Some authors consider a 20.7 metres (68 ft) male reported in 1950 the largest recorded. However, larger males have been reported in the IWC whaling records, including a male reported at 24 metres (79 ft) in length in 1933, supported by McClain et al. (2015) as the largest 'measured length'.
The authors supported a 24-metre (79 ft) male from the South Pacific in 1933 as the largest recorded. However, sizes like these are rare, with 95% of recorded sperm whales below 15.85 metres (52.0 ft). In 1853, one sperm whale was reported at 62 feet (19 m) in length, with a head measuring 20 feet (6.1 m).
Livyatan melvillei, sometimes known as the dire whale, is an extinct species of physeteroid whale, which lived during the Miocene epoch, approximately 12-13 million years ago. Livyatan melvillei was estimated 13.5 to 17.5 metres (47–57 feet) long, about the same as a modern adult male sperm whale.
They were all likely the apex predator of their habitats, comparable to the modern day killer whale (Orcinus orca), and achieved great lengths, with one species—Livyatan—measuring about 13.5–17.5 m (44–57 ft).
Males attain a maximum length of about 24 metres (78.7 feet) and weigh up to 50 metric tons (55.1 tons). Females are smaller, usually measuring less than about 14 metres (45.9 feet) and weighing less than 25 metric tons (27.6 tons).
Enormous Sperm Whale Spotted | Deadly 60 | Series 3 | BBC
How big is Livyatan?
Size: Based on the size of the 3 meter (approximately ten feet) long skull and on comparisons with other sperm whales, Livyatan had a body length of 13-16 meters (45-60 feet).
A size comparison of an adult Leviathan and an average-sized adult human. Extrapolating from its 10-foot-long skull, paleontologists believe that Leviathan measured upwards of 50 feet from head to tail and weighed as much as 50 tons, about the same size as a modern sperm whale.
The fossil of Leviathan was found two years ago and a team of scientists only unveiled the results of their find this week. Leviathan lived roughly 12 million years ago and its teeth were about twice as long as those of the great dinosaur Tyrannosaurus Rex.
The livyatan might be heavier but the megalodon had a bulky build. The meg would have the edge 60% of the time. The livyatan surprisingly was faster then the megalodon even though the megalodon had a more torpedo shaped body. The livyatan was as fast as 20 miles an hour and the megalodon was only 10.5 miles an hour.
Livyatan-like sperm whales became extinct by the early Pliocene likely due to a cooling trend causing baleen whales to increase in size and decrease in diversity, becoming coextinct with the smaller whales they fed on.
Originally named Leviathan melvillei, after the biblical behemoth of myth and the author of Moby-Dick, this whale's genus name was changed to the Hebrew Livyatan after it turned out that ``Leviathan'' had already been assigned to an obscure prehistoric elephant.
The Megalodon was the largest known predator in the history of the Earth, at least based on its weight. The sperm whale is a little bit longer, but also lighter.
The most common predator of sperm whales is the killer whale. Killer whales target groups of females with young, usually trying to extract and kill a calf. Adults will protect their calves or an injured adult by encircling them.
Sperm whales are the largest of all toothed whales and can grow to a maximum length of 52 feet (15.8 m) and weight of 90,000 pounds (40 metric tons), with males growing much larger than females. 2. Sperm whales live for up to 60 years.
Share: Far bigger than any dinosaur, the blue whale is the largest known animal to have ever lived. An adult blue whale can grow to a massive 30m long and weigh more than 180,000kg - that's about the same as 40 elephants, 30 Tyrannosaurus Rex or 2,670 average-sized men.
In Manichaeism, an ancient religion influenced by Gnostic ideas, the Leviathan is killed by the sons of the fallen angel Shemyaza. This act is not portrayed as heroic, but as foolish, symbolizing the greatest triumphs as transient, since both are killed by archangels in turn after boasting about their victory.
Paleobiology. Livyatan lived from the Miocene to the Pliocene, the same time as Megalodon. Some scientists believe that Livyatan hunted Megalodon but others believe its the other way around, but both mysteriously became extinct at the same time.
The 39-million-year-old leviathan, called Perucetus, may have weighed about 200 tons, as much as a blue whale — by far the heaviest animal known, until now. While blue whales are sleek, fast-swimming divers, Perucetus was a very different beast.
Livyatan melvillei, named after the Biblical sea monster and the author of Moby Dick, was a giant sperm whale that has just been discovered by Belgian scientist Olivier Lambert. At between 13.5 and 18.5 metres in length, it was no bigger than the modern sperm whale, but it was clearly far more formidable.
Some authors consider a 20.7 metres (68 ft) male reported in 1950 the largest recorded. However, larger males have been reported in the IWC whaling records, including a male reported at 24 metres (79 ft) in length in 1933, supported by McClain et al. (2015) as the largest 'measured length'.
Colossal killer sperm whale was 57-foot-long 'sea monster' that rivalled megalodon One of the largest and most powerful marine predators was a prehistoric killer sperm whale so big in size it rivalled the famous giant shark megalodon.
The longest blue whale on record is a female measured at a South Georgia whaling station in the South Atlantic (1909); she was 110' 17" (33.58m) long. The heaviest blue whale was also a female hunted in the Southern Ocean, Antarctica, on March 20, 1947.
What is the biggest thing a sperm whale can swallow?
Of the 90 known whale species on Earth, sperm whales are the only species with throats large enough to technically swallow a human. The 65-foot-long mammals have large esophaguses to feed on larger prey such as giant squid, which they sometimes swallow whole.
Sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) are regarded as the loudest animals on the planet, capable of making sounds up to 230 decibels. This is louder than the sounds of jet engines, which are about 150 decibels.
