page_title: Sperm whale
section_title: Brain
hierarchical_section_title: Sperm whale / Biology / Brain
caption_attribution_description: English: A preserved brain of a sperm whale, on display in Miraikan (Japan).
context_page_description: The sperm whale or cachalot is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator. It is the only living member of the genus Physeter and one of three extant species in the sperm whale family, along with the pygmy sperm whale and dwarf sperm whale of the genus Kogia.
  The sperm whale is a pelagic mammal with a worldwide range, and will migrate seasonally for feeding and breeding. Females and young males live together in groups, while mature males live solitary lives outside of the mating season. The females cooperate to protect and nurse their young. Females give birth every four to 20 years, and care for the calves for more than a decade. A mature sperm whale has few natural predators, although calves and weakened adults are sometimes killed by pods of killer whales.
  Mature males average 16 metres in length but some may reach 20.7 metres, with the head representing up to one-third of the animal's length. Plunging to 2,250 metres, it is the third deepest diving mammal, exceeded only by the southern elephant seal and Cuvier's beaked whale. The sperm whale uses echolocation and vocalization as loud as 230 decibels underwater.
context_section_description: The sperm whale brain is the largest known of any modern or extinct animal, weighing on average about 7.8 kilograms (17 lb) (with the smallest known weighing 6.4 kilograms (14 lb) and the largest known weighing 9.2 kilograms (20 lb)), more than five times heavier than a human's, and has a volume of about 8,000 cm³. Although larger brains generally correlate with higher intelligence, it is not the only factor. Elephants and dolphins also have larger brains than humans. The sperm whale has a lower encephalization quotient than many other whale and dolphin species, lower than that of non-human anthropoid apes, and much lower than humans'.
  The sperm whale's cerebrum is the largest in all mammalia, both in absolute and relative terms. The olfactory system is reduced, suggesting that the sperm whale has a poor sense of taste and smell. By contrast, the auditory system is enlarged. The pyramidal tract is poorly developed, reflecting the reduction of its limbs.
caption: The sperm whale's brain is the largest in the world, five times heavier than a human's.
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