Welcome Guest [Log In] [Register]





Welcome to The Round Table. We hope you enjoy your visit.


You're currently viewing our forum as a guest. This means you are limited to certain areas of the board and there are some features you can't use. If you join our community, you'll be able to access member-only sections, and use many member-only features such as customizing your profile, sending personal messages, and voting in polls. Registration is simple, fast, and completely free.


Join our community!


If you're already a member please log in to your account to access all of our features:

Username:   Password:
Add Reply
Orcinus may not be monotypic afterall...
Topic Started: Oct 16 2014, 09:00 PM (601 Views)
Yi Qi
Member Avatar


http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/06/130627-killer-whale-orca-new-species-animal-science/

A rare breed of killer whale that inhabits the waters of the subantartic circle was DNA tested recently, it appears likely it is a new species seeing as it started differentiating from its more normal looking relatives atleast 400.000 years ago.

they also look quite different to all known populations of O.orca, check this chart, its the type D.

Posted Image
Edited by Yi Qi, Oct 16 2014, 09:02 PM.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Taurotragus
Member Avatar


Wow this is really cool, it's good to know that there are still large animals to find out there. So what's the animal's name going to be?
Edited by Taurotragus, Oct 16 2014, 09:18 PM.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Yi Qi
Member Avatar


It still needs a proper description for it to get a scientific name. Atm people are mostly calling it subantartic orca or Type D orca.

and remember, its the ocean we're talking about, things can hide there and stay hidden for entire centuries, just look at beaked whales, many of them have never been seen alive and were only known from stranded corpses washed ashore on the coast. One particular species Mesoplodon traversii, the spade toothed whale was, for two centuries only known from skeletal material, we didn't even knew what it looked like untill a dead specimen washed ashore in 2012, two thousand freaking twelve! We only knew this creature from cranial remains and could only have a little glance at its appearance when a dead animal appeared 200 years after the original find, and we have yet to see one alive.

so yes, there sure is a lot of mysterious large animals hiding around the ocean.


Edited by Yi Qi, Oct 16 2014, 09:39 PM.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Mathius Tyra
Member Avatar
Rat snake is love... Rat snake is life

I would name it the common name, the Half-sleep Killer whale....
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Burns
Member Avatar
King of Lemurs

This seems interesting. I will keep my eye on this topic.
Online Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Similis
Member Avatar


I can't say I was surprised by this. It's interesting nevertheless, as pretty much any find about elusive animals.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Jannick
Member Avatar
Papua merdeka!

Hasn't it been obvious for quite a while that there are multiple species of Killer whale? XD IIRC the type C is supposed to be distinct as well.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Yi Qi
Member Avatar


Jannick
Oct 17 2014, 04:27 AM
Hasn't it been obvious for quite a while that there are multiple species of Killer whale? XD IIRC the type C is supposed to be distinct as well.
Actually, untill very recently, they were considered only distinct populations of the same species, there was the assumption that they could've been different but there was never a DNA test or any sort of genetic study in the subject, its only now that DNA tests seem to confirm it to type D, Type C we don't know yet, as we don't have DNA samples for more extensive testing on type C.

But yeah while its been suspected for a while, it wasn't till now that we got factual evidence of that.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Stephen
Member Avatar
Stuck on Earth

Diabloceratops
Oct 16 2014, 09:16 PM
Wow this is really cool, it's good to know that there are still large animals to find out there. So what's the animal's name going to be?
Well, it's not like they were never seen before, it's just that scientific research has proven that Type D orcas are a separate subspecies.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Jannick
Member Avatar
Papua merdeka!

Austroraptor
Oct 17 2014, 05:26 AM
Type C we don't know yet, as we don't have DNA samples for more extensive testing on type C.
Ah, right. I forgot :P Of course it's probably going to be a while before any samples of type C are collected since they live right within the Antarctic pack ice zone. After type D they are definitely the most morphologically (and behaviorally) distinct of the various ecotypes though, with their diminutive size (maximum recorded size is 6m for males), their forward-slanting eyepatch and their tri-colored body pattern. Then again, morphological and behavioral data aren't enough to make a species distinction in this case.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Yi Qi
Member Avatar


Stephen
Oct 17 2014, 07:10 AM
Diabloceratops
Oct 16 2014, 09:16 PM
Wow this is really cool, it's good to know that there are still large animals to find out there. So what's the animal's name going to be?
Well, it's not like they were never seen before, it's just that scientific research has proven that Type D orcas are a separate subspecies.
More than it, a separate species altogether.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Flower
Member Avatar
eternal finessé

Their head structure looks a bit different from the other types, and similar to that of a short-finned pilot whale. :)

Well, good to know another mystery of the ocean. :D
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Rockypockypuff
Member Avatar
Is walkin' with a dead man.

So, as an entire new species, it's latin name will be something orther than Orcinus orca? Interesting.

I had actually classified it as a subspieces to the O. orca in my head already, same with the Gerlache and Ross Sea orcas.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Yi Qi
Member Avatar


DannyElfmaniac
Oct 17 2014, 05:13 PM
So, as an entire new species, it's latin name will be something orther than Orcinus orca? Interesting.

Most likely yes, nomeclature will change after proper description.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous)
« Previous Topic · Pets & Wildlife · Next Topic »
Add Reply