The Long-finned Pilot Whale is also known as the Pilot Whale and it is not a true whale, but a member of the Dolphin family. It can be seen off the coast of south-west England, particularly in autumn when it follows shoals of Mackerel which is this whale’s favourite food.

The Long-finned Pilot Whale is a small whale that can reach five metres in length and can weigh around three tonnes. It is mainly black except for a light anchor-shaped patch on its chest. It has a broad, rounded head with a narrow mouth. It also has a very small beak that is difficult to spot. The Long-finned Pilot Whale has a prominent blowhole which is slightly crescent-shaped and it also has a broad fin on its back. This fin is called a ‘dorsal’ fin and is fifty centimetres tall and curves backwards.

Long-finned Pilot Whales are very social mammals that often swim together in groups known as pods. The pods can be up to as many as fifty in number. The young of these whales are called ‘calves’ and they are about two metres long when they are first born and weigh around one hundred kilogrammes.