South Carolina mammals

Pygmy Sperm Whale in South Carolina

Kogia breviceps

Native to South Carolina S4 Apparently Secure in South Carolina

Not listed as nonindigenous in South Carolina by USGS NAS; native to its South Carolina range.

IUCN Red List status

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

Photo: Daniel Benák · CC BY 4.0Live pygmy sperm whales logging at the sea surface, backs and dorsal fins exposedPhoto: Daniel Benák · CC BY 4.0Two live pygmy sperm whales logging at the sea surface off a coastal village, dorsal fins exposedPhoto: Jan Ebr & Ivana Ebrová · CC BY 4.0Live pygmy sperm whale surfacing at the water line in calm hazy water

Photo: Daniel Benák · CC BY 4.0Live pygmy sperm whales logging at the sea surface, backs and dorsal fins exposedPhoto: Daniel Benák · CC BY 4.0Two live pygmy sperm whales logging at the sea surface off a coastal village, dorsal fins exposedPhoto: Jan Ebr & Ivana Ebrová · CC BY 4.0Live pygmy sperm whale surfacing at the water line in calm hazy water

Pygmy Sperm Whale in South Carolina, by the numbers

Common in South Carolina 25th most recorded of 108 mammals logged in South Carolina

92 occurrence records

1 with iNaturalist photos

Jul 28, 2018 Last seen in South Carolina

Records from 2000–2026.

92 total records count every South Carolina occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 90; the monthly chart covers the 90 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Pygmy Sperm Whale in South Carolina

Most sightings fall in August.

90 South Carolina occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly South Carolina records (table)

Month	Records
January	9
February	13
March	7
April	5
May	2
June	4
July	7
August	20
September	10
October	6
November	1
December	6

Monthly pygmy sperm whale occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in South Carolina, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in South Carolina, with recorded sightings peaking in August, with a smaller rise in February.

Occurrence map

Where Pygmy Sperm Whale has been recorded in South Carolina

90 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

77 South Carolina records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monument	iNaturalist records
Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge.Wilderness Area	1

Protected places with the most pygmy sperm whale sightings, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, good spots to look, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total.

Where it's recorded in South Carolina

County	Records
Charleston County	17
Beaufort County	13
Georgetown County	7
Colleton County	2
Florence County	1
Horry County	1
Other localities	51

The complete county distribution, spread across 6 South Carolina counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

South Carolina’s overlay lists 92 pygmy sperm whale records for 2000–2026, including 91 from GBIF and one from iNaturalist. The dated monthly series contains 90 entries, led by 20 in August and 13 in February; those records document encounters and do not estimate whale abundance.

NatureServe ranks the species S4 (Apparently Secure) in South Carolina. Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge is the only top place, with one record, while Congaree National Park and Santee National Wildlife Refuge also appear as search suggestions without place-level counts.

Full species profile Pygmy Sperm Whale Kogia breviceps Size 2.7–4 m8.9–13.1 ft Weight 320–450 kg705.5–992.1 lb Lifespan Up to 17 yr View the full profile

More mammals in South Carolina in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
NatureServe ExplorerCC-BYthe state conservation rank
IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
USGS NASpublic domainnative / introduced status
Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"