Southern right whale
| Southern right whale | ||||||||||||
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Jumping southern right whale |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Eubalaena australis | ||||||||||||
| ( A. Desmoulins , 1822) |
The southern right whale ( Eubalaena australis ) is a species of whale from the family of the right whale (Balaenidae). It is similar to the other two species of the genus Eubalaena , the Atlantic and Pacific northern right whale and was even counted as one species with these in the past. Another name in German is southern right whale .
distribution
Southern right whales live circumpolarly in the subpolar and temperate seas of the southern hemisphere, roughly between the 30th and 50th parallel south. There are regular observations from the coasts of southern South America , South Africa , Australia , New Zealand and smaller islands of the Subantarctic. In winter they migrate to warmer sea regions to reproduce, in summer they migrate south to forage.
description
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The coloration of this whale species is light brown to blue-black, with white spots, occasionally white male calves, which are not albinos, are found. In the head area, especially on the lower jaw, around the blowhole and above the eye, they have skin growths that are individually designed for each animal and can serve to differentiate between individuals. They reach a length of up to 18 m and a weight of up to 80 t, with females becoming slightly larger than males. Like all right whales, they are characterized by their large head (which is around a third of the body's length) and the lack of a fin .
Way of life
Southern right whales tend to be near islands or large land masses. Despite their size, they are considered active animals. Like all baleen whales sift the food with their beards and feed mainly on copepods and light cancers .
Reproduction
After a gestation period of around one year, the female gives birth to a five to six meter long, 1000 to 1500 kg heavy calf in winter or spring (June to November). To protect against predators, the female withdraws to birth in bays of the sea. The calf grows very quickly, up to three centimeters per day, and is suckled for around four to six months. In the animal world, the male southern right whale has the largest testicles; at 500 kg each, they make up 2% of body weight. With an ejaculation up to 20 liters of semen are released.
threat
Like the northern right whales, the southern right whales were hunted intensively; their sociability and curiosity made them easy prey for whalers . Since the species was protected in 1935, populations have begun to recover, to a somewhat greater extent than their northern relatives. The total population of the species is increasing and is estimated at around 7000 specimens.
In the last 30 years , Dominican gulls have started to feed on the southern capers off the Argentine peninsula Valdés . They land on the whales and peck parasites, loose pieces of skin, but also healthy pieces of meat from or from the whales. The seagulls have become a plague for the whales that raise their offspring in the region. The whales dive much more often than usual to get away from the seagulls and therefore use a lot of energy; especially the whale mothers would need a lot of rest to raise their calves. In addition, the gulls concentrate on the whale mothers and their calves, which have to come to the surface much more often than the other whales.
Observation possibility
There are good opportunities for observation off the Peninsula Valdés in Argentina and on the Brazilian south coast, for example. B. in Laguna / Santa Catarina . Between June and December you can see the whales from the shore and better still from the boat. The whales with their calves come in large numbers within a few meters of the boat, and it is not uncommon to see jumping whales (see picture).
Walker Bay with the towns of Hermanus and especially De Kelders in South Africa is ideal for watching these whales from June to November. The whales and their young come within a few meters of the shore, so observation from a boat is not necessary. The bay has been recognized by UNESCO as the best whale watching site. In Western Australia, on the beach in the town of Albany , these whales can be seen playing and jumping. Mothers with calves and young whales like to stay in the bays.
literature
- M. Carwardine: whales and dolphins. Delius Klasing, 2008, ISBN 978-3768824736 (high quality guide)
- Ralf Kiefner: whales and dolphins worldwide. Year Top Special Verlag, 2002 (guide of the magazine diving , very detailed)
- J. Niethammer, F. Krapp (ed.): Handbook of mammals in Europe. Volume 6: Marine mammals, Tel 1A: Whales and dolphins 1. AULA-Verlag, Wiesbaden 1994 (very detailed textbook)
- RR Reeves, BS Stewart, PJ Clapham, JA Powell: Sea Mammals of the World. A Complete Guide to Whales, Dolphins, Seals, Sea Lions and Sea Cows. Black, London 2002, ISBN 0-7136-6334-0 (guide with numerous pictures).
- M. Würtz, N. Repetto: Underwater world: Dolphins and Whales. White Star Guides, 2003, ISBN 88-8095-943-3 (identification book)
Web links
- More information and illustration
- Video
- Eubalaena australis inthe IUCN 2013 Red List of Threatened Species . Listed by: Reilly, SB, Bannister, JL, Best, PB, Brown, M., Brownell Jr., RL, Butterworth, DS, Clapham, PJ, Cooke, J., Donovan, GP, Urbán, J. & Zerbini, AN, 2008. Retrieved September 20, 2013.
Individual evidence
- ↑ VJ Rowntree, P. MacGuiness, K. Marshall, R. Payne, J. Seger, M. Sironi: "Increased harassment of Right Whales ( Eubalaena australis ) by Kelp Gulls ( Larus dominicanus ) at Peninsula Valdes, Argentina". Marine Mammal Science . 1998. 14 (1): 99-115, doi: 10.1111 / j.1748-7692.1998.tb00693.x .
- ↑ sueddeutsche.de, June 26, 2009: Birds on whaling ( memento of the original from June 29, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ BBC News, June 24, 2009: Gulls' vicious attacks on whales (photo series)
