Facts about southern right whale
Southern right whale, Te Wae Wae Bay
Southern right whales (Eubalaena australis) are typically black in colour but can have irregular white patches. The flippers are large and paddle-shaped. Tohora are slow swimmers but are very acrobatic. They are also inquisitive.
- Newborn: length 4.5-6 m
- Adult: length 11-18 m
Range
These are migratory animals and are circumpolar, mainly between 20°S and 55°S. A northern species also exists. Tohora are a native migrant to New Zealand and are the only large baleen whales that can be seen from the beach. During the breeding season in winter and spring, they are mostly found in the waters around the sub-Antarctic Auckland and Campbell Islands but there are occasional sightings around mainland New Zealand.
Population
While in general the population of southern right whales in the Southern Ocean has been making a slow recovery; recovery hasn't been apparent to the same extent around the New Zealand mainland.
The question now remains as to whether the mainland New Zealand whales form a distinct group from their sub-Antarctic, Australian, South American and South African counterparts. If this is the case, it would make the population of whales visiting the mainland extremely rare and they could be in peril.
For the last three years DOC has been running an observation programme to try to answer the question of whether NZ has its own right whales, and to try to gain some idea of how the population is structured. However, this programme hinges on the support and fast response of members of the public who are lucky enough to sight a southern right whale. See below for ways in which you can help.
Diet and foraging
These whales can come very close to shore. Aggregations tend to form at feeding grounds, despite many animals typically being solitary or part of a very small group. Dives may last up to an hour but are usually much shorter. Tohora feed on planktonic crustaceans such as copepods and forage using a technique known as skim feeding, where they open their mouths and slowly swim through large concentrations of prey. As water enters their mouth, prey is sieved from the water and becomes trapped in their fine baleen plates.
Life history
Mating takes place in warm waters in winter with gestation lasting for about 11 months and weaning for about another year. Females are sexually mature at around eight years old with calving generally occurring regularly every three years.
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