Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

128 results found

sperm whale

(Encyclopedia)sperm whale, largest of the toothed whales, Physeter catodon, found in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. It is also called cachalot. Male sperm whales may grow to more than 70 ft (21 m) long and female...

sperm oil

(Encyclopedia)sperm oil, liquid wax obtained from the sperm whale, or cachalot, and related marine mammals. It flows readily, is clear, and varies in color from pale yellow to brownish yellow. Chemically it is not ...

whale

(Encyclopedia)whale, aquatic mammal of the order Cetacea, found in all oceans of the world. Members of this order vary greatly in size and include the largest animals that have ever lived. Cetaceans never leave the...

black whale

(Encyclopedia)black whale, name for the right whale and for the sperm whale. ...

whale oil

(Encyclopedia)whale oil, oil extracted from the blubber and other parts of certain species of whales. It varies in composition, color, and the degree of fishy odor according to the method and extent of refining. Fo...

sperm

(Encyclopedia)sperm or spermatozoon spûrˌmətəzōˈən, –zōˈŏn [key], in biology, the male gamete (sex cell), corresponding to the female ovum in organisms that reproduce sexually. In higher animals the spe...

cachalot

(Encyclopedia)cachalot: see sperm whale.

spermaceti

(Encyclopedia)spermaceti spûrˈməsēˈtē [key], solid waxy substance, white, odorless, and tasteless, separated from the oils obtained from the sperm whale (see sperm oil) and other marine mammals. A mixture of ...

blue whale

(Encyclopedia)blue whale, a baleen whale, Balaenoptera musculus. Also called the sulphur-bottom whale and Sibbald's rorqual, it is the largest animal that has ever lived. Blue whales have been known to reach a leng...

bowhead whale

(Encyclopedia)bowhead whale: see right whale.