---
product_id: 9902511
title: "The Great Sperm Whale: A Natural History of the Ocean's Most Magnificent and Mysterious Creature"
brand: "richard ellis"
price: "461 Lei"
currency: RON
in_stock: true
reviews_count: 4
url: https://www.desertcart.ro/products/9902511-the-great-sperm-whale-a-natural-history-of-the-oceans
store_origin: RO
region: Romania
---

# The Great Sperm Whale: A Natural History of the Ocean's Most Magnificent and Mysterious Creature

**Brand:** richard ellis
**Price:** 461 Lei
**Availability:** ✅ In Stock

## Quick Answers

- **What is this?** The Great Sperm Whale: A Natural History of the Ocean's Most Magnificent and Mysterious Creature by richard ellis
- **How much does it cost?** 461 Lei with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship
- **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.ro](https://www.desertcart.ro/products/9902511-the-great-sperm-whale-a-natural-history-of-the-oceans)

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- richard ellis enthusiasts

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## Description

The Great Sperm Whale: A Natural History of the Ocean's Most Magnificent and Mysterious Creature

## Images

![The Great Sperm Whale: A Natural History of the Ocean's Most Magnificent and Mysterious Creature - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41Q09h+S+xL.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Great read
*by L***. on June 2, 2025*

Simply a great and fun book to read. Amazing art work, styles and flow of the book.The only downside is that some if the information is outdated since it is an older book.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A great biography of an astounding creature
*by M***E on July 20, 2012*

Herman Melville said of the sperm whale, "His is an unwritten life." Not anymore.I'm a longtime fan of Ellis' work, so it was no surprise I loved this entry in his works on marine life. I'd read a great deal on this animal, including Ellis' own earlier books, but I had no idea just how bizarre Physeter macrocephalus really is. It has countless features (like the single forward spout) that don't appear in other whales, and a nose/spermaceti organ so remarkably weird it belongs on a creature from another planet. It wasn't until the last decade that scientists gave credence to the startling fact that sperm whales hunt squid in darkness by finding and then stunning them with sound. The sperm's evolution is very well traced, showing many transitional forms (including the fearsome Livyatan melvillei), but there is still a lot we don't know about how this animal came to be so unique.As always with an Ellis book, this one is a mini-reference library, with a bibliography running 23 pages. Also as always, Ellis' own drawings and paintings bring the whale to life in a way the photographic record (which was sparse until remarkably recently) can't quite capture. (Ellis' postscript on how one paints a whale mural is fascinating "bonus footage" that comes with the book.)Everyone is curious about how big the whale gets. Ellis rejects the idea that bull sperms were historically larger than the 62-foot modern record, but he admits that a pair of 11-inch teeth in a museum (8 inches is big) make one wonder just what the all-time record was. Ellis does not mention one oddity, the old reports of aberrant sperm whales with true dorsal fins - these may be in error, but I would have liked Ellis' analysis.I would reduce the rating to 4.5 stars on a couple of minor flaws - the occcasional wrong word has slipped through editing, and there is some repetition. Ellis gives Charles Townsend's estimate of the casualties of New England Yankee whaling on page 238, but doesn't point out it's drastically wrong until page 291.The sperm whale really is, as Ellis says, "The ocean's most magnificent and mysterious creature." Pick up this remarkable book and meet the monarch of the seas.Matt Bille, author, Shadows of Existence: Discoveries and Speculations in Zoology (for which Richard Ellis kindly proofed the chapters on cetaceans). (Hancock, 2006)[...]

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ " The Great Sperm Whale "
*by L***E on January 3, 2012*

This is the book that I have been waiting for , for 50 years . As I kept my childhood facination with whales and over the years have read most everything that could be found . I have enjoyed reading Hal Whitehead , the journey of Nelson Haley and the novels of Hank Searls and Herman Melville . But this book is special . It is an easy reading , thourghly researched book , covering all facets of the most amazing of all creatures . The only question that was not addressed , that I still wonder about is why is the whale's skin wrinkled like a prune ? There must be a very good reason for it . But neither this nor any other book I have read , has speculated on its purpose . I highly recomend the book . It is the number one book on the subject , at this time ......Lee H.

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*Product available on Desertcart Romania*
*Store origin: RO*
*Last updated: 2026-02-13*