Higher Classification: > Kingdom Animalia > Subkingdom Eumetazoa > Phylum Chordata > Subphylum Vertebrata > Infraphylum Gnathostomata > Megaclass Tetrapoda > Class Mammalia > Subclass Theria > Order Cetartiodactyla > Suborder Cetancodonta > Infraorder Cetacea > Superfamily Odontoceti > Family Physeteridae > Genus Physeter

Physeter macrocephalus Linnaeus, 1758

Rank: Species
Taxon Status: accepted

Relationships towards this taxon

Genus group names

*Physeter*	Linnaeus, 1758	accepted genus name

Species group names

*Physeter catodon*	Linnaeus, 1758	synonym

Vernaculars (+) (-)

Afrikaans: potvis

Albanian: kashalot

Aleut: adagig; aggadakhgik

Arabic: anbar

Catalan: catxalot

Croatian: ulješura

Czech: vorvaň obrovský; vorvaň tuponosý

Danish: kaskelot; spermacethval

Dutch: kaizilot; potvis; potvisch sources: Oosterbaan, A. (2003). Strandgids: veldgids voor het Noordzeestrand [Beach guide: field guide for the North Sea coast]. EcoMare, centrum voor wadden en Noordzee: Texel, The Netherlands. ISBN 90-75318-15-4. 65 pp.

English: chocolate whale; sperm whale; spermacet whale; trompe whale; trumpo sources: Shirihai, H. (2002). A complete guide to Antarctic Wildlife: the Birds and Marine Mammals of the Antarctic Continent and the Southern Ocean. Alula Press FI 510 pp.

French: cachalot; cachalot à dents en faucille; cachalot à dents pointues

Georgian: chigat

German: Pottwal

Greek: fysitiras; Φυσητήρας sources: PESI (A Pan-European Species directories Infrastructure) focal points

Hebrew: roshtan

Icelandic: búrhvalur; tweld-hval

Indonesian: paus lodan

Italian: capodoglio; cascialotto; fisetere; organante

Japanese: makko kujira; マッコウクジラ sources: Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology. (2009 onwards). Biological Information System for Marine Life (BISMaL). Accessed on 2018-11-21.

Kalaallisut: kegutilik; kigitulik

Korean: hyang-gorae

Koryak: koiapchak

Lithuanian: kašalotas sources: PESI (A Pan-European Species directories Infrastructure) focal points

Malagasy: trozona amam-taimbo; trozona be loha

Maltese: gabdoll

Norwegian: bardhvalur; burdhvalur; burr-hval; huns-hval; kascelot; kaskelot; knobbe-herre; potfisk; spermhval; storhufd; sue-hval

Polish: olbrotowick; potwal olbrotowiec sources: PESI (A Pan-European Species directories Infrastructure) focal points

Portuguese: cachalote

Russian: bolshoi plavun; kashalot; spermatsetovyi kit; wolkmorskoi

Sindhi: bahran

Slovenian: kit glavač sources: PESI (A Pan-European Species directories Infrastructure) focal points

Southern Balochi: bahran

Spanish, Castillian: ballena esperma; cachalote; chacalote; fiseter; guapo

Swedish: pottfisk

Tamil: ratchatha thimingalam

Thai: plawan huathui

Turkish: ispermeçet; ispermecet balinasi; ispermecet balinası; kasalot; kaşalot sources: PESI (A Pan-European Species directories Infrastructure) focal points

Ukrainian: Кашалот sources: PESI (A Pan-European Species directories Infrastructure) focal points

Welsh: morfil sberm

Literature

original description	Linnaeus, C. (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. [The system of nature through the three kingdoms of nature, according to classes, orders, genera, species, with characters, differences, synonyms, places.]. Impensis Direct. Laurentii Salvii. Holmiae [Stockholm]. 1(10) [iii], 824 p.
basis of record	van der Land, J. (2001). Tetrapoda, in: Costello, M.J. et al. (Ed.) (2001). European register of marine species: a check-list of the marine species in Europe and a bibliography of guides to their identification. Collection Patrimoines Naturels, 50: pp. 375-376
additional source	Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS).
additional source	Rice, D. W. (1998). Marine mammals of the world. Systematics and distribution. Society for Marine Mammalogy Special Publication. 4.
additional source	Schmidly, D. J. and B. Würsig. 2009. Mammals (Vertebrata: Mammalia) of the Gulf of Mexico, Pp. 1343–1352 in Felder, D.L. and D.K. Camp (eds.), Gulf of Mexico–Origins, Waters, and Biota. Biodiversity. Texas A&M Press, College Station, Texas.
additional source	Hershkovitz, P. (1966). Catalog of Living Whales. Bulletin of the United States National Museum. (246): 1-259.
additional source	Jefferson, T. A., M. A. Webber and R. L. Pitman. (2008). Marine mammals of the world. Academic Press, Amsterdam.
additional source	IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
additional source	Perrin, W.F.; Würsig, B.; Thewissen, J.G.M. (2009). Encyclopedia of marine mammals. Second edition. Academic Press: London. ISBN 978-0-12-373553-9. xxix, 1316 pp.
additional source	King, C.M.; Roberts, C.D.; Bell, B.D.; Fordyce, R.E.; Nicoll, R.S.; Worthy, T.H.; Paulin, C.D.; Hitchmough, R.A.; Keyes, I.W.; Baker, A.N.; Stewart, A.L.; Hiller, N.; McDowall, R.M.; Holdaway, R.N.; McPhee, R.P.; Schwarzhans, W.W.; Tennyson, A.J.D.; Rust, S.; Macadie, I. (2009). Phylum Chordata: lancelets, fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals. in: Gordon, D.P. (Ed.) (2009). New Zealand inventory of biodiversity: 1. Kingdom Animalia: Radiata, Lophotrochozoa, Deuterostomia. pp. 431-554.
additional source	Liu, J.Y. [Ruiyu] (ed.). (2008). Checklist of marine biota of China seas. China Science Press. 1267 pp.
additional source	Mead, J. G.; Brownell, R. L. Jr. (2005). Cetacea. In Wilson, D.E. & D.M. Reeder (eds). Mammal Species of the World. A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed), Johns Hopkins University Press, 2,142 pp. 723--743.
additional source	Bearzi, G.; Pierantonio, N.; Affronte, M.; Holcer, D.; Maio, N.; Notarbartolo Di Sciara, G. (2011). Overview of sperm whale Physeter macrocephalus mortality events in the Adriatic Sea, 1555-2009. Mammal Review. 41(4): 276-293.
ecology source	Looby, A.; Erbe, C.; Bravo, S.; Cox, K.; Davies, H. L.; Di Iorio, L.; Jézéquel, Y.; Juanes, F.; Martin, C. W.; Mooney, T. A.; Radford, C.; Reynolds, L. K.; Rice, A. N.; Riera, A.; Rountree, R.; Spriel, B.; Stanley, J.; Vela, S.; Parsons, M. J. G. (2023). Global inventory of species categorized by known underwater sonifery. Scientific Data. 10(1).

Genbank

Citation

Fordyce, E.; Perrin, W.F. (2025). World Cetacea Database. Physeter macrocephalus Linnaeus, 1758. Via: Costello, M.J.; Bouchet, P.; Boxshall, G.; Arvantidis, C.; Appeltans, W. (2011) European Register of Marine Species, Accessed through PESI at http://www.eu-nomen.eu/portal/taxon.php?GUID=urn:lsid:marinespecies.org:taxname:137119