Longest dive by a mammal
- Who
- Cuvier's beaked whale, Ziphius cavirostris
- What
- 222:00 minute(s):second(s)
- Where
- United States
- When
- 23 September 2020
The longest duration dive by a mammal was made by a Cuvier's beaked whale (Ziphius cavirostris), which spent 222 minutes (or 3 hours 42 minutes) submerged. During a five-year study of 23 individuals in the waters off Cape Hatteras in North Carolina, USA, marine scientists used satellite-linked tags to record a total of 3,860 dives. The findings from the study were published in the Journal of Experimental Biology on 23 September 2020.
The median duration of presumed foraging dives was 59 min and only 5% of dives exceeded 77.7 min.
The previous record, also set by a Cuvier's beaked whale, was 137 minutes 30 seconds, as reported in 2013.