EnchantedLearning.com ALL ABOUT WHALES!

Whale Glossary

Pack ice Pack ice is large blocks of ice on the surface of the ocean, usually in polar regions. They form when an ice field is broken up by strong waves and wind.

Pakicetus Pakicetus is an early fossil whale with a pointed snout; it was found in Pakistan. It was about 6 ft (1.8 m) long. Pakicetus had pointed teeth like Mesonychid and a pinched brain case like Ambulocetus, had a water-adapted inner ear but still had four limbs (probably paddle-shaped) and may have spent part of its life on land. Pakicetus had nostrils located at the front of head, and no blowhole. This whale dates from the early Eocene (about 54 million years ago).

Paleontology Paleontology is the branch of biology that studies the forms of life that existed in former geologic periods, chiefly by studying fossils.

Paleontologist A paleontologist is a scientist who studies paleontology, the forms of life that existed in former geologic periods, chiefly by studying fossils.

Paleozoic Era The Paleozoic Era (540 to 245 million years ago) saw an explosion of new life forms. It ended with the largest mass extinction in history and was followed by the Mesozoic Era.

Pangaea Pangaea was a supercontinent consisting of all of Earth's land masses. It existed during the Permian and Jurassic periods. It began breaking up during the Jurassic, forming Gondwanaland and Laurasia.

Pantropical Spotted Dolphin Also known as the Spotted, White-Spotted, or Brindled Dolphin, this small, toothed whale lives in tropical waters worldwide. This cetacean has a long, beaklike snout, a falcate (sickle-shaped) dorsal fin, and conical teeth. Classification: Suborder Odontoceti (toothed whales), family Delphinidae, Genus Stenella, Species attenuata.

Parasite A parasite is an animal that lives off another animal (the host) without benefiting the host. Gray whales and other cetaceans have skin parasites such as barnacles and whale lice.

Pectoral flippers Pectoral flippers are wide, flat limbs located in the chest area that many marine animals use for swimming. Whales and other cetaceans have pectoral flippers.

Peduncle The peduncle is the area of the whale's body between the flukes (tail) and the main body.

Pelagic Pelagic means of, pertaining to, or living in the open ocean, either at the surface or at intermediate depths.

Period The period is the basic unit of geological time in which a single type of rock system is formed, lasting tens of millions of years.

Permian period Also known as "The Age of Amphibians" (280 to 245 million years ago), this is when Pangaea formed and Earth's atmosphere was oxygenated to modern levels. It ended with the largest mass extinction and was followed by the Mesozoic Era.

Phylum In classification, a phylum is a group of related or similar organisms. A phylum contains one or more classes. A group of similar phyla (the plural of phylum) forms a Kingdom.

Pinnipeds The pinnipeds (Order Pinnipedia) are marine mammals that include sea lions, fur seals, and true seals. They are carnivores that are distantly related to dogs and bears.

Placoid scales Placoid scales are tooth-like scales composed of dentine that are embedded in the skin of cartilaginous fishes (sharks, skates, and rays). These scales have a curved, backward-pointing spine covered with enamel.

Plankton Plankton are tiny marine animals (zooplankton) and plants (phytoplankton) that drift along with ocean currents, living near the surface. Baleen whales filter feed plankton.

Plate tectonics Plate tectonics is the theory that chunks of the Earth's crust (plates) float on the surface and change both position and size over time.

Pleistocene (pronounced PLEES-toh-seen) The Pleistocene was an epoch in geologic time that lasted from 1.8 million years ago until about 10,000 years ago (it was at the beginning of the Quaternary period). During this epoch, the first humans (Homo sapiens) evolved. Mammoths, mastodons, saber-toothed cats, giant ground sloths, and other Pleistocene megafauna (huge animals) lived. A mass extinction of large mammals and many birds happened about 10,000 years ago (at the end of this epoch), probably caused by climate changes (the last Ice Age ended).

Plesiomorphy Plesiomorphy (meaning "old form") is a primitive character of a group.

Plesiosaur Plesiosaurs were flippered marine reptiles from the Mesozoic Era - they were not dinosaurs.

PLIOCENE (pronounced PLEE-oh-seen) The Pliocene was an epoch in geologic time that lasted from 5-1.8 million years ago (it was at the end of the Tertiary period). During this epoch, the first hominids (australopithecines) and modern forms of whales appeared. The ancient shark megalodon swam the seas during this time.

Pod A pod is a social group of whales. Baleen whales travel alone or in small pods. The toothed whales travel in large, sometimes stable pods; they frequently hunt their prey in groups, migrate together, and share care of their young.

Poikilotherms Poikilotherms are animals whose internal temperature changes depending on the environment. Reptiles are poikilothermic.

Polyphyletic A polyphyletic group consists of organisms but not their common ancestors. This is an artificial group which is based primarily on physical characteristics rather than on evolutionary relationships. An example is "flying vertebrates" which includes birds, pteranodons and bats.

Porpoise Porpoises are small cetaceans that have a short, beaklike snout or no snout, a triangular dorsal fin, and spade-like teeth. They are Odontoceti (toothed whales).

Precambrian The Precambrian is the time 540 before the Cambrian period (before million years ago). It is the time from when the Earth formed until simple life-forms evolved.

Predator A predator is an animal that hunts and kills other animals for food.

Prehistoric Prehistoric refers to the time before people began recording history in writing. This time varies from culture to culture.

Prey An animal is prey when another animal hunts and kills it for food.

Producer A producer (or aurotroph) is an organism that makes its own food from light energy (using photosynthesis), or chemical energy (using chemosynthesis). Most green plants, many protists (one-celled organisms like slime molds) and most bacteria are producers. Producers are the base of the food chain.

Zoom Whales Whale Glossary

Enchanted Learning^®
Over 35,000 Web Pages
Sample Pages for Prospective Subscribers, or click below

Click to read our Privacy Policy

E-mail