Table 1. Ranges in Numbers of Teeth in Each Upper and Lower Jaw of Western North Atlantic Odontocetes.
| Species common name | Species scientific name | Page of species account | Ranges in tooth counts | Remarks | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upper | Lower | ||||
| Sperm whale | Physeter catodon | [57] | 0 | 18-25 | Ten to sixteen upper teeth rarely emerge; lower teeth fit into sockets in upper jaw. |
| Northern bottlenosed whale | Hyperoodon ampullatus | [67] | 0 | 2(2)[A] | At tip of lower jaw; sometimes second pair behind first. |
| Goosebeaked whale | Ziphius cavirostris | [70] | 0 | 2[A] | At tip of lower jaw.[B] |
| True's beaked whale | Mesoplodon mirus | [77] | 0 | 2[A] | At tip of lower jaw.[B] |
| Antillean beaked whale | Mesoplodon europaeus | [78] | 0 | 2[A] | At suture of mandible. One-third of way from tip of snout to gape.[B] |
| Dense-beaked whale | Mesoplodon densirostris | [80] | 0 | 2[A] | On prominences near corner of mouth; oriented backwards.[B] |
| North Sea beaked whale | Mesoplodon bidens | [82] | 0 | 2[A] | About halfway from tip of snout to gape.[B] |
| Killer whale | Orcinus orca | [84] | 10-12 | 10-12 | Prominent; curved and oriented backwards and inwards; pointed. |
| False killer whale | Pseudorca crassidens | [88] | 8-11 | 8-11 | Prominent; pointed and curved. |
| Atlantic pilot whale | Globicephala melaena | [91] | 8-10 | 8-10 | — — |
| Short-finned pilot whale | Globicephala macrorhyncha | [94] | 7-9 | 7-9 | — — |
| Grampus | Grampus griseus | [96] | 0 | 0-7 | Near front of jaw; may have fallen out in older specimens; sometimes teeth in upper jaw. |
| Beluga | Delphinapterus leucas | [99] | 8-11 | 8-9 | — — |
| Narwhal | Monodon monoceros | [102] | 2 | 0[A] | One (rarely both) grows up to 9 ft (2.5 m) tusk which has left-hand (sinestral) spiral. |
| Spotted dolphin | Stenella plagiodon | [104] | 30-36 | 28-35 | — — |
| Bridled dolphin | Stenella frontalis | [108] | 29-34 | 33-36 | — — |
| Spinner dolphin | Stenella longirostris | [110] | 46-65 | 46-65 | — — |
| Striped dolphin | Stenella coeruleoalba | [113] | 43-50 | 43-50 | — — |
| Saddleback dolphin | Delphinus delphis | [116] | 40-50 | 40-50 | — — |
| Fraser's dolphin | Lagenodelphis hosei | [120] | 38-44 | 38-44 | — — |
| Atlantic white-sided dolphin | Lagenorhynchus acutus | [123] | 30-40 | 30-40 | Some specimens have more teeth in upper than in lower jaw. |
| White-beaked dolphin | Lagenorhynchus albirostris | [126] | 22-28 | 22-28 | — — |
| Atlantic bottlenosed dolphin | Tursiops truncatus | [128] | 20-26 | 18-24 | — — |
| Guiana dolphin | Sotalia guianensis | [132] | 26-35 | 26-35 | — — |
| Rough-toothed dolphin | Steno bredanensis | [135] | 20-27 | 20-27 | Crown is sometimes marked with many fine vertical wrinkles. |
| Pygmy killer whale | Feresa attenuata | [138] | 8-13 | 10-13 | Many specimens have fewer teeth on right than on left side. |
| Many-toothed blackfish | Peponocephala electra | [142] | 22-25 | 21-24 | — — |
| Pygmy sperm whale | Kogia breviceps | [144] | 0 | 12-16 | Rarely 10 or 11; curved back and inwards; fit into sockets in upper jaw. |
| Dwarf sperm whale | Kogia simus | [148] | 0-3 | 8-11 | Rarely 13; curved back and in; sharply pointed; fit into sockets in upper jaw. Rarely has 1-3 upper teeth as well. |
| Harbor porpoise | Phocoena phocoena | [150] | 22-28 | 22-28 | Spade shaped, laterally compressed, and relatively small. |
[A] Usually erupted from gums only in adult [MALES].
[B] May have toothpick size vestigial teeth in either jaw.
Table 2. Body Size; Numbers, Maximum Dimensions and Descriptions of Baleen Plates; and Numbers and Relative Lengths of Ventral Grooves of W. N. Atlantic Mysticetes.
| Species common name | Species scientific name | Page of species account | Maximum body size[C] ft(m) | Number of baleen plates/side | Maximum dimensions of plates | Color of baleen | Mean No. of bristles /cm. | Numbers of ventral grooves | Relative lengths of ventral grooves | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Length | Width base | |||||||||||
| ft/in. | cm | ft/in. | cm | |||||||||
| Blue whale | Balaenoptera musculus | [19] | 85 (26.0) | 270-395 | 33" | 84 | 12" | 30 | All black with black bristles. | 10-30 | 55-88 | At least to navel. |
| Fin whale | Balaenoptera physalus | [26] | 79 (24.0) | 262-473 | 29" | 72 | 12" | 30 | Dark gray to bluish gray; one-fifth to one-third of right front is whitish. | 10-35 | 56-100 | At least to navel. |
| Sei whale | Balaenoptera borealis | [32] | 62 (19.0) | 318-340 | 31" | 78 | 15" | 39 | Ash black with blue tinge and fine, light bristles; some near front may be light. | 35-60 | 38-56 | End far short of navel. |
| Bryde's whale | Balaenoptera edeni | [37] | 46 (14.0) | 250-300? | 17" | 42 | 10" | 24 | Slate gray with dark bristles. | 15-35 | 40-50 | At least to navel. |
| Humpback whale | Megaptera novaeangliae | [40] | 53 (16.0) | 270-400 | 24" | 60 | 5" | 13 | Ash black to olive brown; sometimes whitish; bristles grayish white. | 10-35 | 14-22 | At least to navel. |
| Bowhead whale | Balaena mysticetus | [49] | 65 (19.8) | 325-360 | 14' | 414 | 14" | 36 | Black; anterior side of some is whitish; bristles black. | ? | None present. | XX |
| Right whale | Eubalaena glacialis | [52] | 53 (16.0) | 250-390 | 7.3' | 223 | 12" | 30 | Dirty or yellowish gray; some anterior plates all or part white. | 35-70 | None present. | XX |
| Minke whale | Balaenoptera acutorostrata | [63] | 31 (10.0) | 300-325 | 8" | 21 | 4" | 10 | White to yellowish white. Posterior plates may be brown or black. | 15-25 | 50-70 | End short of navel; often just behind flippers. |
[C] As stated in the Index to the species, these figures represent maximum sizes recorded for the W. N. Atlantic. For all species exploited by whaling industries' current maximum sizes will be substantially smaller than these figures (see species accounts).