Porpoise

Porpoises Temporal range: Mid Miocene to Recent
Phocoena phocoena, Harbour porpoise at the Fjord & Bæltcentret in Denmark
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Cetacea
Suborder:	Odontoceti
Family:	Phocoenidae Gray, 1825

Porpoises are mammals that live in the ocean. They are in the order Cetacea. They form the family Phocoenidae. There are six species of porpoise.

Taxonomy

• Family Phocoenidae:
  • Finless porpoise (Neophocaena phocaenoides)
  • Vaquita (Phocoena sinus)
  • Harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena)
  • Burmeister's porpoise (Phocoena spinipinnis)
  • Spectacled porpoise (Phocoena dioptrica)
  • Dall's porpoise (Phocoenoides dalli)

Appearance

Porpoises look much like dolphins, but they are different in some ways: They are smaller and more stout. They have spade-shaped teeth, rounded heads, blunt jaws, and triangular dorsal fins.

Images

• 

  Dall's porpoise

• 

  A drawing of a Harbour porpoise.

Related pages

• Whale
• Dolphin