What is the function of spermaceti oil in whales?
It assists in controlling buoyancy via manipulation of the contained spermaceti oil's temperature and, consequentially, its density, facilitating deep diving by cooling and surfacing by warming, as well as allowing the animal to remain motionless at great depth. It essentially functions as sonar, aiding the whale in echolocation.
What is the spermaceti organ?
The spermaceti organ is an organ present in the heads of toothed whales of the family Physeteroidea, in particular the sperm whale. This organ contains a waxy liquid called spermaceti and is involved in the generation of sound.
How do sperm whales float on water?
There has been concrete evidence to support both theories. The buoyancy theory holds that the sperm whale is capable of heating the spermaceti, lowering its density and thus allowing the whale to float; in order for the whale to sink again, it must take water into its blowhole which cools the spermaceti into a denser solid.
Why do sperm whales echolocate?
Another popular theory is that the waxy spermaceti substance found in the sperm whales head assists the whale with echolocation, since this wax like material makes an excellent sound conductor.
Do sperm whales have spermaceti?
Sperm whales' heads are filled with a mysterious substance called spermaceti. Scientists have yet to understand its function, but believe it may help the animal regulate its buoyancy.
Where is spermaceti found in a sperm whale?
headSpermaceti is the term given to the liquid waxes present in the head of the sperm whale. Spermaceti is present in greatest abundance in the spermaceti organ, or “case” and in the “junk.” The case is an elongated barrel-shaped organ, which makes up much of the bulk of the sperm whale's huge head.
Why is it called spermaceti organ?
The head of the sperm whale contains an enormous fluid-filled organ (which whalers called the case). During whale harvests, this organ, now called the spermaceti organ, was discovered to contain a white liquid that whalers mistook for the sperm of the whale.
Does spermaceti help with buoyancy?
Abstract. CLARKE1 has suggested that the spermaceti of the sperm whale serves as a buoyancy regulator by cooling as the whale dives into sea water of greater density.
Why does a sperm whale have oil in its head?
Like all toothed whales, their domed forehead contains an oil-filled sac, which is used as part of their echolocation equipment.
Is spermaceti still used today?
sulfate and spermaceti are still being used by some companies today despite the proven fact that whale meat and blubber contain a huge amount of toxins and can be mortal to consume one way or the other.. Ambergris, is another whale ingredient derived from the waxy oil that lines whale's stomachs.
How do whales control buoyancy?
They have more fat in their bodies (fat is less dense than water), It also helps that saltwater is a little more dense than pure water, so the buoyant force is a little stronger.
What kind of lipid is spermaceti?
The lipid structure of the spermaceti organ of the sperm whale (Physeter catodon) has been investigated in an attempt to clarify its possible function. The major lipid classes present were wax ester and triglyceride, and their fatty acid compositions have been determined by gas-liquid chromatography.
How can sperm whales dive so deep?
Spermaceti is the main component of sperm whale organ which allows the animal to dive so deeply. The whale is able to close off the blood supply, whereby the spermaceti cools off to the point of solidifying. The density increases, allowing the whale to dive more readily.
Where is the oil in a whale?
Spermaceti, also known as head oil or head matter, is a liquid wax found in the heads of sperm whales which crystallizes when it comes in contact with air.
Where does the oil come from in a whale?
Whale oil is oil obtained from the blubber of whales.
How is spermaceti obtained?
SPERMACETI is the solid wax obtained mainly from the head of the sperm whale, Physeter macrocephalus L. (P. catodon L.).
Is the sperm whale the loudest animal on earth?
The sperm whale, capable of producing clicking sounds up to 233 decibels, is the loudest animal on earth. That's not the only category it leads. The sperm whale is also the largest toothed whale on earth, and has a larger brain than any other animal.
What is the organ of a sperm whale?
Sperm whale. The spermaceti organ is an organ present in the heads of toothed whales of the family Physeteroidea, in particular the sperm whale. This organ contains a waxy liquid called spermaceti and is involved in the generation of sound. In the modern sperm whale ( Physeter macrocephalus ), it is far larger in proportion to ...
How much spermaceti oil is in a whale?
A sperm whale may contain as much as 1,900 litres of this oil.
How does Spermaceti oil help animals?
The two prevailing hypotheses are: It assists in controlling buoyancy via manipulation of the contained spermaceti oil's temperature and, consequentially, its density, facilitating deep diving by cooling and surfacing by warming, as well as allowing the animal to remain motionless at great depth.
What is the function of the whale's sonar?
It essentially functions as sonar, aiding the whale in echolocation.
Is the nose of a sperm whale homologous?
While nasal complex morphology is believed to be homologous in all of the echolocating Odontoceti (toothed whales), the hypertrophied quality of the sperm whale 's nose can be interpreted as an adaptation for deep diving unique to Physeteroidea.
What is the oil in a sperm whale's head?
The spermaceti oil found in the sperm whales head can greatly enhance the whale’s ability to pin point prey such as giant squid and octopus, which can be found at extreme depths in pitch black water.
How does sperm whale echolocation work?
Echolocation works by producing a series of sounds and then listening to the echo that returns to the host from objects in the nearby environment.
How to keep spermaceti oil from going rancid?
In order to prevent the spermaceti oil from going rancid the whalers would boil the wax to eliminate impurities and then cool it using a method known as wintering which involved the whalers and/or harvesters leaving the purified wax out in the cold until it cooled into a congealed state.
What percentage of wax esters are found in the spermaceti organ?
As the whale ages the percentage of wax esters found in the spermaceti organ increases from around 40% to nearly 90% depending on the whales age and sex. The name “spermaceti” comes from the whales historical past when whalers used to hunt these marine mammals for their blubber and spermaceti oil.
What was Spermaceti used for?
During the whaling era harvesters and manufacturers found spermaceti to be a great chemical to be used for making candles, cosmetics, ointments, textiles and various other materials due to its lack of smell or taste when congealed.
Where is Spermaceti found?
Spermaceti is a pearly white wax like material found in the head cavity of the sperm whale.
Does spermaceti oil help a whale?
While scientists have not been able to confirm exactly what this waxy substance is used for one common theory is that the spermaceti oil produced by the spermaceti organ assists the whale with buoya ncy and helps it dive and rise in the water more quickly, however recent research has devalued this theory due to the sperm whale appearing to have insufficient biological systems for adjusting its buoyancy through the process of heating and cooling the spermaceti, which would change its density and allow the whale to vary its buoyancy in the water.
What is sperm whale oil?
Raw spermaceti is liquid within the head of the sperm whale, and is said to have a smell similar to raw milk. It is composed mostly of wax esters (chiefly cetyl palmitate) and a smaller proportion of triglycerides. Unlike other toothed whales, most of the carbon chains in the wax esters are relatively long (C 10 –C 22 ). The blubber oil of the whale is about 66% wax. When it cools to 30 °C or below, the waxes begin to solidify. The speed of sound in spermaceti is 2,684 m/s (at 40 kHz, 36 °C), making it nearly twice as good a conductor of sounds as the oil in a dolphin's melon.
What is the function of the Spermaceti?
Two theories for the spermaceti organ's biological function suggest it either controls buoyancy, or acts as a focusing apparatus for the whale's sense of echolocation. There has been concrete evidence to support both theories. The buoyancy theory holds that the sperm whale is capable of heating the spermaceti, lowering its density and thus allowing the whale to float; in order for the whale to sink again, it must take water into its blowhole which cools the spermaceti into a denser solid. This claim has been called into question by recent research which indicates a lack of biological structures to support this heat exchange, as well as the fact that the change in density is too small to be meaningful until the organ grows to huge size.
How is sperm wax extracted?
Spermaceti wax is extracted from sperm oil by crystallisation at 6 °C (43 °F), when treated by pressure and a chemical solution of caustic alkali.
What is spermaceti wax?
Spermaceti. A spermaceti wax candle and bottle of sperm oil. Spermaceti (from Greek sperma meaning "seed", and ceti, the genitive form of "whale") is a waxy substance found in the head cavities of the sperm whale (and, in smaller quantities, in the oils of other whales). Spermaceti is created in the spermaceti organ inside the whale's head.
Why is Spermaceti important?
In prior centuries it was important enough to send thousands of mariners in search of the sperm whale in an effort to harvest the head. The proportion of wax esters retained by an average (living) whale head appears to reflect buoyancy influenced by heat. Changes in density likely enhance echolocation. It might be used as a means of adjusting the whale's buoyancy, since the density of the spermaceti changes with its phase. Another hypothesis has been that it is used as a cushion to protect the sperm whale's delicate snout while diving.
What temperature does Spermaceti wax melt?
This wax, brown in color, was then bleached and sold as "spermaceti wax". Spermaceti wax is white and translucent. It melts at about 50 °C (122 °F) and congeals at 45 °C (113 °F).
How much wax is in whale oil?
The blubber oil of the whale is about 66% wax. When it cools to 30 °C or below, the waxes begin to solidify. The speed of sound in spermaceti is 2,684 m/s (at 40 kHz, 36 °C), making it nearly twice as good a conductor of sounds as the oil in a dolphin's melon.
