Pilot whales are the sprinters of the deep
Pilot whales are the cheetahs of the oceans, focusing their hunting effort on short, intense chases after a few rich food items. They are the first deep-diving whales known to follow such a strategy.
Until now, biologists had assumed that all deep-diving whales would cruise slowly and graze on slow-moving prey items while underwater, since this minimises their energy expenditure.
Using this strategy, most deep-diving whales can spend nearly an hour at a time underwater. Pilot whales, however, are the exception - their dives last no more than 15 to 20 minutes. "They look like they are going after big, nutritionally rich prey."