Sei whale: Difference between revisions

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=== Surface behaviours ===
Very little is known about the sei whale [[social structure]]. They have been documented traveling alone or in pods of up to six individuals; larger groups may assemble at particularly abundant feeding grounds.<ref name="edds84">{{cite journal | author = Edds, P.L. |author2 = T.J. MacIntyre|author3 = R. Naveen | year = 1984 | title = Notes on a sei whale (''Balaenoptera borealis'' Lesson) sighted off Maryland | journal = Cetus | volume = 5 | issue = 2 | pages = 4–5 }}</ref><ref name="schilling" /> During the southern Gulf of Maine influx in mid-1986, groups of at least three sei whales were observed "milling" on four occasions – i.e. moving in random directions, rolling, and remaining at the surface for over 10 minutes. One whale would always leave the group during or immediately after such socializing bouts.<ref name="schilling" />
The sei whale is among the fastest [[cetacea]]ns. The American [[naturalist]] [[Roy Chapman Andrews]] compared the sei whale to the [[cheetah]], because it can swim at great speeds "for a few hundred yards", but it "soon tires if the chase is long" and "does not have the strength and staying power of its larger relatives".<ref>Andrews, Roy Chapman. 1916. ''Whale hunting with gun and camera; a naturalist's account of the modern shore-whaling industry, of whales and their habits, and of hunting experiences in various parts of the world''. New York: D. Appleton and Co., p. 128.</ref> It can reach speeds of up to {{cvt|50|km/h}} over short distances.<ref name="adw" /> However, it is not a remarkable diver, reaching relatively shallow depths for 5 to 15 minutes. Between dives, the whale surfaces for a few minutes, remaining visible in clear, calm waters, with blows occurring at intervals of about 60 seconds (range: 45–90 sec.). When about to dive, the sei whale usually just sinks below the surface. When submerged, only the dorsal fin and [[Blowhole (biology)|blowholes]] protrude. The whale is generally less [[Cetacean surfacing behaviour|active on water surfaces]] than other whale species; they rarely lifts itstheir flukesfluke above the surface.<ref name="nmfs" />
 
=== Feeding ===