--- title: "Sperm Whale (Physeter macrocephalus) | AnimalTracks.wiki" description: "Hunts on dives that routinely reach 610 meters, fires biosonar clicks up to 236 decibels underwater, and occasionally swallows giant and colossal squid." image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/sperm-whale-1.webp" published: "2026-09-01" updated: "2026-09-12" --- # Sperm Whale (*Physeter macrocephalus*) > **Status**: Checked against 5 sources, listed under Sources below. > **Tagline**: Hunts on dives that routinely reach 610 meters, fires biosonar clicks up to 236 decibels underwater, and occasionally swallows giant and colossal squid. > **Soundtrack Vibe**: Sludge Metal & Abyssal Doom // Gojira, "Flying Whales" > **Soundtrack Links**: [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/track/5OjCsHeByDYEGxMrb1z8KQ) | [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0WyhJseftI) > **Vibe Match**: Crushing progressive metal riffs, abyssal atmospheric weight, and oceanic leviathan scale. ## Biological Superpowers & Stats - **Taxonomy**: *Physeter macrocephalus* - **Danger Level**: Medium - **Conservation Status**: Vulnerable ([IUCN Red List](https://www.iucnredlist.org/)) - **Superpower**: A gigantic nose that fires echolocation clicks up to 236 decibels underwater, the loudest sounds known from any animal, and an oil sac of spermaceti that helps focus the sound. - **Habitat**: All of the world's deep oceans, from the equator to the edge of the polar pack ice - **Diet**: Mostly medium-sized squid, with occasional jumbo, giant, and colossal squid, plus sharks, skates, and other deep-sea fish - **Tags**: cetacean, deep-sea, carnivore, echolocation, deep-diver ## Natural History & Behavior ## Biggest of the Toothed Whales The sperm whale (*Physeter macrocephalus*) is the largest of the toothed whales, and it lives in deep oceans worldwide, from the equator to the edge of the polar pack ice. Adults weigh from 15 tons (females) to 45 tons (males), males grow to about 52 feet (16 meters), and a sperm whale can live up to 60 years. In old males, the blunt-fronted head can make up to a third of the body's length. It hunts on deep dives that routinely reach 2,000 feet (610 meters) and can last 45 minutes, then comes up to breathe and recover for several minutes before the next one. Its main food is medium-sized squid, around half a meter long and 1 to 3 kilograms each. Much bigger jumbo, giant and [colossal squid](/animals/colossal-squid/) have occasionally turned up in sperm whale stomachs, and sharks, skates and other deep-sea fish are on the menu too. ## Hunting by Sound It finds that food by echolocation, listening for the echoes of its own clicks. Those clicks come from a gigantic nose, and the spermaceti, an oil sac in the head, helps focus the sound. In recordings off Norway, clicks judged to be aimed straight at the recording array reached up to 236 decibels underwater, by far the loudest sounds recorded from any biological source. A hypothesis nicknamed the "biological big bang" proposed that the whale stuns its prey with those clicks. A 2016 study tested it with sound-and-motion tags on six whales. > **Turned down for the kill** About a body length from their prey, the tagged whales switched to a fast buzz of clicks and turned them down by 20 to 40 decibels, so the sound reaching the prey stayed far below what it takes to stun it. The quiet, rapid clicks give the whale fast updates on where its prey is, and sudden jolts recorded near the end of most buzzes point to fast jaw movements, suction or both to catch it. ## Its Place in the Ocean Sperm whales are major nutrient recyclers in the world's oceans, and the prey they get through each year has been compared to the combined catch of human fisheries. Commercial whaling from 1800 to the 1980s greatly reduced their numbers worldwide. The species is still recovering, and its numbers are likely increasing. The IUCN lists it as Vulnerable. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### How loud is a sperm whale's click? Sperm whale clicks are the loudest sounds recorded from any animal. A study off Norway measured clicks judged to be aimed head-on at up to 236 decibels underwater, and concluded they suit long-range biosonar. A 2016 study that tagged six whales found no sign that the clicks stun prey: in the final stage of an attack, the whales turned their clicks down by 20 to 40 decibels, leaving the sound at the prey far below the level needed to stun it. *(Source: [Møhl et al. 2003]())* ### How deep and long can a sperm whale dive? NOAA Fisheries reports that sperm whales hunt on deep dives that routinely reach 2,000 feet (610 meters) and can last 45 minutes. Afterward, the whale comes up to breathe and recover at the surface for several minutes before diving again. Some go much deeper: in a 2016 tagging study, three adult males off northern Norway foraged as deep as 1,862 meters (about 6,100 feet). *(Source: [NOAA Fisheries]())* ### What is the spermaceti organ in a sperm whale's forehead? It's an oil-filled organ that makes up a large part of the sperm whale's head, and in old males that blunt head can be up to a third of the body's length. NOAA Fisheries describes the spermaceti as an oil sac that helps the whale focus sound. People once used spermaceti in oil lamps, lubricants and candles. *(Source: [NOAA Fisheries]())* ## Sources 1. [Sperm Whale. NOAA Fisheries.]() 2. [Møhl et al. (2003). The monopulsed nature of sperm whale clicks. The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America.]() 3. [Fais et al. (2016). Sperm whale predator-prey interactions involve chasing and buzzing, but no acoustic stunning. Scientific Reports.]() 4. [Red List Status of Cetaceans. IUCN SSC Cetacean Specialist Group.]() 5. [Clarke (1978). Structure and Proportions of the Spermaceti Organ in the Sperm Whale. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom.]() *Published September 1, 2026. 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