Species guide
Long-finned pilot whale
Globicephala melas
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
- Dark, robust body with a bulbous forehead and very long, curved flippers.
- Broad dorsal fin set forward on the back; pale anchor-shaped patch underneath.
- Size
- Adult length: approximately 5.8–7.6 m
- Recorded occurrence in Madeira
- Historical sightings remained unconfirmed in the 2012 review.
- 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
- (Traill, 1809)
- Family
- Delphinidae
- Cetacean group
- Odontoceti
Sightings in Madeira
The 2012 Madeira review discusses unconfirmed sightings in 1984 and 1993. It also notes that earlier captured animals were reidentified as short-finned pilot whales.
No dependable seasonal window established by the cited records. Individual record months do not define a season.
ID characteristics
Dark grey to black, with a rounded head and pale markings on the chest and belly.
Long, tapering flippers curve backwards.
The broad dorsal fin sits towards the front of the body.
Very similar to the short-finned pilot whale; the two can be difficult to distinguish at sea.
Surface behaviour
Often rests at the surface in close groups.
May spy-hop or slap its flukes against the water.
Distribution
Temperate and subpolar waters of the North Atlantic and Southern Hemisphere, usually in deep water.
Social
Strong social bonds; groups commonly contain tens of animals and may gather into much larger schools.
Diet
Squid and other cephalopods, fish and some crustaceans; often feeds at night.
Biometrics
Adult length: approximately 5.8–7.6 m
Adult weight: approximately 1.3–2.3 tonnes
Blow
Low and bushy.
Identification, behaviour and measurements: NOAA Fisheries species account.
Common names in other languages
- Portuguese: Baleia-piloto-de-aleta-longa
- German: Langflossen-Grindwal
- French: Globicéphale noir
- Spanish: Calderón de aleta larga
- Italian: Globicefalo
- Dutch: Griend
- Polish: Grindwal długopłetwy
- Swedish: Långfenad grindval
- Danish: Langluffet grindehval
- Norwegian: Grindhval
Names vary by language and region. This list is not exhaustive. Multilingual name records. Portuguese name: EPPO Global Database.
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: Globicephala melas — global species assessment, published 2018.
- 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: November 2018 assessments — Global assessment publication years and category changes. A category change need not indicate a recent population change.
- 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.
- NOAA Fisheries: long-finned pilot whale — Identification, behaviour, distribution, diet and measurements; reviewed 28 September 2026. General species biology does not establish occurrence in Madeira.
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.