Habits
The right whale lives in shallow coastal waters in herds of up to six family members, Individuals may swim off to join another grou, but in a few days they return to the original herd. The right whale often leaps up from the water's surface and blows its V-shaped spout p to a height of 16 feet. It cruises on the surface for 5 to 10 minutes, blowing about once a minute, and then dives below for 10 to 20 minutes. When diving, the whale lifts its tail out of the water and brings it crashing down onto the surface. This action is called lob-tailing and is how a whale indicates its position when the sea it too rought to allow its voice to be heard.
Food and Feeding
The right whale feeds by slowly skimming the ocean surfce with its mouth open. Every few minutes it closes its lips and presses its tounge against the roof of its mouth to strain the water out between long baleen plates. The baleen is actually made of fused hairs, not bone. Plankton and krill trapped by the bristles are collected bt the whale's tongue and swallowed. Debris also gets caught on the plates, and the whale frequently stops to roll the debris into a ball with its tongue and then flick it out of its mouth.
Right whale and Man
Because it moves slowly (its top speed is just over six miles per hour) and yeilds large quantities of oil and whalebone, the right whale has been hunted more than any other whale. It was finally protected by law in 1936. Most hunting occurred in the Southern Hemisphere, with huge catches recorded off New Zealand. Once widespread, this whale is now found only in scattered herds.
Did you know?
Old-time whalers gave the right what its unusual name beacuse they thought it was the "right" whale to hunt - it swam very slowly, floated even when it was dead, and yielded large quantities of oil and whalebone.
Right whales are rarely stranded because they are familiar with shallow water.
The right whale is also known as the Biscay whale, Biscayan right whale, and great right whale.
The right whale's head is about one-fourth its length. It has an arched jaw to accommodate the eight-foot-long baleen plates.
A recording picked up a regular clacking noise that was throught to be the right whales echolocation system, sounds that enable whales to navigate. The noise was discovered to be made by baleen plates banging into each other during feeding.
Distribution
Now found only off the coasts of Newfoundland, Madeira, Patagonia, southwestern Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Alaska, and the Aleution Islands.
Size
Length: Adults, 40-60 feet. Calves, 12-18 feet at birth.
Weight: Adults, about 60 tons.
Lifestyle
Habit: Sociable; lives in small herds of 6 adults and young.
Call: Loud bellows, soft moans and belches, series of pulsing sounds.
Lifespan: Not known, but thought to be about 30 years.
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