Sperm Whale
· Sperm Whale Habitat
· Sperm Whale Food
· Sperm Whale Behaviour
· Conservation Status
· Sperm Whale Pictures
· Pygme Sperm Whale

Sperm Whale Food

Sperm whale food animals

A lot of different marine species can end up as Sperm whale food, including octopuses, giant squids, and rays. Sperm whales are actually known to view long-lines belonging to Alaskan fishing operations as virtual smorgasbords where they can pick all sorts of fish without having to hunt them down. A majority of the Sperm whale diet does however consist of medium sized squid. Scientists rarely witness Sperm whales foraging for food, and the knowledge we have about Sperm whale food habits is therefore largely derived from the stomach content of captured Sperm whales. What we do know for a fact is that vast amounts of marine life become Sperm whale food each day. A Sperm whale eats around 3% of its body weight each day, and the largest male Sperm whales weight over 50,000 kilograms (55 short tons). The females are usually smaller and weigh around 25,000 kg (27.5 short tones). Estimations show that the current global Sperm Whale population eats around 100 million tons of Sperm whale food each year.

Sperm whale food – the squid fights back

The white scars present on many Sperm whales are thought to be the result of struggles between Sperm whales and squids. Some suggest that giant squids may actually attack Sperm whales, but most experts believe that the scaring is caused by squids that did not want to end up as Sperm whale food – not the other way around.  

The squid may also be able to cause distress for the whale even after it has become Sperm whale food. Sperm whales seem to have problems digesting the sharp beak of the squid, and lodged beaks may be the reason behind the renowned ambergris found in Sperm whales. The intestines are thought to produce ambergris to fend of irritation caused by squid beaks, just like an oyster produces a pearl to reduce the effect of an irritating grain of sand.  

Sperm whale food: the teeth

Sperms whales have enormous teeth, but they actually seem to be quite superficial when it comes to feeding. The teeth do not break through the gums of the Sperm whale until the animal reaches puberty, but the whale must of course start to catch and eat solid food much earlier. If you look into the mouth of an adult Sperm whale, you can see 20-26 big conical teeth in each side of the lower jaw. The teeth in the upper jaw rarely break through the gums. There has also been a few instances when caught Sperm whales turned out to have no teeth at all, but the animals were still healthy and in good condition.