- MindTraveller ( @MindTraveller@lemmy.ca ) English28•26 days ago
Here’s the thing. You said a “dolphin is a whale.”
Is it in the same family? Yes. No one’s arguing that.
As someone who is a scientist who studies whales, I am telling you, specifically, in science, no one calls dolphins whales. If you want to be “specific” like you said, then you shouldn’t either. They’re not the same thing.
If you’re saying “whale family” you’re referring to the taxonomic grouping of Cetacea, which includes things from porpoises to belugas to orcas.
So your reasoning for calling a dolphin a whale is because random people “call the big ones whales?” Let’s get whale sharks and great whites in there, then, too.
Also, calling someone a human or an ape? It’s not one or the other, that’s not how taxonomy works. They’re both. A dolphin is a dolphin and a member of the whale family. But that’s not what you said. You said a dolphin is a whale, which is not true unless you’re okay with calling all members of the whale family whales, which means you’d call vaquitas, bottlenose, and other marine mammals whales, too. Which you said you don’t.
It’s okay to just admit you’re wrong, you know?
- JoshCodes ( @joshcodes@programming.dev ) English11•26 days ago
So reading up on the evolution of whales for arguments sake has me realising all dolphins and whales are (as mentioned) from the same family.
Your traditional whale fits into “Baleen Whales (Mysticeti)” which have “soft, hair like structures on the upper mouth” and there are 16 species and 3 families.
Meanwhile there are also “Toothed Whales (Odontceti)” with 76 species and 10 families. They are smaller, actively hunt and almost always live in pods.
The most surprising thing I’ve learned is that the Baleen Whales typically have two blow holes…??? Also they do not echolocate but they do sing/chat.
So almost all your traditional large whales fit into the Baleen category and the traditional dolphin fits into the Toothed category. So there are key differences between them, but the overall family is whale.
This is a dumb argument huh
- JasonDJ ( @JasonDJ@lemmy.zip ) English4•25 days ago
Holy shit that was a decade ago.
- JackbyDev ( @JackbyDev@programming.dev ) English4•26 days ago
A dolphin is a dolphin and a member of the whale family. But that’s not what you said. You said a dolphin is a whale, which is not true unless you’re okay with calling all members of the whale family whales, […]. Which you said you don’t.
It’s okay to just admit you’re wrong, you know?
You lost me here. OP never said dolphins aren’t dolphins. They also never said other non-dolphin members of the whale family wouldn’t be called whales. Where are you getting that from?
- JackbyDev ( @JackbyDev@programming.dev ) English8•26 days ago
I swear to you, I almost said “is this some sort of copypasta” but I didn’t wanna sound like I was accusing you of bad faith discussion or something 🤣
- Zozano ( @Zozano@lemy.lol ) English4•25 days ago
You played the Uno Reverse card in the replies.
Well played. I’m impressed.
- sem ( @sem@lemmy.blahaj.zone ) English18•26 days ago
If you go back far enough, whales are a type of fish, just like us humans
- lugal ( @lugal@lemmy.ml ) English12•26 days ago
Either that or fish aren’t a phylogenetic group. You decide
- sem ( @sem@lemmy.blahaj.zone ) English3•26 days ago
You can’t evolve out of a clade, or so they say.
Of course it’s not helpful to call humans and whales fishes in common parlance. But in phylogenetics, why not?
- lugal ( @lugal@lemmy.ml ) English1•26 days ago
Because that would make fish and vertebrates synonyms so why not drop the former altogether?
- sem ( @sem@lemmy.blahaj.zone ) English2•26 days ago
Words can mean more than one thing thought, and depending on the context it can be useful to convey the fact that the vertebrates all evolved from fish-like ancestors, or that whales are more closely related to some fish than those fish are related to other fish.
- lugal ( @lugal@lemmy.ml ) English1•25 days ago
And it’s totally valid to use it that way even though I wouldn’t. That’s the “You decide” part of my first comment
- kriz ( @kriz@slrpnk.net ) English7•26 days ago
Big if true
- moosetwin ( @moosetwin@lemmy.dbzer0.com ) English5•26 days ago
no
- kriz ( @kriz@slrpnk.net ) English5•25 days ago
Kind of a cutesy medium if true
- dogsoahC ( @dogsoahC@lemm.ee ) English5•26 days ago
Who has ever said that dolphins aren’t whales?
- Lime Buzz (fae/she) ( @SweetCitrusBuzz@beehaw.org ) English5•26 days ago
Transphobes, at least once that I saw.
- JoshCodes ( @joshcodes@programming.dev ) English4•26 days ago
Dolphins are whales with teeth, a distinction that makes them just slightly not whales
- Tlaloc_Temporal ( @Tlaloc_Temporal@lemmy.ca ) English4•26 days ago
Sperm whales? Beaked whales? Also several river dolphins!
- DragonTypeWyvern ( @DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.social ) English4•26 days ago
Who said someone said dolphins aren’t whales?
- dogsoahC ( @dogsoahC@lemm.ee ) English1•26 days ago
Have you looked at the meme I’m commenting on?
- DragonTypeWyvern ( @DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.social ) English5•26 days ago
If by whales you meant killer whales specifically people do say that. They also generally know that dolphins are whales, some people just so excited to correct others they don’t think any further.
- s_s ( @s_s@lemmy.one ) English2•25 days ago
The space between a wale’s blowhole and their teeth isn’t their forehead, it’s an enlarged upper lip.
- Zozano ( @Zozano@lemy.lol ) English1•25 days ago
Capital W, mate.
- Black_Gulaman ( @Black_Gulaman@lemmy.dbzer0.com ) English1•25 days ago
Lol wat?
- pewgar_seemsimandroid ( @pewgar_seemsimandroid@lemmy.blahaj.zone ) English2•26 days ago
btw, jacksucksatlife has the exact card.
- NigelFrobisher ( @NigelFrobisher@aussie.zone ) English1•26 days ago
I was right about the whales and the dolphins, Whales and dolphins, whales and dolphins, yeah. And I don’t mind preserving time at all