Sperm whale with Architeuthis Giant Squid Scars | Ogasawara, Japan

Adult female sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) at the ocean surface with her mouth open. This whale has just surfaced from foraging in deep water. There is a small piece of squid on the tip of her lower jaw. She has many visible scars left by the suckers of Architeuthis sp. giant squid, which seem to be among the primary prey hunted by sperm whales in the waters of Ogasawara (the Bonin Islands) in Japan. Note the cluster of sucker scars at the base of the whale's lower jaw. Also, it is possible to see inside the roof of the whale's mouth. This angle shows clearly that the whale has no teeth in the upper jaw, only the lower jaw.

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Filename: sperm-whale-physeter-macrocephalus-ogasawara-japan-201010-0140.tif
Copyright: Copyright Tony Wu. All rights reserved. No reproduction in any form without prior written permission.
Image Size: 3376x5064 / 49.1MB; https://www.photoshelter.com/support/license#rm; https://www.tony-wu.com/contact-tony-wu; Whale Sperm Whale Animalia Chordata Mammalia Cetacea Odontoceti Physeteridae Physeter macrocephalus Cetartiodactyla Cachalot Marine Mammal Odontocete Physeter catadon Toothed Whale CITES Appendix 1 Vulnerable: IUCN Red List Pacific Japan Bonin Islands Ogasawara Chichijima Open Mouth Foraging Feeding Hunting Squid Mollusca Cephalopoda Coleoidea Teuthida Oegopsina Architeuthidae Architeuthis sp. Giant Squid
Contained in galleries: Giant Squid, Say Ahhhhh!, Sperm Whales, Marine Life | Japan

Adult female sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) at the ocean surface with her mouth open. This whale has just surfaced from foraging in deep water. There is a small piece of squid on the tip of her lower jaw. She has many visible scars left by the suckers of Architeuthis sp. giant squid, which seem to be among the primary prey hunted by sperm whales in the waters of Ogasawara (the Bonin Islands) in Japan. Note the cluster of sucker scars at the base of the whale's lower jaw. Also, it is possible to see inside the roof of the whale's mouth. This angle shows clearly that the whale has no teeth in the upper jaw, only the lower jaw.