page_title: List of mammals of Madagascar
section_title: Infraorder: Cetacea (whales, dolphins and porpoises)
hierarchical_section_title: List of mammals of Madagascar / Subclass: Theria / Infraclass: Eutheria / Superorder Laurasiatheria / Order: Artiodactyla (even-toed ungulates and cetaceans) / Infraorder: Cetacea (whales, dolphins and porpoises)
context_page_description: This is a list of the native wild mammal species recorded in Madagascar. As of June 2014 there are 241 extant mammal species recognized in Madagascar, of which 22 are critically endangered, 62 are endangered, 32 are vulnerable, 9 are near threatened, 72 are of least concern and 44 are either data deficient or not evaluated. All of the critically endangered species are lemurs.
  The mammalian fauna of Madagascar is highly distinctive and largely endemic. The extant nonmarine, nonchiropteran taxa constitute 168 species, 40 genera and 9 families; of these, besides a probably introduced shrew, endemic taxa make up all the species, all the genera, and all but one of the families. This endemic terrestrial fauna, consisting of lemurs, tenrecs, nesomyine rodents and euplerid carnivorans, is thought to have colonized the island from Africa via four rafting events. The other historic terrestrial or semiterrestrial mammal group, the extinct hippopotamuses, is thought to have colonized the island possibly several times, perhaps via swimming.
context_section_description: The infraorder Cetacea includes whales, dolphins and porpoises. They are the mammals most fully adapted to aquatic life with a spindle-shaped nearly hairless body, protected by a thick layer of blubber, and forelimbs and tail modified to provide propulsion underwater. Their closest extant relatives are the hippos, which are artiodactyls, from which cetaceans descended; cetaceans are thus also artiodactyls.
  Parvorder: Mysticeti
  Family: Balaenopteridae
  Subfamily: Balaenopterinae
  Genus: Balaenoptera
  Common minke whale, Balaenoptera acutorostrata LC
  Antarctic minke whale, Balaenoptera bonaerensis DD
  Southern sei whale, Balaenoptera borealis schlegelii EN for B. borealis
  Bryde's whale, Balaenoptera edeni DD
  Pygmy blue whale, Balaenoptera musculus brevicauda DD
  Southern blue whale, Balaenoptera musculus intermedia EN for B. musculus
  Omura's whale, Balaenoptera omurai DD (among the most common rorquals of north-western Madagascar)
  Southern fin whale, Balaenoptera physalus quoyi EN for B. physalus
  Subfamily: Megapterinae
  Genus: Megaptera
  Humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae LC
  Family: Cetotheriidae
  Subfamily: Neobalaeninae
  Genus: Caperea
  Pygmy right whale, Caperea marginata LC
  Family: Balaenidae
  Genus: Eubalaena
  Southern right whale, Eubalaena australis  LC (still rare in Madagascar)
  Parvorder: Odontoceti
  Family: Physeteridae
  Genus: Physeter
  Sperm whale, Physeter macrocephalus VU
  Family: Kogiidae
  Genus: Kogia
  Pygmy sperm whale, Kogia breviceps DD
  Dwarf sperm whale, Kogia sima DD
  Family: Ziphidae
  Genus: Indopacetus
  Tropical bottlenose whale, Indopacetus pacificus DD
  Genus: Ziphius
  Cuvier's beaked whale, Ziphius cavirostris LC
  Subfamily: Hyperoodontinae
  Genus: Mesoplodon
  Blainville's beaked whale, Mesoplodon densirostris DD
  Gray's beaked whale, Mesoplodon grayi DD
  Hector's beaked whale, Mesoplodon hectori DD
  Layard's beaked whale, Mesoplodon layardii DD
  True's beaked whale, Mesoplodon mirus DD
  Superfamily: Delphinoidea
  Family: Delphinidae (marine dolphins)
  Genus: Steno
  Rough-toothed dolphin, Steno bredanensis LC
  Genus: Grampus
  Risso's dolphin, Grampus griseus LC
  Genus: Globicephala
  Short-finned pilot whale, Globicephala macrorhynchus LC
  Genus: Sousa
  Indian Ocean humpback dolphin, Sousa plumbea EN
  Genus: Tursiops
  Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops aduncus NT
  Common bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus LC
  Genus: Stenella
  Pantropical spotted dolphin, Stenella attenuata LC
  Striped dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba LC
  Spinner dolphin, Stenella longirostris LC
  Genus: Delphinus
  Long-beaked common dolphin, Delphinus capensis DD
  Genus: Lagenodelphis
  Fraser's dolphin, Lagenodelphis hosei LC
  Genus: Peponocephala
  Melon-headed whale, Peponocephala electra LC
  Genus: Pseudorca
  False killer whale, Pseudorca crassidens NT
  Genus: Feresa
  Pygmy killer whale, Feresa attenuata LC
  Genus: Orcinus
  Orca, Orcinus orca DD
caption: Fraser's dolphins
exif: {}