Editing Pygmy killer whale (section)

{{Short description|Species of mammal}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2015}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = Pygmy killer whale
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=Braulik, G. |date=2018 |title=''Feresa attenuata'' |volume=2018 |page=e.T8551A50354433 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T8551A50354433.en |access-date=19 November 2021}}</ref>
| status2 = CITES_A2 
| status2_system = CITES 
| status2_ref = <ref>{{Cite web|title=Appendices {{!}} CITES|url=https://cites.org/eng/app/appendices.php|access-date=2022-01-14|website=cites.org}}</ref>
| image = Pygmy killer whales (Feresa attenuata) off of Guam (anim252384854).jpg
| image_caption = Pod of pygmy killer whales off of Guam
| image2 = Pygmy_killer_whale_size.svg
| image2_caption = Size compared to an average human
| genus = Feresa
| parent_authority = [[John Edward Gray|J. E. Gray]], 1870
| species = attenuata
| authority = ([[John Edward Gray|J. E. Gray]], 1874)
| range_map = cetacea range map Pygmy Killer Whale.PNG
| range_map_alt = A world map shows pygmy killer whales are found throughout all tropical and subtropical portions of the oceans.
| range_map_caption = {{legend2|#0000FF|Range of the pygmy killer whale|outline=gray}}
}}

The '''pygmy killer whale''' ('''''Feresa attenuata''''') is a poorly known and rarely seen [[oceanic dolphin]].<ref name=":4">{{Cite journal|last1=McSweeney|first1=Daniel J.|last2=Baird|first2=Robin W.|last3=Mahaffy|first3=Sabre D.|last4=Webster|first4=Daniel L.|last5=Schorr|first5=Gregory S.|date=2009-07-01|title=Site fidelity and association patterns of a rare species: Pygmy killer whales (Feresa attenuata) in the main Hawaiian Islands|journal=Marine Mammal Science|language=en|volume=25|issue=3|pages=557–572|doi=10.1111/j.1748-7692.2008.00267.x|bibcode=2009MMamS..25..557M |issn=1748-7692}}</ref> It is the [[monotypic taxon|only species]] in the [[genus]] '''''Feresa'''''. It derives its common name from sharing some physical characteristics with the [[orca]], also known as the killer whale. It is the smallest cetacean species that has  the word "whale" in its common name.<ref name=":2">Masa Ushioda, [http://coolwaterphoto.photoshelter.com/gallery/Pygmy-Killer-Whale/G0000DiNxKjwh0og/C00009wjSx5xhBUs “Pygmy Killer Whale”], ”Cool Water Photo”, March 11, 2015</ref> Although the species has been known to be extremely aggressive in captivity, this aggressive behavior has not been observed in the wild.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Castro|first=Cristina|title=Encounter with a school of pygmy killer whales (Feresa attenuata) in Ecuador, southeast tropical Pacific|journal=Aquatic Mammals |year=2004 |volume=30 |issue=3 |pages=441–444  |doi=10.1578/AM.30.3.2004.441|bibcode=2004AqMam..30..441C }}</ref>

The species had been described by [[John Edward Gray|John Gray]] in 1874, based on two skulls identified in 1827 and 1874. The next recorded sighting was in 1952 which led to its formal naming by Japanese cetologist Munesato Yamada in 1954.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web|url=http://www.cascadiaresearch.org/Hawaii/pygmykillerwhale.htm|title=Cascadia Research Collective pygmy killer whales in Hawai'i|website=www.cascadiaresearch.org|access-date=2016-03-21|archive-date=October 6, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161006061729/http://www.cascadiaresearch.org/Hawaii/pygmykillerwhale.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref>