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<title>Right whale</title>
<authors>Wikipedia</authors>
<publisher>wikipedia.org</publisher>
<publishedplace>network</publishedplace>
<publishedyear>2010</publishedyear>
<edition></edition>
<category>Articles with unsourced statements from June 2009</category>
<section id="19618" fatherid="0" title="" lv="" priority="-1" level="1">
Right whales rotund bodies are mostly black, with distinctive callosities (roughened patches of skin) on their heads. They can grow up to  long and weigh up to 100 tons.
They are called " whales" because whalers thought the whales were the "" ones to hunt, as they float when killed and often swim within sight of shore. Intensive harvesting during the active years of the whaling industry drastically reduced populations. Today, instead of hunting them, people often watch these acrobatic animals for pleasure.
Right whales are four species of large baleen whales. Genetic evidence appears to have settled a long-standing question about whether to include the largest, the arctic Bowhead Whale, with the rest. All four are included in the taxonomic family Balaenidae, and all four are generally referred to as  whales. This article focuses on the other three species.

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<section id="19619" fatherid="0" title="Taxonomy" lv="" priority="-2" level="1">
<section id="19620" fatherid="19619" title="" lv="" priority="-1" level="2">
The Bowhead Whale is currently considered a separate species and was given its own genus 'Balaena' by Gray in 1821. The other three species occupy genus Eubalaena. Scientists see greater differences between the three Balaenoptera species than between the Bowhead Whale and the  whales. A future review will likely place all four species in one genus.
Little genetic evidence supports the historic two-genera view.
Authorities have historically disagreed over whether to categorize the three populations of Eubalaena  whales, in one, two or three species. In the days of whaling, there was thought to be a single worldwide species. Later, morphological factors such as small differences in the skull shape of northern and southern animals indicated that there were at least two species-one found only in the northern hemisphere, the other found in the Southern Ocean.  Furthermore, no  whales have been known to cross equatorial waters to make contact with the other (sub)species and (inter)breed: thick layers of insulating blubber make it impossible for them to dissipate their internal body heat in tropical waters.

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<section id="19621" fatherid="19619" title="Three Eubalaena species theory" lv="" priority="2" level="2">
Genetic studies provide clear evidence that the northern and southern populations have not interbred for between 3 million and 12 million years, confirming the status of the Southern Right Whale as a distinct species. More surprising has been the finding that the northern hemisphere Pacific and Atlantic populations are also distinct, and that the Pacific species (now known as the North Pacific Right Whale) is in fact more closely allied with the Southern Right Whale than with the North Atlantic Right Whale. While Rice continued to list two species in his 1998 classification, Rosenbaum et al. disagreed in 2000 and Brownell et al. in 2001. In 2005, Mammal Species of the World listed three species, indicating a seemingly more permanent shift to this preference.
Whale lice, parasitic cyamid crustaceans that live off skin debris, offer further information on Eubalaena  whale populations through their own genetic patterns. Because these lice reproduce much more quickly than whales, their genetic diversity is greater. Marine biologists at the University of Utah examined these louse genes and determined that their hosts split into three species 5-6 million years ago, and that these species were all equally abundant before whaling began in the 11th century. The communities first split because of the joining of North and South America. The heat of the equator then created a second split, into northern and southern groups. "This puts an end to the long debate about whether there are three Eubalaena species of  whale. They really are separate beyond a doubt", Jon Seger, the project's leader, told BBC News.Ross, Alison.  "'Whale riders' reveal evolution." BBC News (20 September 2005).

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<section id="19622" fatherid="19619" title="Balaena fossil record" lv="" priority="3" level="2">
A total of five Balaena fossils have been found in Europe and North America in deposits ranging from the late Miocene (about 10 mya) to early Pleistocene (about 1.5 mya). These five records have each been accorded their own species status-B. affinis, B. etrusca, B. montalionis, B. primigenius and B. prisca. The last of these may yet prove to be the same as the modern Bowhead Whale. Prior to these there is a long gap back to the next related cetacean in the fossil record-Morenocetus was found in a South American deposit dating back 23 million years.
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<section id="19623" fatherid="19619" title="Synonyms and common names" lv="" priority="4" level="2">
Due to their familiarity to whalers over a number of centuries the  whales have been given many names. These names were applied to  whales throughout the world, reflecting the fact that only one species was recognized at this time. In his novel Moby-Dick, Herman Melville writes: "Among the fishermen, the whale regularly hunted for oil is indiscriminately designated by all the following titles: The Whale; the Greenland Whale; the Black Whale; the Great Whale; the True Whale; the Right Whale."
Halibalaena (Gray, 1873) and Hunterius (Gray, 1866) are junior synonyms for the genus Eubalaena. E. australis is the type species.
The species-level synonyms are:
The Pygmy Right Whale (Capera marginata), a much smaller whale of the Southern Hemisphere, was also included in the Balaenidae family, but has recently been found to justify a separate family, Neobalaenidae.

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<section id="19624" fatherid="0" title="Description" lv="" priority="-3" level="1">
Right whales are easily distinguished from other whales by the callosities on their heads, a broad back without a dorsal fin, and a long arching mouth that begins above the eye. The body is very dark grey or black, occasionally with some white patches on the belly. The  whale's callosities appear white, due to large colonies of cyamids or whale lice, rather than skin pigmentation.
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<section id="19625" fatherid="0" title="Anatomy" lv="" priority="-4" level="1">
Adults may be between  in length and typically weigh 60-80 tonnes. The most typical lengths are . The body is extremely thick with girth as much as 60% of total body length in some cases. The tail fluke is  broad (up to 40% of body length). The North Pacific species is on average the largest of the three species. The largest specimens may weigh 100 tonnes.
Right whales have a distinctive wide V-shaped blow, caused by the widely spaced blowholes on the top of the head. The blow rises  above the surface.
Right whales have between 200 and 300 baleen plates on each side of the mouth. These are narrow and approximately  long, and are covered in very thin hairs. The plates enable the whale to feed.
The testicles are likely to be the largest of any animal, each weighing around . The relative size is also large, at 1% of the whale's total body weight.  This suggests that sperm competition is important in mating.

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<section id="19626" fatherid="0" title="Life History" lv="" priority="5" level="1">
<section id="19627" fatherid="19626" title="Reproduction" lv="" priority="1" level="2">
Females reach sexual maturity at 6-12 years and breed every 3-5 years. Both reproduction and calving take place during the winter months. Calves are approximately 1 ton (1.1 short tons) in weight and  in length at birth following a gestation period of 1 year. The  whale grows rapidly in its first year, typically doubling in length. Weaning occurs after eight months to one year and the growth rate in later years is not well understood-it may be highly dependent on whether a calf stays with its mother for a second year.
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<section id="19628" fatherid="19626" title="Lifespan" lv="" priority="2" level="2">
Very little is known about the life span of  whales because they are so scarce scientists cannot really study them. One of the few well-documented cases is of a female North Atlantic Right Whale that was photographed with a baby in 1935, then photographed again in 1959, 1980, 1985 and 1992. Callosity patterns were used to ensure that it was the same animal. She was last photographed in 1995 with a seemingly fatal head wound presumably from a ship strike. The animal died at around 70 years of age. Research on the Bowhead Whale suggests this lifespan is not uncommon and may even be exceeded.
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<section id="19629" fatherid="19626" title="Swimming" lv="" priority="-3" level="2">
Right whales are slow swimmers, reaching only  at top speed, but are highly acrobatic and frequently breach (jump clear of the sea surface), tail-slap and lobtail. Like other baleen whales, the species is not gregarious and the typical group size is only two. Groups of up to twelve have been reported, but these were not close-knit and may have been transitory.
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<section id="19630" fatherid="0" title="Ecology" lv="" priority="-6" level="1">
<section id="19631" fatherid="19630" title="Diet" lv="" priority="1" level="2">
The  whales' diet consists primarily of zooplankton, primarily the tiny crustaceans called copepods, as well as krill, and pteropods, although they are occasionally opportunistic feeders.
They feed by "skimming" along with their mouth open. Water and prey enters the mouth, and the whales uses its baleen plates to filter the prey from the water, which it expels. Thus, for a  whale to feed, prey must occur in sufficient numbers to trigger the whale's interest; be large enough that the baleen plates can filter it; and be small enough that it does not have the speed to escape. The "skimming" may take place on the surface, underwater, or even at the ocean's bottom, indicated by mud occasionally observed on  whales' bodies.

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<section id="19632" fatherid="19630" title="Predation" lv="" priority="-2" level="2">
The  whales' only predators are Orcas and humans. When danger lurks, a group of  whales may form a circle, with their tails pointing outwards. This defense is not always successful and calves are occasionally lost.
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<section id="19633" fatherid="19630" title="Range and habitat" lv="" priority="3" level="2">
<section id="19634" fatherid="19633" title="" lv="" priority="-1" level="3">
The three Eubalaena species inhabit three distinct areas of the globe: the North Atlantic in the western Atlantic Ocean, the North Pacific in a band from Japan to Alaska and all areas of the Southern Ocean. The whales can only cope with the moderate temperatures found between 20 and 60 degrees in latitude. The warm equatorial waters form a barrier that prevents mixing between the northern and southern groups. Although the Southern species in particular must travel across open ocean to reach its feeding grounds, the species is not considered to be pelagic. In general, they prefer to stay close to peninsulas and bays and on continental shelves, as these areas offer greater shelter and an abundance of their preferred foods.
Because the oceans are so large, it is very difficult to accurately gauge whale population sizes. Approximate figures:

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<section id="19635" fatherid="19633" title="North Atlantic" lv="" priority="2" level="3">
Almost all of the 400 North Atlantic Right Whales, live in the western North Atlantic Ocean. In spring, summer and autumn, they feed in areas off the Canadian and north-east U.S. coasts in a range stretching from New York to Nova Scotia. Particularly popular feeding areas are the Bay of Fundy and Cape Cod Bay. In winter, they head south towards Georgia and Florida to give birth.
There have been a smattering of sightings further east over the past few decades-several sightings were made close to Iceland in 2003. It is possible that these are the remains of a virtually extinct eastern Atlantic stock, but examination of old whalers' records suggest that they are more likely to be strays. However, a few sightings are regular between Norway, Ireland, Spain, Portugal, the Canary Islands and even Italy and Sicily and at least the Norway individuals come from the Western stock.

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<section id="19636" fatherid="19633" title="North Pacific" lv="" priority="3" level="3">
The North Pacific Right Whale appears to occur in two populations. The population in the eastern North Pacific/Bering Sea is extremely low, and may number under 50 individuals. A larger western population of 400-900 appears to be surviving in the Sea of Okhotsk, but very little is known about this population. Thus, the two northern  whale species are the most endangered of all large whales and two of the most endangered animals in the world. Based on current population density trends, both species are predicted to become extinct within 200 years. The Pacific species was historically found in summer from the Sea of Okhotsk in the west to the Gulf of Alaska in the east, generally north of 50°N in large numbers and was heavily hunted, particularly in the period 1938-1948. Today, sightings are very rare and generally occur in the mouth of the Sea of Okhotsk and in the eastern Bering Sea. Although this species is very likely to be migratory like the other two species, its movement patterns  are not known.
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<section id="19637" fatherid="19633" title="Southern" lv="" priority="4" level="3">
The estimate of 7,000 Southern Right Whales came about following an IWC workshop held in Cape Town in March 1998. Researchers used data about adult female populations from three surveys (one in each of Argentina, South Africa and Australia collected during the 1990s) and extrapolated to include unsurveyed areas, number of males and calves using available male:female and adult:calf ratios to give an estimated 1999 figure of 7,000 animals.May 1998 edition of "Right Whale News"  available online.
The Southern Right Whale spends the summer months in the far Southern Ocean feeding, probably close to Antarctica. It migrates north in winter for breeding and can be seen around the coasts of Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, Mozambique, New Zealand and South Africa.
Since hunting of the Southern Right Whale ceased, stocks are estimated to have grown by 7% a year. It appears that the South American, South African and Australasian groups intermix very little, if at all, because of the strong fidelity of mothers to their feeding and calving grounds.  The mother passes these instincts to her calves.
In Brazil, more than 300 individuals have been cataloged through photo identification (using their distinctive head callosities) by the Brazilian Right Whale Project, maintained jointly by Petrobras (the Brazilian state-owned oil company) and the International Wildlife Coalition. The State of Santa Catarina hosts a concentration of breeding and calving  whales from June to November, and females from this population are also known to calve off Argentinian Patagonia.

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<section id="19638" fatherid="19630" title="Vocalization and hearing" lv="" priority="4" level="2">
See also: Whale song
Vocalizations made by  whales are not elaborate compared to those made by other whale species. The whales make groans, pops and belches that are typically at frequencies around 500 Hertz. The purpose of the sounds is not known but may be a form of communication between whales within the same group.
Northern  whales responded to sounds similar to police sirens-sounds of much higher frequency than their own. On hearing the sounds they moved rapidly to the surface. The research was of particular interest because Northern s ignore most sounds, including those of approaching boats. Researchers speculate that this information may be useful in attempts to reduce the number of ship-whale collisions or to encourage the whales to surface for ease of harvesting.Northern Right Whales respond to emergency sirens

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</section>
<section id="19639" fatherid="0" title="Relationship to humans" lv="" priority="-7" level="1">
<section id="19640" fatherid="19639" title="Whaling" lv="" priority="1" level="2">
Right whales were so named because early whalers considered them the "" whale to hunt. In the early centuries of shore-based whaling prior to 1712,  whales were virtually the only catchable large whales, for three reasons:
However, many  whales did sink when killed (10-30% in the North Pacific) and were lost unless they later stranded or were found floating.
Basque people were the first to commercially hunt  whales. They began as early as the 11th century in the Bay of Biscay. They initially sought oil, but as meat preservation technology improved the animal was also used for food. Basque whalers reached eastern Canada by 1530 and the shores of Todos os Santos Bay (in Bahia, Brazil) by 1602. The last Basque  voyages were made prior to the Seven Year's War (1756-1763). All attempts to revive the trade post-war failed. Basque shore whaling continued sporadically into the 19th century.
Basques were replaced by whalers from the new American colonies: the "Yankee whalers". Setting out from Nantucket, Massachusetts and Long Island, New York, they were able to take up to 100  whales in good years. By 1750 the commercial North Atlantic Right Whale was basically over. The Yankee whalers moved into the South Atlantic before the end of the 18th century. The southernmost Brazilian whaling station was established in 1796, in Imbituba. Over the next one hundred years, Yankee whaling spread into the Southern and Pacific Oceans, where the Americans were joined by fleets from several European nations. The beginning of the 20th century saw much greater industrialization of whaling, and the takes grew rapidly. By 1937, there had been, according to whalers' records, 38,000 takes in the South Atlantic, 39,000 in the South Pacific, 1,300 in the Indian Ocean, and 15,000 in the north Pacific. The incompleteness of these records means that the actual take was somewhat higher.
As it became clear that stocks were nearly depleted, a worldwide ban on  whaling was agreed upon in 1937. The ban was largely successful, although violations of the ban continued for several decades. Madeira took its last two  whales in 1968. Japan took 23 Pacific  whales in the 1940s and more under scientific permit in the 1960s. Illegal whaling continued off the coast of Brazil for many years and the Imbituba land station processed  whales until 1973. The Soviet Union illegally took at least 3,212 Southern Right Whales during the 1950s and '60s, although it only reported taking 4.

</section>
<section id="19641" fatherid="19639" title="Whale watching" lv="" priority="2" level="2">
See also: Whale watching
The Southern Right Whale has made Hermanus, South Africa one of the world centers for whale watching. During the winter months (July-October), Southern Right Whales come so close to the shoreline that visitors can watch whales from strategically placed hotels. The town employs a "whale crier" (cf. town crier) to walk through the town announcing where whales have been seen. Southern Right Whales can also be watched at other winter breeding grounds.
In Brazil, Imbituba in Santa Catarina has been recognized as the National Right Whale Capital and holds annual Right Whale Week celebrations in September, when mothers and calves are more often seen. The old whaling station there has been converted to a museum documenting the history of  whales in Brazil. In winter in Argentina, Península Valdés in Patagonia hosts the largest breeding population of the species, with more than 2,000 animals catalogued by the Whale Conservation Institute and Ocean Alliance.Ocean Alliance website

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</section>
<section id="19642" fatherid="0" title="Conservation" lv="" priority="8" level="1">
<section id="19643" fatherid="19642" title="" lv="" priority="-1" level="2">
The U.S. and Brazil added new protections for  whales in the 00's to address the two primary hazards.
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<section id="19644" fatherid="19642" title="Ship strikes" lv="" priority="2" level="2">
The leading cause of death among the North Atlantic Right Whale, which migrates through some of the world's busiest shipping lanes whilst journeying off the east coast of the United States and Canada, is from being struck by ships. At least 16 ship strike deaths were reported between 1970 and 1999, and probably more remain unreported. Recognizing that this toll could tip the delicately balanced species towards extinction, in July 1997, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) introduced Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan. A key part of the plan was the introduction of mandatory reporting of large whale sightings by ships using U.S. ports.
While environmental campaigners were, as reported in 2001, pleased about the plan's positive effects, they wanted the government to do more. In particular, they advocated  speed limits for ships within  of U.S. ports in times of high  whale presence. The United States government, citing concerns about excessive disruption to trade, did not comply. The conservation groups Defenders of Wildlife, the Humane Society of the United States and the Ocean Conservancy sued the National Marine Fisheries Service (a NOAA sub-agency) in September 2005 for "failing to protect the critically endangered North Atlantic Right Whale, which the agency acknowledges is 'the rarest of all large whale species' and which federal agencies are required to protect by both the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Endangered Species Act", and demanded emergency measures to protect them. Both the North Atlantic and North Pacific species are listed as a "species threatened with extinction which is or may be affected by trade" (Appendix I) by CITES, and as Conservation Dependent by the IUCN Red List, and as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.
On February 6, 2006, NOAA proposed its Strategy to Reduce Ship Strikes to North Atlantic Right Whales.NOAA.  Proposed Strategy to Reduce Ship Strikes to North Atlantic Right Whales. The proposal, opposed by some shipping interests, limited ship speeds during calving season. According to NOAA, 25 of the 71  whale deaths reported since 1970 resulted from ship strikes. The proposal was implemented in 2008. On December 8, 2008, NOAA issued a press release that included the following:
"A landmark regulation going into effect on Dec. 9 will require ships 65 feet or longer to travel at 10 knots or less in certain areas where  whales gather. These new speed restrictions will take effect in waters off New England beginning in January 2009 when whales begin gathering in this area as part of their annual migration. The goal is to reduce the chances ships will collide with whales, injuring or killing them.
"The 10-knot speed restriction will extend out to 20 nautical miles around major mid-Atlantic ports.  According to NOAA researchers, about 83 percent of  whale sightings in the mid-Atlantic region occur within 20 nautical miles of shore.  The speed restriction also applies in waters off New England and the southeastern U.S., where whales gather seasonally..
"The speed restrictions apply in the following approximate locations at the following times; they are based on times whales are known to be in these areas:
- Southeastern U.S. from St. Augustine, Fla. to Brunswick, Ga. from Nov. 15 to April 15
- Mid-Atlantic U.S. areas from Rhode Island to Georgia from Nov. 1 to April 30.
- Cape Cod Bay from Jan. 1 to May 15
- Off Race Point at northern end of Cape Cod from March 1 to April 30
- Great South Channel of New England from April 1 to July 31
"NOAA will also call for temporary voluntary speed limits in other areas or times when a group of three or more  whales is confirmed. Scientists will assess whether the speed restrictions are effective before the rule expires in 2013."
The Stellwagen Bank area has implemented an autobuoy program to acoustically detect  whales in the Boston Approaches and notify mariners via the Right Whale Listening Network website.

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<section id="19645" fatherid="19642" title="Fishing gear" lv="" priority="3" level="2">
A second major cause of morbidity and mortality in the North Atlantic Right Whale is entanglement in fishing gear. Right whales ingest plankton with their mouths wide open, exposing themselves to the risk of entanglement in any rope or net fixed in the water column. The rope wraps around their upper jaws, flippers and tails. Most manage to escape with minor scarring, but some are seriously and persistently entangled. If sighted, they can be successfully disentangled, but others die a gruesome death over a period of months. Animal welfare concerns align with those about extinction in emphasizing the harm of such entanglements.
The Southern Right Whale, listed as "endangered" by CITES and "lower risk - conservation dependent" by the IUCN, is protected in the jurisdictional waters of all countries with known breeding populations (Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, New Zealand, South Africa and Uruguay). In Brazil, a federal Environmental Protection Area encompassing some  and  of coastline in Santa Catarina State was established in 2000 to protect the species' main breeding grounds in Brazil and promote whale watching.Petrobras, Projeto Baleia Franca.  More information on Brazilian  whales is available in Portuguese.

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<section id="19646" fatherid="0" title="Notes" lv="" priority="-9" level="1">
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<section id="19647" fatherid="0" title="References" lv="" priority="-10" level="1">
</section>
<section id="19648" fatherid="0" title="External links" lv="" priority="-11" level="1">
The  whale is the official state marine mammal of Georgia.
Category:Balaenidae
Category:Endangered species
Category:Mammals of Europe
Category:Mammals of Japan
Category:Mammals of North America
zh-min-nan:Chiàⁿ hái-ang

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