Other Whales

Southern Right Whale
Pilot Whale
Blue Whale
Bottlenose Dolphin

Southern Right Whale

The Southern Right whale is about the same length as a Humpback whale at about 18 metres, but they weigh almost twice as much at up to 80 tonnes. Unlike Humpbacks, Southern Rights have short, stubby pectoral fins. They do not have a dorsal fin and their tails are black on the top and bottom and are very triangular in shape. Their distinctive head markings are called callosities (ka-loh-sah-tees). These are roughened, wart-like patches of skin that are grey in colour and present on the animals head, eyes and jaw.

Photo Doug Coughran

Southern Right whales are much more stocky and rotund compared to a Humpback. Their massive head is almost a quarter of the length of their body and is adorned with light coloured patches of rough skin called callosites. These callosites form patterns that are unique to each whale and researchers use them to identify individual animals.

A male Southern Right rests on the surface after his long journey from the sub Antarctic. Males come to Australia's southern coastline to find receptive females with whom to mate. Unlike Humpbacks, these whales are notorious for their inactivity and will 'log' (rest) on the surface of the water for hours, doing absolutely nothing. This photo is a close up of the blowhole and you can clearly see callosity patches to the left and the right of the nostrils.

Southern Right whales were named by the early whalers because they were very easy to catch due to the fact that they are slow swimmers and when they were killed, they floated, which made it very easy for the whaling boats to tow them to the mother ship, they also produced substantial quantities of oil. For all the reasons above, they were considered the 'right' whale to be hunted. Unfortunately they were almost hunted to extinction and today their numbers are very low, estimated to be approximately 2000 animals in Australian waters, and possibly another 3000 in other places like South Africa, New Zealand and South America. Southern Right whales are listed as an endangered species. Their northern hemisphere cousins, the Northern Right whale, are critically endangered with approximately only 500 left in the world.

Photo Naturaliste Charters

An inquisitive female and her calf come within touching distance of passengers on a whale watching boat in Augusta, giving them a close look at a rare species and to top it off, a baby whale that is probably only one month old

Photo Naturaliste Charters

Another Southern Right calf slips away from its attentive mother and approaches a curious onlooker.

Southern Right whales come to the south coast of Western Australia to mate and give birth. Some animals make it as far as Perth and there have been sightings of these animals as far north as Shark Bay and Exmouth in sub-tropical waters. Female Southern Right whales give birth approximately every 3 years. Some calves, are born white. It is thought that Southern Right whales live for almost 50 years. In 2008 a record 700 Southern Right whales were sighted along the south coast of Western Australia. This is thought to be due to an abundance of food such as krill in sub- Antarctic waters where the whales feed in the southern hemisphere summer.

A close up view along the spine of a female Southern Right whale reveals a deep scar. Southern Right whales are no longer hunted. Therefore, this wound was possibly inflicted accidentally by a ship as the whale slept on the surface at night. It is very deep and must have just missed the whale's spine. Despite the injury the female has been observed swimming and even breaching without any lack of mobility.

Photo Naturaliste Charters

This white Southern Right whale calf was sighted in Augusta in early July 2008, by Steve Mitchell from Naturaliste Charters and made headlines in media all around the world. Steve has been whale watching in the area for over 15 years and this is the first he has seen. Approximately 3% of Southern Right whale calves are born white.

A rare underwater glimpse of the white calf. These whales are endangered, whale watching boats and the general public have to stay at least 200 metres away from the animals. In this instance the whale watching boat was stationary and the mother and calf approached the boat. Under a special Marine Mammal Interaction License issued for filming by DEC, a remotely operated underwater camera was placed in the water to get the shot.

The white calf frolics in the water next to its mother, lifting its head out of the water and squeezing water in and out of its mouth. If you look closely at the photo, just beneath the pink gums you can see ivory coloured plates. This is the animals baleen plates that are just forming and will be used to sieve krill from the ocean to eat when it has stopped drinking its mothers milk.

The sun is shining and the ocean is calm. The calf moves away from the protection of its mother, rolls over on its back and sticks its short, stubby pectoral fins up in the air. Perhaps enjoying the warmth of the sun on its skin. However, it can be dangerous straying away from its mother as the area is renowned for Great White sharks that predate on young whales.

Photo Naturaliste Charters

Although the white calf is only months old, it immediately begins practicing grown up behaviour. In this photo it is slapping its tail on the water, which in whales can be interpreted as a sign of aggression.

Photo Naturaliste Charters

Other behaviour the white calf started practising was breaching. Breaching is where the whale throws its whole body out of the water. Although not quite strong enough to get its body right out of the water, the young animal is giving it a good go.

The sign of a very healthy Southern Right whale. This female is resting just behind the breakers in Augusta. The photo is a close up of the area just behind her head. As you can see there is a pronounced hump. This is an indicator that the female is in top body condition and has fed well in the preceding summer to build up her fat reserves.

This is a photo of the same healthy female, you can see her in the background. In the foreground is her calf. Unfortunately it is not so healthy. Its face is covered with thousands of whale lice called cyamids. These small crustacean like animals attach themselves to the whales and feed on their skin. When seen in proliferate numbers, the can be an indicator of poor health.

In this close up you can see the cyamids, in their thousands covering the front of the young whales face and almost completely covering its mouth.

Another Southern Right calf and its mother approaches the boat , this photo was also taken with the remotely operated underwater camera. This animal is about 2 months old. It will stay with its mother for about a year. You can see the young whale is having a good look at the camera. Above its eye is a callosity patch which is just formed prior to birth.

Females and their calf share a very special bond. For the first few months of its life, the calf will rarely stray far from its mothers side. The mother provides the calf's food and protection from predators for up to a year, before the young whale leaves to live on its own. Their bond is often physical, in this photo the calf nestles into its mothers side and strokes her with its fin.