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  • Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) with significant scarring on its dorsal surface. Note the fresh scar along the dorsal ridge near the right edge of the image. Like a prism, the whale's breath has split the sunlight into a rainbow.
    humpback-whale-dorsal-scarring-rainb...tif
  • Female grey reef sharks (Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos) with visible scarring from mating activity. During the mating season, many female sharks appear with scars like this, inflicted by amorous male sharks. Mating is a rough affair among sharks, ften with multiple males biting and holding on to female sharks. Photographed at Blue Corner dive site in Palau.
    grey-reef-shark-mating-scars-carchar...tif
  • An enormous mature bull sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) approaching 20m in length. This imposing bull approached to within two to three meters from me. At this proximity, the whale clanged loudly, which caused my ear canals to clear, as if I had executed a Valsalva maneuver. The mature male was associated with a group of females, at one point surfacing adjacent to a mature female. The male easily exceeded 1.5x the length of the female. Note the substantial scarring on the whale’s forehead, likely indicative of interactions with other males.
    enormous-mature-bull-sperm-whale-sri...tif
  • This is an adult female humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) with unique and easily distinguishable markings on the ventral surface of her fluke. The scars are perhaps the result of an attack or multiple attacks by orcas or false killer whales. I photographed this adult female with a calf in 2008 and in 2009, meaning that she had calves in two consecutive seasons. The calf visible in the background is female and was born in 2009. Photographed in Vava'u, Kingdom of Tonga.
    humpback-whale-with-unique-scarring-...tif
  • Male humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) with white pectoral fins blowing a dramatic trail of bubbles during a frenetic competitive group heat run. This male was one of the two lead escorts in pursuit of the female that was the center of attention of this heat run. The abundance of scratches and scars on this male’s body bears testimony to his vigor and aggression.
    humpback-whale-white-pectoral-fins-b...tif
  • This male sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) has a series of parallel scars, which are thought to be from deep tooth rakes inflicted by other males during confrontations. The scars are present on the left and right sides of the whale, as well as on the ventral surface. Note also the whitened front of the whale, which is thought by some also to result from accumulated scarring due to inter-male confrontations. Photographed in Ogasawara (Bonin Islands), Japan.
    male-sperm-whale-parallel-scars-from...tif
  • Adult female humpback whale that had fresh scratch/ shred marks her dorsal surface, posterior to the dorsal fin, with blood still visible. I have seen this scraping wound pattern often on both adults and calves, though I have not been able to determine the cause. This whale was the mother of calf 201145 (female).
    scraping-wound-dorsal-surface-humpba...tif
  • Male sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) with lots of scars on his head and forehead, many of which appeared to be parallel scars from encounters with other male sperm whales. The accumulated scars may have contributed to the whitened appeared of the whale's forehead.
    sperm-whale-male-with-white-head-and...tif
  • Male sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) with lots of scars on his head and forehead, many of which appeared to be parallel scars from encounters with other male sperm whales. The accumulated scars may have contributed to the whitened appeared of the whale's forehead.
    sperm-whale-male-with-whitened-foreh...tif
  • Male sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) with lots of scars on his head and forehead, many of which appeared to be parallel scars from encounters with other male sperm whales.
    male-sperm-whale-whitened-forehead-m...tif
  • Mature sperm whale bull (Physeter macrocephalus) in the foreground with adult females visible in the background. This male was 15-16m in length. Though he approached females in the vicinity continually and persistently, the females did not exhibit interest. On this one occasion, he was associated with seven females, six of which are visible here, though the females left him shortly after this photograph was taken. Note the parallel scars on the male’s head, indiciative of encounters with other mature males.
    sperm-whale-mature-bull-with-females...tif
  • Scarring on the dorsal surface of a female humpback whale’s fluke, most likely rake marks left by marine mammal predators such as killer whales (Orcinus orca) or false killer whales (Pseudorca crassidens). This female was seen with calves in Tonga in 2008 and 2009. The scarring on her fluke made her easy to recognize. Her 2009 calf is visible in this photo, hiding under the adult’s body.
    scarred-fluke-humpback-whale-with-ca...tif
  • Portrait of sperm whale's enlarged forehead, which contains the spermaceti that was the reason for large-scale hunting of these animals. This individual's name is Scar, an unusually friendly male sperm whale that was about ten years old at this encounter. This image received a Highly Commended recognition in the Gerald Durrell Award for Endangered Wildlife category at the 2010 Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition (organised by BBC Wildlife Magazine and the Natural History Museum London)
    scar-male-sperm-whale-dominica-20100...tif
  • Swimmer stroking Scar, a male sperm whale who seeks out and enjoys contact with people. Here, he is comfortable enough to have his eyes closed during the encounter. He was around 10 years old at this time.
    scar-sperm-whale-with-snorkeler-domi...tif
  • 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.
    sperm-whale-physeter-macrocephalus-o...tif
  • This is the fluke of a well-known blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) nicknamed Nubbin that has been sighted repeatedly in the Sea of Cortez. The distinctive scars and indentations on this whale's fluke provide an unambiguous reference for identification. Note the scratches, which were most likely the result of an encounter with orcas.
    blue-whale-injured-fluke-baja-penins...tif
  • This is a close-up view of the forehead of a friendly juvenile male sperm whale named Scar. This whale actively sought out contact with boats and people, perhaps due to help and compassion he received from local residents in Dominica when he was injured as a calf. When the mood struck him, Scar would approach at high speed in the water and run right into you because he wanted to be petted. He seemed to relish human touch, closing his eyes and rolling around, much like a playful puppy would.  Scar was about ten years old when I took this photograph, which meant he was almost mature and was due to head north to higher latitudes to feed and mature into a bull. At 50% or greater magnification, you can see small pieces of squid stuck in his mouth, about half-way down the jawline. Andrew Armour, who introduced me to Scar, often picked the scraps out of Scar's mouth. By all accounts, Scar is an extraordinary whale.
    scar-the-friendly-sperm-whale-forehe...tif
  • Andrew Armour petting 10-year old male sperm whale Scar, a whale that sought out interactions with people. Photograph taken under permit in Dominica.
    person-petting-sperm-whale-dominica-...tif
  • Breaching humpback whale calf with a scar clearly visible on its pectoral fin that most likely resulted from the bite of a cookie cutter shark (Isistius brasiliensis). There are also other slicing injuries visible  on the calf’s left pectoral fin.
    humpback-whale-calf-cookie-cutter-sh...tif
  • A humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) calf swimming beside its mother. The calf appears to have an injury or scar on its fluke, possibly resulting from an attempted bite by a predator.
    humpback-whale-calf-fluke-injury-ton...tif
  • This is the genital slit of a dead blue whale, found floating south of Mirissa in Sri Lanka. The tip of the whale's penis appears to be protruding from the animal. The whale was most likely struck by one of the many container ships in the busy shipping lanes that coincide with the feeding grounds of blue whales and other cetaceans in the area. Other photos of this whale show a deep scar in the whale's caudal area, suggestive of a direct bow strike by a large commercial ship. Photograph taken under permit.
    dead-blue-whale-genital-slit-penis-B...tif
  • A very skinny male humpback whale calf (Megaptera novaeangliae) that had a tendency to roam far away from his mother. This habit may help explain the multiple scars covering his body, including what appeared to be the remnants of a large bite on the left side of his penduncle, just above the fluke, as well as the plethora of additional scratches and scars on his torso. Despite being undersized and covered with injuries, this calf was healthy and energetic. He swam a lot and played often with his mother, including tail slapping and breaching.
    humpback-whale-calf-male-skinny-with...tif
  • 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.
    sperm-whale-mouth-open-ogasawara-jap...tif
  • Rear view of an adult female humpback whale with her calf swimming above her head. This female and calf were the center of attention during a competitive group heat run that took place during a torrential downpour. There were at least three adult males accompanying this female and calf. The primary escort, partially visible in the lower left corner, had white pectoral fins, as did the calf. Note the rake marks along the trailing edge of the female’s fluke, scars left by predators such as orcas or false killer whales.
    humpback-whale-female-calf-rear-view...tif
  • Dorsal view of a female and calf Bryde’s whale pair (Balaenoptera edeni). Note that Bryde's whales in this area seem to have few cookie cutter scars, in contrast with those in most other locations.
    brydes-whale-mother-calf-dorsal-view...tif
  • This photograph is from my third of nine encounters with injured humpback whale calf Tahafa (201114). Here, the calf’s wounds are clearly visible, dorsal fin nearly severed and multiple scars from attempted bites. The calf’s mother is visible below. There was an escort with the pair during this encounter. With the presence of an escort, the mother became noticeably more relaxed than in the two earlier encounters when there was no escort present. The calf was energetic and playful during this encounter. My best guess is that the wounds resulted from a coordinated attack by false killer whales.
    humpback-whale-calf-injuries-tonga-2...tif
  • This individual was part of a group of about 50 short-finned pilot whales milling around just offshore on the eastern side of Palau. Note the scars located all over the animal's body.
    short-finned-pilot-whale-globicephal...tif
  • Top-down view of Tahafa, an injured male humpback whale calf that was the 14th calf I photo-identified during the 2011 season in Vava'u, Tonga. This encounter was the fifth of nine with this mother and calf, this one in the murky waters near Port Maurelle. The pair were accompanied by an escort that stayed with them for at least 14 days. Deep scars are visible all over the calf's body, with the most serious injuries being to the front of the dorsal fin, which is almost entirely severed, and the right pectoral fin, which is cut nearly half way through in the middle of the fin. Despite the injuries, the calf was healthy, active and friendly. The size and shape of the wounds suggest the possiblity of an attack by marine mammals, possibly false killer whales (Pseudorca crassidens).
    injured-humpback-whale-calf-megapter...tif
  • A pair of sea lions crashed out on a bed of seagrass after a session of play fighting and roughhousing. The one looking at the camera is a juvenile. The individual lying down is a mature bull. Note the scars on the smaller sea lion's head, which may be a result of tussling with other sea lions.
    australian-sea-lions-resting-on-seag...tif
  • This is a view of the blowholes of a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae australis) from the rear.. There are several wounds visible, the most prominent of which is on the nostril ridge of the whale’s left side, with several other injured areas visible on the dorsal surface of the right side. These circular areas of exposed flesh are the scars left by cookiecutter sharks (Isistius brasiliensis), which swim up from deep water at night to take bites from larger animals.
    humpback-whale-cookiecutter-shark-bi...tif
  • Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops aduncus) surfing. Note that the dolphin’s eye is closed. Also note the teeth rake marks on the dorsal surface of the animal. These are likely to be scars from encounters with other dolphins.
    indo-pacific-bottlenose-dolphin-sout...tif
  • This sperm whale has just come up to breathe, after foraging for prey in deep water. There is a small piece of squid visible, attached to the whale's top left jaw. It is very likely a piece of Architeuthis giant squid, which seem to be relatively common in the deep waters adjacent to the Ogasawara island chain of Japan. There are also scars made by suction cups of squid feeding tentacles visible on the forehead of the whale. Those suction cups are lined with finely serrated rings of teeth made of chitin.
    sperm-whale-physeter-macrocephalus-a...tif
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