Other Whales

Blue Whale

There are two species of Blue whale that live in the Southern Hemisphere - the Antarctic Blue whale and the Pygmy Blue whale and both are found in the waters off Western Australia. The Antarctic Blue weighs up to 130 tonnes and can be as long as 30 metres and the Pygmy Blue whale is really not as its name suggests and is only marginally smaller than the Antarctic Blue with its length being approximately 25 metres and weighing in at around 100 tonnes.

Photo Naturaliste Charters

For such a large whale, Blue whales have very small dorsal fins, that are situated quite considerably further down their back than other baleen whales. You can see the dorsal fin of this animal just above the caption on the bottom left of the photograph.

Blue whales belong to the family of baleen whales, their primary diet consists of vast quantities of krill and they can weigh up to 100 tonnes. They have been observed feeding in Australian waters off the coast of Portland in Victoria and Rottnest Island in Western Australia. These large animals are incredibly fast for their size and can swim at speeds of up to approximately 30 kilometres an hour. They can live for almost 90 years.

Photo Naturaliste Charters

The Pygmy Blue whale can be seen regularly off the shores of Dunsborough in Western Australia during November to December. Some have been seen as close as 100 metres from the shore. This is a very rare occurrence and it is thought that this is one of the few places in the world where it happens.

Blue whales can be sighted in the waters behind Rottnest Island off the Perth metropolitan coast and in Geographe Bay, near Dunsborough where sometimes they can be sighted travelling only 100 metres from the shore. Both species of these massive animals were extensively hunted in the early part of the 20th century and their numbers were severely depleted. The Antarctic Blue whale is now listed as critically endangered and the Pygmy Blue whale is listed as endangered.

The Blue whale is the largest animal on earth. Two species, the Antarctic Blue and the Pygmy Blue are found in Western Australian waters. This animal was photographed in the feeding grounds near Portland in Victoria.

Characteristic of the Blue whale is its large blow. These whales can hold up to 5,000 litres of air in their lungs and when they exhale it is very powerful and shoots long and straight up into the air to a height of up to 12 metres.