Classification: 

Contrary to what its name implies, the false killer whale is not directly related to the orca.

However, as with the orca, it is also not a whale but a large member of the dolphin family.

It is often referred to as 'blackfish' with similar species such as the pygmy killer whale, melon-headed whale, and pilot whale.

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Appearance: 

The false killer whale has a long, slender, uniformly black or dark grey body.

Some individuals have a slightly paler head and sides, and sometimes a pale 'W' shape on the che

st. It has a narrow, pointed head with a prominent, bulbous melon.

It has no beak and in adult males the upper jaw sometimes slightly overhangs the lower one.

The false killer whale has narrow, pointed flippers with a distinctive S-shaped elbow, and a large falcate dorsal fin mid-body which may or may not have a rounded or flattened tip. The size of a false killer whale and the narrow pointed head and S-shaped flippers.

 

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Behaviour: 

The false killer whale is the only member of the blackfish group that bow-rides regularly, though other species are known to do so in certain areas.

It is a fast moving energetic animal, not shy of boats.

It is active and playful, often surfacing with its mouth open revealing its teeth.

They are highly social and form strong bonds and are known to breach, lobtail, and porpoise while swimming energetically in pods of 10-60 individuals.

Sometimes they will join together with other pods and create superpods of hundreds of animals.

They are also one of the more common species known to mass strand and there is one extreme case of a mass stranding of more than 800 individuals.

They can be seen in the company of other species including bottlenose dolphins.