Did you know that all dolphins are whales; not all whales are dolphins? Cetaceans are split into two groups: Baleen whales (Mysticeti) and Toothed whales (Odontoceti). To put it simply, Baleen whales are commonly known as ‘’Whales’’ and Toothed whales are commonly known as ‘’Dolphins.’’ However, both these groups are put into one family, the ‘’Cetaceans.’’ For example, a Humpback is a Baleen whale and an Atlantic Bottlenose would be a Toothed whale, also known as a dolphin.
But what about the Orcinus Orca, are they dolphins or whales? Ask anyone the same question and you’ll get different answers. Orcas have teeth but yet they’re commonly known as ‘’Killer Whales.’’ Their scientific name as mentioned is the ‘’Orcinus Orca.’’ However, they were originally nicknamed the ‘’ Killer of Whales’’, ‘’Whale Killers’’ and the ‘’Blackfish’’ due to a particular eco-type of orca: Transient orcas. They’re an ecotype that hunts and eats some of the largest whales such as grey whales, humpback whales and even blue whales! The Offshore eco-type of orcas are known to hunt and eat Great White Sharks, it’s no wonder where they got their killer name and reputation from. Over time, their nickname "Whale killers" had twisted into "Killer whales" but as they have teeth, they're toothed whales (dolphins). But as we now know, all dolphins are whales but not all whales are dolphins.
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