Taxon name
Physeter macrocephalus
Linnaeus, 1758
Uploaded by
National Red List Database
Taxonomic information
Scientific name
Physeter macrocephalus
Linnaeus, 1758
Assessed taxon level
Species
Higher level taxonomic groupings
Vertebrates
Mammals
Species authority
Linnaeus, 1758
Taxonomic notes and synonyms listed
Although Physeter catodon is still occasionally used in the literature, P. macrocephalus is recommended (Rice 1989). Both names are listed on the same page of the original description by Linnaeus (1758), and priority is unclear. However, P. macrocephalus is preferable because it is used much more frequently, and this will support nomenclatural stability.
Location and scope
Specific locality or subnational name or regional name
United Arab Emirates (the)
Scope (of the Assessment)
National
Countries included within the scope of the assessment
United Arab Emirates (the)
Does the assessment cover a marine EEZ area(s)?
Not_assigned
Conservation Status
Assessed as
Data deficient
Criteria system used
IUCN
(see Assessment details)
Assessment rationale/justification
In UAE waters, this species is known from only a few strandings and sightings. No information on population size and trends or on threats is available, so it is assessed as Data Deficient. No regional adjustment is made to the Data Deficient assessment.
Assessment details
Assessors/contributors/reviewers listed
UAE National Red List Workshop
Criteria system used
IUCN
Reference for methods given
IUCN. 2012. IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria: Version 3.1, Second edition. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK. iv + 32pp pp. And IUCN. 2012. Guidelines for Application of IUCN Red List Criteria at Regional and National Levels: Version 4.0. Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK: IUCN. iii + 41pp.
URL (link) of redlist assessment or publication
https://www.moccae.gov.ae/assets/download/b352eff1/UNRL%20of%20Mammals%20-%20Report%202019.pdf.aspx?view=true
Further information
Endemism (according to assessment)
Endemic to region
Not assigned
Taxon distribution as listed in assessment
There are no records from the Gulf, but this species is recorded off the east coast (Baldwin et al. 1999, Baldwin 2005). Two dead Sperm Whales have been recorded at Fujairah in recent years; one washed ashore on a beach adjacent to Fujairah Port in 2012 and one was found by <a href=""https://www.thenational.ae/uae/environment/20-metre-sperm-whale-found-dead-on-fujairah-coast-1.8318"">Fujairah Port authorities</a> on 15th June 2017, floating at sea approximately one nautical mile from the port breakwater which was recovered, and buried to allow decomposition. There was a stranding in 2016 at Khor Kalba (Sharjah). There are sightings and a video in 2015 and 2016 off Dibba, northern tip of the eastern Arabian Peninsula. Live females and juveniles have been seen off Fujairah (Baldwin 2005), suggesting that they may breed in the region, and there has been one observation of a mature bull seen with a female pod (<a href=""http://fujairahwhales.com/sperm-whale/"">Fujairah Whales</a>). The species has a large global range in nearly all marine regions, from the equator to high latitudes, but it is generally found in deeper water (Taylor et al. 2008).
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes
Habitat and systems
Ecological system type
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
Found in deep water on continental shelves. Groups may include as many as 20-50 individuals, but single animals or small pods of 2-6 are more common (Baldwin et al. 1999). Individuals observed 30 nautical miles due east of Fujairah in 1995 were positioned directly above the edge of the continental shelf, where the water depth suddenly changes from less than 600 m to well over 1,000 m. This is ideal habitat for feeding sperm whales, which may remain submerged for over an hour and can dive to a depth of 3,000 m in pursuit of giant squid and other prey (Baldwin 2005).
Threats and conservation measures listed
Threats listed in assessment
The main threats to cetaceans in UAE waters include: incidental mortality in trawl, drift and anchored gill nets, depletion of prey populations (due in part to commercial overfishing); ship and boat strikes, disturbance due to underwater noise (including that from vessel traffic, drilling, piling, military operations and seismic activity related to offshore oil and gas exploration). Evidence for human-caused mortality of sperm whales, including those caused by ship-strike and fisheries interactions, have been described from an assessment of a limited number of strandings in Oman and the UAE (Gray et al. 2017). Other potential threats in the region include sound pollution from oil exploration activities (e.g., seismic and multi-beam echo sounder surveys), and military sonar (Baldwin 2003). A lack of information (e.g. population size and trend, the location of critical habitats, and feeding ecology) hinders the development of appropriate conservation actions, but this should be used as an excuse for inaction.
History
The backcasted 1996 assessment for this species is Data Deficient which matches the listing given by Hornby (1996).
Publication
Mallon, D., Hilton-Taylor, C., Allen, D., & Harding, K. (2019). UAE National Red List of Mammals: Marine and Terrestrial. A report to the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, United Arab Emirates (p. 41). IUCN Global Species Programme. https://bit.ly/2RdZCQR
