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ERROR : Server Busy(-1105) Cuvier's Beaked Whale (Ziphius cavirostris).  Illustration by Pieter A. Folkens. Cuvier's Beaked Whale (Ziphius cavirostris)
 
 : Family Ziphiidae :
 Ziphius  cavirostris
 G. Cuvier
 
 Description.
 A moderately small beaked
 whale with upperparts ranging in color from dark brown to
 lead gray or blackish in color; underparts paler, but not
 whitish; occasionally head and upper back whitish; beak
 moderately prominent and the forehead rising rather
 sharply; lower jaw longer than upper; pectoral fin
 relatively small and the dorsal fin placed on posterior
 third of body; prominent keel extends from dorsal fin to
 tail; skull with length of rostrum less than twice its
 breadth at notch; lower jaw of males with one large tooth
 (about 7 cm in length and 4 cm in diameter) at the tip;
 in females the teeth are small and seldom break through
 the gums so that the animal appears to be toothless; two
 converging grooves on throat. Total length of adults, 5-7
 m. Weight, 2.5-4.5 metric tons.
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