By C\u00e9lia Barathier<\/p>\n
Harbour porpoises are the subject of very few studies in the St. Lawrence and are therefore much less known than some other whales. So, let’s give them the credit they deserve with what makes them special and what we know about them!<\/p>\n
Small, discreet whales <\/strong><\/p>\n Rather discrete, porpoises are the smallest toothed whales in the St. Lawrence: they measure between 1.3 and 2 metres long, though generally less than 1.8 metres, making them comparable to humans in size. On the other hand, female porpoises are believed to be slightly longer than their male counterparts. These whales are also famous for the noise they make when they breath! This has earned them their French name marsouin<\/em>, which comes from the Swedish or Danish marsvin<\/em>or Dutch meerswijn<\/em>and means “sea pig”. These cetaceans are part of the family Phocoenidae and not Delphinidae. Compared to dolphins, their snout is much more rounded and their teeth are spatula-shaped.<\/p>\n Most of the time, what we see of them is their dark, triangular-shaped dorsal fin. Porpoises also on occasion jump in the waves, showing their heads and parts of their bodies. This fast swimming technique used by porpoises (and other small cetaceans) allows them to save energy. Incidentally, this type of swimming is nicknamed “porpoising” in reference to these animals.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By C\u00e9lia Barathier Harbour porpoises are the subject of very few studies in the St. Lawrence and are therefore much less known than some other whales. So, let’s give them the credit they deserve with what makes them special and what we know about them! Small, discreet whales Rather discrete, porpoises are the smallest toothed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":39435,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[601,464],"class_list":["post-49595","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-whale-qa","tag-marsouin-commun-en","tag-reproduction-en"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n