wholphin

A wholphin is a rare hybrid animal that is part dolphin and part whale. The name is a portmanteau of "whale" and "dolphin." The only known wholphin in captivity is Kekaimalu, who resides at Sea Life Park in Hawaii. She was born in 1985. Wholphin hybrids are exceedingly rare in the wild, and Kekaimalu is the only documented case of a wholphin surviving into adulthood. She exhibits characteristics of both her parent species. Her skin is a darker grey than a bottlenose dolphin's and she has a more rounded, whale-like head. She can hold her breath for a much longer time than a dolphin, a trait inherited from her false killer whale mother. Kekaimalu has given birth to several calves, though none have survived. The genetic makeup of wholphins makes them unique and a subject of interest for marine biologists studying hybridization in cetaceans.