Southern Right Whale

 

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Classification:

Global Population

Description and Natural History

Physical Description
Like the North Atlantic right whale, the southern right whale is a medium-sized, stocky, baleen whale. Adults are 14-17 meters (46-56 feet) long and weigh an average of 60 tonnes (66 tons). Like other baleen species, females are larger than males. Calves are born every 3 to 5 years, and are about 6-7 meters (20-23 feet) long. Southern right whales are black or dark gray, and may have white markings on the belly, throat or chin. Right whales, like bowhead whales, have no dorsal fin or ridge on the broad back. Flippers are broad and paddle-like. The huge head can measure up to 1/4 of the entire body length and is characterized by an arched jawline and areas of raised, roughened skin called callosities. Callosities are found on the rostrum in front of the blowholes (called ‘the bonnet’), near the blowholes, above the eyes, on the sides of the head, on the chin, and on the lower lips. The callosities appear light-colored because of the light-colored whale lice that live on them. Due to the separation of the two blow holes, right whales can be identified from a distance by their V-shaped blow.

Natural History
Southern right whales have a circumpolar distribution in the Southern Hemisphere. They move north and south from inshore waters along the coasts of South America, South Africa and Australasia in the winter, to summer feeding grounds in the waters around Antarctica. Southern right whales are not gregarious, although large groups can be found on the feeding grounds.

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Status of the Species

Status
The Southern right whale is listed as Vulnerable by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), and is listed on Appendix 1 of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

Threats to the Species

Historically, the slow swimming speeds (maximum 3-5 knots) and the tendency to float when killed made the right whale an easy target for early whalers, who hunted them for their thick blubber and long baleen. Unlike the North Atlantic right whale, which has failed to rebound after years of exploitation, the southern right whale appears to be recovering well throughout much of its range. While no current population estimate exists, the southern right whale population is thought to contain several thousand animals. As with other whale species, southern right whales are threatened by entanglement in fishing gear, collisions with vessels, and habitat destruction. International Trade Listed on CITES Appendix I which prohibits international trade.

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Authors and Sources

Sources
IUCN. 2001. The 2000 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. http://www.redlist.org.

Jefferson, T.A., S. Leatherwood and M.A. Webber. 1993. Marine Mammals of the World. FAO Species Identification Guide. UNEP, Rome. 320pp.

Leatherwood, S. and R.R. Reeves. 1983. The Sierra Club Handbook of Whales and Dolphins. Sierra Club Books, San Francisco. 302 pp.

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