Foto de stock - A large pod of about 24 Type B Orca Orcinus nanus encountered at 63° 47S 57° 17W just north of Devil´s Island on the eastern side of the Antarctic Peninsula, Antarctica This group was traveling slowly in loose group formation Killer Whales are found in all oceans and most seas, including unusually for cetaceans the Mediterranean and Arabian Seas However, they prefer cooler temperate and polar regions Males typically range from 6_8 m long 19_26 ft and weigh in excess of 6 tons Females are smaller, generally ranging from 5_7 m 16_23 ft and weighing about 3 to 4 tons The largest Killer Whale ever recorded was a male off the coast of Japan, measuring 9 8 m 32 ft and weighing over 8 tons 17,636 lb Calves at birth weigh about 180 kg 350_500 lb and are about 2 4 m long 6_8 ft The Killer Whale´s large size and strength make it among the fastest marine mammals, often reaching speeds in excess of 56 km/h 35 mph These animals are also often called killer whales, but this is a misnomer as this is actually the largest member of the dolphin family The Type B Orca is a proposed new species called Orcinus nanus, though this is not universally accepted in the scientific community yet Antarctic population estimate is 70,00080,000