeter macrocephalus mortality events in the Adriatic Sea, 1555-2009. Mammal Review. 41(4): 276-293., available online at https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2907.2010.00171.x [details] Available for editors

additional source Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS). , available online at http://www.itis.gov
page(s): 76 [details]

ecology source Looby, A.; Erbe, C.; Bravo, S.; Cox, K.; Davies, H. L.; Di Iorio, L.; J�z�quel, Y.; Juanes, F.; Martin, C. W.; Mooney, T. A.; Radford, C.; Reynolds, L. K.; Rice, A. N.; Riera, A.; Rountree, R.; Spriel, B.; Stanley, J.; Vela, S.; Parsons, M. J. G. (2023). Global inventory of species categorized by known underwater sonifery. Scientific Data. 10(1). (look up in IMIS), available online at https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-023-02745-4 [details]