Species guide
Cuvier's beaked whale
Ziphius cavirostris
At a glance
Conservation, taxonomy and Madeira records reviewed . Review sources.
- Global IUCN conservation status
- Least Concern — assessment published .
Global extinction risk is separate from sighting frequency in Madeira.
- Identification
- Colour may vary from dark grey to reddish-brown all over the rotund body, except head which is often pale
- The whitish head has a goose-beak profile with a smooth-sloping forehead to an indistinct beak and no obvious melon.
- Size
- Maximum length: 7m
- Recorded occurrence in Madeira
- Reported on local trips, including July 2026.
- Madeira records and season
- No dependable seasonal window established by the cited records.
Identification and size summarize profile notes updated . Local records are past observations, not a prediction of sightings.
Read the identification notes ↓- Taxonomic authority
- G. Cuvier, 1823
- Family
- Ziphiidae
- Cetacean group
- Odontoceti
Sightings in Madeira
The 2012 checklist documents both strandings and occasional sightings of Cuvier's beaked whale. Historical evidence.
Our July 2026 trip report lists this species. This is an operator observation, not a population estimate.
No dependable seasonal window established by the cited records. The months in individual reports should not be treated as the limits of a season.
ID characteristics
Colour may vary from dark grey to reddish-brown all over the rotund body, except head which is often pale
The whitish head has a goose-beak profile with a smooth-sloping forehead to an indistinct beak and no obvious melon.
Short, upturned mouthline which looks like a “smile”
Surface behaviour
Generally avoids boats but might be inquisitive to slow moving vessels
Breaching is not very common though it has been observed. Body rises almost vertically and gets completely out of water, before falling down awkwardly,
When swimming fast animals may expose head
Distribution
All around the world, between parallels 60º North and 50º South
Worldwide in tropical, subtropical and temperate waters
Social
Alone (normally old males) or in small groups up to 10 individuals
Diet
Squid and fish
Biometrics
Max length: 7m
Adult weight: 2 to 3 ton
Blow
Short (less than 1 m) and bushy shaped, projected slightly forward. Often not visible.
Common names in other languages
- Portuguese: Baleia de Bico de Cuvier, Zífio, Baleia-bicuda-de-cuvier
- German: Cuvier-Schnabelwal
- French: Baleine de Cuvier, Ziphius, Baleine à bec de Cuvier, Baleine à bec d'oie
- Spanish: Ballenato de Cuvier, Zifio
- Italian: Zifio, Balena dal becco d'oca
- Dutch: Dolfijn van Cuvier
- Polish: Wal Cuviera
- Swedish: Småhuvudval
- Danish: Småhovedet hval
- Norwegian: Gåsenebbhval, Cuviers nebbhval
Other English names
Goose-beaked Whale
Names vary by language and region. This list is not exhaustive. Multilingual name records.
Review sources
Conservation, taxonomy, local occurrence and seasonality checked on . The assessment publication year is separate from this editorial review date. Identification, size, other biology notes and multilingual aliases are outside this review unless a specific source is cited alongside them.
- IUCN Red List: Ziphius cavirostris — global species assessment, published 2020.
- Society for Marine Mammalogy: species and subspecies list (April 2026) — Scientific names, authorities, families and English names. Mysticeti and Odontoceti are treated as unranked groups.
- IUCN SSC Cetacean Specialist Group: Red List status of cetaceans — Global species categories cross-checked against the specialist group's overview, updated October 2025. Regional and subpopulation assessments are separate.
- IUCN Cetacean Specialist Group: December 2020 assessments — Global beaked-whale assessments. Several changes from Data Deficient reflect revised guidance, not demonstrated recovery.
- Freitas et al. (2012): New records of cetacean species for Madeira Archipelago with an updated checklist — Table 1 and species accounts distinguish sightings, catches and strandings. Record totals and last-record dates describe evidence available through December 2012.
The linked trip reports document operator observations. They do not independently confirm every identification or measure population size, abundance or the probability of a sighting.