along the top of the head from the area of the blowhole to the tip of
the snout. All other species of balaenopterid whales, except humpback
whales have but a single ridge. If the head of a stranded specimen is
buried in sand, is decomposed beyond recognition, or is otherwise
inaccessible for identification, Bryde's whales can still be
distinguished from sei whales by differences in the relative lengths of
the ventral grooves (Table 2) and from both the fin whale and the sei
whale by differences in the characteristics of the baleen plates (Table
2).
[Illustration: Figure 30.--On the head of this Bryde's whale off La
Jolla, Calif. two of the three head ridges characteristic of the
species, the main ridge and the left auxiliary ridge, are clearly
visible. These ridges permit this animal to be positively identified as
a Bryde's whale. (_Photo by F. Morejohn._)]
[Illustration: Figure 31.--Bryde's whales in the Gulf of California and
north of Hawaii (inset). In both, note the tall, sickle-shaped
appearance of the dorsal fin, much like that of the sei whale. In the
animal in the larger photo note the ragged rear margin of the dorsal
fin, a frequently observed characteristic in Bryde's whales. In the
animal on the left note also the region of gray on the sides in front of
the dorsal fin. (_Photos by W. C. Cummings and S. Ohsumi_ (_inset_).)]
[Illustration: Figure 32.--Stranded Bryde's whales at Walnut Point, Va.
(top) and Panacea, Fla., Gulf of Mexico (bottom). In both animals note
the head shape similar to that of the sei whale, and the three distinct
head ridges. In the animal on the bottom, note that the two outermost
ridges have their origin in grooves beside the blowholes. In the animal
on the top, note also the baleen plates, up to at least 300 per side and
dark gray with coarse gray bristles. There is infrequently a rather wide
interval at the front of the mouth between the left and right rows of
baleen. (_Photos by U.S. National Museum, courtesy of J. G. Mead (top)
and M. B. Rank, courtesy of Wide World Photos (bottom)._)]
HUMPBACK WHALE (B)
_Megaptera novaeangliae_ (Borowski 1781)
Other Common Names
Humpbacked whale, bunch, hump whale, or hunchbacked whale.
Description
Humpback whales reach a length of 53 feet (16.2 m).
The body is robust, narrowing rapidly on the tail stock. The head is
quite broad and rounded, somewhat like that of the blue whale. The head
ridge characteristic of other balaenopterid species is indistinct and is
replaced in prominence by a string of fleshy "knobs" or protuberances,
many more of which are randomly distributed on the top of the head and
on the lower jaw. There is a distinctive rounded projection near the tip
of the lower jaw. Humpback whales carry many barnacles and whale lice.
The baleen plates are all black with black or olive-black bristles.
The flippers are very long (nearly a third as long as the body), are
scalloped on at least the leading edge, and are nearly all white.
The dorsal fin, located slightly more than two-thirds of the way back on
the back in approximately the same position as that of the fin whale, is
small and varies in size and shape from a small, triangular nubbin to a
more substantial, sharply falcate fin. The dorsal fin frequently
includes a step or hump, which is quite distinct when the animal arches
its back to begin a dive and from which the species derives its common
name.
Humpback whales are basically black in color with a white region of
varying size on the belly, which upon close examination may often be
seen to be crosshatched with thin dark lines; the flippers and the
undersides of the flukes also are white.
Natural History Notes
The blow of humpback whales is from 8 to 10 feet (2.4 to 3.1 m) tall and
has been described as balloon-shaped. It is wide relative to its height.
Feeding humpback whales habitually blow 4-8 times at intervals of 15-30
s after a long dive. In the tropics they habitually blow 2-4 times in
succession when beginning a long dive. In diving, humpback whales throw
the tail flukes high into the air, exposing the sometimes white
undersurface and the rippled rear margin.
Humpback whales often leap clear of the water, raise a flipper, and slap
it against the water, or "lobtail," raising the tail high into the air
and bringing it crashing back to the water in a loud report. Often,
particularly when they are encountered on their tropical breeding
grounds, humpback whales will be found lying on their sides with a long
flipper in the air.
Humpback whales feed on krill and schooling fish.
May Be Confused With
From a distance humpback whales may be confused with any of the other
large balaenopterid (rorqual) whales--blue, fin, sei, or Bryde's.
Although it is highly variable, the dorsal fin most closely resembles
that of the blue whale. However, it is located farther forward on the
back. Humpback whales distinguish themselves from the remainder of the
rorquals by their habit of raising the flukes high into the air when
starting a long dive. (In very shallow water they may not raise the
flukes at all.) The only other rorqual to do so--the blue whale--raises
the flukes slightly or not at all.
Under some conditions humpback whales may be confused with sperm whales
at a distance. When arching the back to begin a dive, both may show a
distinct hump. Both species frequently raise their flukes nearly
vertically when beginning a long dive but differ in several ways. The
flukes of humpback whales show varying amounts of white beneath, are
pointed on the tips, and are distinctly concaved and irregularly rippled
on the rear margin. Those of sperm whales are all dark and more
flattened and even along the rear margin. Further the species can be
distinguished in the following ways:
HUMPBACK WHALE SPERM WHALE
BLOW
Projects upwards from center Projects obliquely forward
of head. Usually blows from left side of snout.
4-8 times (2-4 times in Usually blows many times
tropics) before diving. (20-50 or more) before diving.
HEAD
Raised area around blowholes, Blunted, long, smooth.
knobs on upper surface.
FLUKES
Often white underneath, Smooth, all black on rear
concaved and scalloped on margin.
rear margin, deeply notched.
FLIPPERS
Extremely long (to one-third Short; all black.
of body), white and scalloped
on leading edge.
DORSAL FIN (OR HUMP)
Triangular to falcate fin, Rounded hump, two-thirds
including a step or hump in back on back followed by
front of the dorsal fin; knuckles or crenulations.
smooth.
When they can be examined at close range, humpback whales can be easily
distinguished from all other large whale species with a dorsal fin by
the tuberosities or knobs on the head, by the long white flippers
scalloped on the leading edge, by the small distinctive dorsal fin, and
by their distinctive tail flukes.
Distribution
In the western North Atlantic, humpback whales are widely distributed
from north of Iceland, Disko Bay and west of Greenland, south to
Venezuela and around the tropical islands of the West Indies. They have
been reported from the central and eastern Gulf of Mexico. Summer ranges
extend at least from New England north to the pack ice, and feeding
concentrations may be found in any portion of this region. During
winter, humpback whales migrate southward to the shallow borderlands of
Bermuda, to the Bahamas, and to the West Indies to calve and mate.
Stranded Specimens
The most distinctive features of stranded humpback whales are 1) the
ventral grooves, 14-22 in number, very wide and extending to the navel;
2) the tuberosities of the snout and lower jaw, often the sites of
numerous barnacle colonies; 3) the long flippers (to nearly a third of
the total body length); and 4) the distinctive rounded projection near
the tip of the lower jaw.
If these characteristics are not sufficiently clear, the species may be
identifiable by the characteristics of the baleen plates (Table 2).
[Illustration: Figure 33.--Three views of blowing humpback whales. The
blow of this species is usually less than 10 feet (3.1 m) tall, wider
than it is high, and has been described as balloon-shaped. In the photo
on the top, the wind has already begun to distort the blow. In the photo
on the bottom, two separate columns are visible. All baleen whales have
a bipartite blowhole, and if an observer is directly behind or in front
of either the right whale or the humpback whale under ideal wind
conditions, the blows of these two species may appear as two distinct
spouts. (_Photos from West Indies by H. E. Winn (top and middle) and
from off St. Augustine, Fla. by D. K. Caldwell (bottom)._)]
[Illustration: Figure 34.--Head views of surfacing humpback whales. Note
the rather broad rounded appearance of the top of the head and the small
head ridge, which extends from just in front of the blowholes to near
the tip of the snout. In humpback whales the single central head ridge
characteristic of most balaenopterid species is replaced in prominence
by a series of knobs, some of which are oriented along the same line as
the head ridge. On the animal in the inset photo note also the
characteristic rounded projection below the tip of the lower jaw,
heavily encrusted with barnacles. (_Photos from off St Augustine, Fla.
by D. K. Caldwell and from West Indies by H. E. Winn (inset)._)]
[Illustration: Figure 35.--A mother humpback whale with her newborn calf
off the northern West Indies. Newborn humpback whales are from 12 to 15
feet (3.7 to 4.6 m) long and are colored like the adults. Note the
mother's long white pectoral flipper, clearly visible below the surface.
(_Photo by H. E. Winn._)]
[Illustration: Figure 36.--Humpback whales fall back into the water
after breaching. Note the long flippers, distinctly scalloped on the
leading edge. In the animal on the top, note also the knobs on the head,
visible in profile, the cluster of barnacles located on the rounded
projection below the tip of the lower jaw, and the throat grooves.
(_Photos off Baja California by K. C. Balcomb (top) and off Bermuda by
C. Levenson (bottom)._)]
[Illustration: Figure 37.--Often, particularly on their tropical
breeding grounds, humpback whales lie on their sides at the surface, the
long white pectoral flipper in the air. Note the pronounced scalloping
on the leading edge. (_Photos near West Indies by C. McCann (top) and H.
E. Winn (bottom)._)]
[Illustration: Figure 38.--A series showing the extreme variability in
dorsal fin shapes of humpback whales: (a) a small ridge, (b) slightly
falcate, (c) triangular with a pronounced hump, (d) slightly rounded,
(e) distinctly rounded, and (f) taller and more distinctly falcate.
(_Photos from northern West Indies by H. E. Winn (a, c, e) and C. McCann
(b); off Baja California by K. C. Balcomb (d); and off St. Augustine,
Fla. by D. K. Caldwell (f)._)]
[Illustration: Figure 39.--The humpback whale is the only large whale
species with a distinct dorsal fin which regularly raises its tail
flukes when beginning a long dive. When it does so, the scalloped
trailing edge is often visible (f, g, h). When the diving whale is seen
from the rear, the varying degree of white coloration on the undersides
of the flukes aids in identification (h). (_Photos from northern North
Atlantic by K. C. Balcomb (a-f), from West Indies by C. McCann (g), and
from off Massachusetts by W. A. Watkins (h)._)]
[Illustration: Figure 40.--Detail of the head of a humpback whale
harpooned off Japan. Note the knobs along the top of the head and on the
lower jaw, the rounded projection near the tip of the lower jaw and the
wide ventral grooves. The large mass of tissue to the left of the animal
is its tongue. In the inset photo from a Canadian whaling station, note
the baleen plates, less than 3 feet (0.9 m) long and dark olive green to
black in color. (_Photos by Japanese Whales Research Institute, courtesy
of H. Omura; and J. G. Mead (inset)._)]
[Illustration: Figure 41.--A humpback whale on the deck of a whaling
station in western Canada. All of the species' most distinctive
characteristics are evident in this photograph: (1) the hump and the
dorsal fin; (2) the knobs on the top of the snout; and (3) the long
flipper, with numerous barnacles attached to its leading edge. (_Photo
by G. C. Pike, courtesy of I. MacAskie._)]
[Illustration: Figure 42.--North Atlantic humpback whales have from 14
to 20 broad, widely spaced ventral grooves which extend about to the
navel. Those grooves remain good diagnostic characters for considerable
periods after the animal's death, as evidenced in the freshly killed
specimen from Newfoundland (top) and the badly decomposed stranded
animal from New Jersey (bottom). (_Photos from U.S. National Museum,
courtesy of J. G. Mead._)]
Large Whales Without a Dorsal Fin
BOWHEAD WHALE (B)
_Balaena mysticetus_ Linnaeus 1758
Other Common Names
Greenland whale, Arctic right whale, great polar whale.
Description
Bowhead whales, so-called because of the high-arching jaws and the
resultant contour of the head, reach a maximum length of about 65 feet
(19.8 m). They are extremely robust in form.
When viewed from the side, some swimming bowhead whales show two
characteristic curves to the back: the first extends from the tip of the
snout to just behind the blowholes; the second, encompassing the entire
back, begins just behind the head and extends all the way to the tail.
This character may be present only in adult animals and may be more
pronounced in males. Younger animals, particularly females, are often
stubbier and somewhat barrel-shaped behind the head. In all animals the
back is smooth, lacking even a trace of a dorsal fin.
The head of the bowhead whale is smooth, black, and without the bonnet
and the "rock-garden," the colorful clusters of callosities
characteristic of the black right whale. The blowholes are widely
separated, and the blow emanating from them projects upward as two
separate, distinct spouts. Though two separate columns sometimes may be
visible under windless conditions in the blows of most mysticetes, this
feature is exaggerated and is most characteristic in the bowhead and
right whales.
Bowhead whales are black overall, except for a white "vest" of uneven
coloration on the chin. Within that vest, near the sides of the white
zone, there may be a series of grayish black to black spots, which on
some animals have been likened to a string of beads. The vest is clearly
visible when a surfacing animal is viewed from the front or the side or
when the animals hang vertically in the water with the head on the
surface and the tail flukes down, as they do during periods of early
spring mating.
Natural History Notes
Bowhead whales are usually found singly or in groups of up to three
animals, though fall concentrations may include up to 50 animals.
Bowhead whales sometimes breach, throwing most of the body clear of the
surface and reentering with a resounding splash.
May Be Confused With
Bowhead whales are the only species of large whales found routinely in
Arctic waters. Though other species, including some of the balaenopterid
whales and the right whale, may venture north as far as the southern
limits of the bowhead whale and beyond, they usually do so in the spring
and summer, at a time when the bowhead whales are farther to the north.
Even if they are encountered together, bowhead whales can be
distinguished from all the balaenopterid whales by the absence of a
dorsal fin. Bowhead whales have neither a fin nor the slightest trace of
a dorsal fin or ridge, while all the balaenopterids have a dorsal fin;
and their back is extremely smooth, like that of the right whale. The
bowhead and right whales may be readily distinguished from one another
by the characters listed below for stranded specimens.
Distribution
Though bowhead whales in the western North Atlantic were once
distributed from Arctic waters, from the edge of the ice, south as far
as the Strait of Belle Isle and the St. Lawrence River in such abundance
that they were once referred to simply as "the whale," overwhaling
through the 19th century until as recently as 1911 has severely reduced
their numbers and restricted their modern range. Today in addition to
the more abundant populations of the Bering, Beaufort, and Chukchi seas
and the Sea of Okhotsk, there are populations off eastern Greenland and
in Davis Straits, Baffin Bay, James Bay, and the adjacent waters. Within
these ranges, bowhead whales move southward in front of the advancing
ice floes and may be expected near the southern limits of their range
from September or October through the early spring months. Populations
in the western North Atlantic appear to be increasing slowly.
Stranded Specimens
In addition to the fact that their ranges may overlap only slightly if
at all, bowhead whales may be distinguished from the other right whales
of the western North Atlantic by differences in 1) primary distribution,
2) coloration, 3) lengths of the longest baleen plates, and 4) presence
of callosities.
BOWHEAD WHALE RIGHT WHALE
DISTRIBUTION
Arctic distribution south to Texas, southwest Florida
Davis Straits only during north to Iceland, reaching
winter. northern limits only during
spring and summer.
COLORATION
Black with white "vest" on Sometimes black often
front part of lower jaw, brown or mottled with regions
sometimes containing a of white on chin and
string of black spots; upper belly; patches of yellowish to
jaw lacks the "rock garden." pink callosities and lice
encrusting the snout in what
has been called a "rock
garden."
BALEEN PLATES
325-360 per side; plates to 14 250-390 per side 12
inches (35.6 cm) at base and inches (30.5 cm) at base and
longest plates up to 14 feet up to 7.2 feet (2.2 m) long.
(4.3 m) long. Dark gray or Dirty gray with black fringes;
black with gray fringes; some anterior plates
anterior margin of some partly or completely white.
plates whitish, showing
green iridescence in sunlight.
BONNET AND OTHER CALLOSITIES
Not present. Present.
[Illustration: Figure 43.--Swimming adult bowhead whales, particularly
males, often show two characteristic humps or curves to the back--one on
the head, ending just behind the blowholes, and a larger curve from just
behind the blowholes to near the flukes; the second is accentuated when
the animal humps up to begin a dive. (_Photo by J. Lentfer._)]
[Illustration: Figure 44.--Bowhead whales have no dorsal fin. The back
is smooth and black, though often irregularly spaced white or grayish
scars of unknown origin appear. (_Photos by J. Lentfer._)]
[Illustration: Figure 45.--The unusually shaped head and the broad lower
jaw, colored by a broad white vest, are evident in the swimming bowhead
whale (left) and in both members of the copulating pair (right). Also
evident on the animal to the far left is the "string of black beads"
which is sometimes found in the white region. (_Photos by J. Lentfer._)]
[Illustration: Figure 46.--A harpooned bowhead whale (this one from the
Alaskan population). Note the high arching upper jaw of the species.
Bowhead whales have up to at least 360 plates per side, far more than
the black right whale. The longest plates, located near the middle of
each jaw, are reported to reach 12 feet (3.7 m), or more, in length.
(_Photo by D. R. Patten._)]
RIGHT WHALE (B)
_Eubalaena glacialis_ (Borowski 1781)
Other Common Names
Black right whale, Biscayan right whale, Biscay whale, Nordcaper right
whale.
Description
These right whales reach a length of about 53 feet (16.2 m).
The body is rotund and completely lacking a dorsal fin or a dorsal
ridge. The upper jaw is long, narrow, and highly arched. The lips are
similarly highly arched. The top of the head has a series of bumps or
callosities, the largest one of which is known as the "bonnet," on the
upper surface in front of the blowholes. Yellowish-brown lice and, less
frequently, barnacles grow on the callosities. The color and extent of
the callosities varies from one individual to the next.
The two blowholes are widely separated, resulting in the projection of
the blow upward as two distinct spouts. The body is dark on the back,
sometimes black, more often brown or mottled, usually has a region of
white on the chin and belly, and sometimes has numerous small
grayish-white scars of unknown origin. The baleen plates are up to 7.2
feet (2.2 m) long, very narrow, and variable in color from dark brownish
through dark gray to black in color. When the animals swim, mouth agape
near the surface, the baleen sometimes appears pale yellowish gray in
color.
Natural History Notes
Right whales are usually not wary of boats and may often be approached
very closely.
Like sperm and humpback whales, they usually throw their flukes high
into the air when beginning a long dive.
Right whales feed primarily on copepods.
Historically, this whale was nearly exterminated by hunters, who took
advantage of its slow speed and who knew that its carcass floats, to
harvest these animals for their great yield of whalebone and oil. It was
these characteristics which prompted whalers to dub these animals the
"right" whales to kill (as opposed to the ones that were too fast to
catch and sank when killed).
May Be Confused With
The distinct blow of the right whales and their smooth dark back, devoid
of any traces of a dorsal fin, make it unlikely that the species will be
confused with any other large whales except, perhaps, the bowhead whale.
In the event that the expansion of their ranges again causes these two
species to overlap in distribution, they can be distinguished from one
another by the characteristics discussed on p. 49.
If only the flukes are seen as the animal begins a dive, right and
bowhead whales may be distinguished from the other two species of large
whales exhibiting this behavior, the sperm and the humpback, in this
way: the flukes of right and bowhead whales are broad, pointed on the
tips, greatly concave towards a deep fluke notch, and dark below: those
of the sperm whale are more nearly triangular, while those of the
humpback whale have a jagged irregular or rippled rear margin and are
sometimes variously white below.
Distribution
Like its more northern relative, the bowhead whale, the right whale was
once the object of a widespread and extensive whale fishery, which
reduced the species to critically low numbers.
Though the former range of right whales is not clearly known, the
species is thought to have been abundant from the Davis Straits south at
least to the Carolinas and Bermuda and to have occurred in winter to
Florida and perhaps into the Gulf of Mexico.
Currently, right whales are known from Iceland south to Florida. Animals
move north along the eastern Florida coast between early January and
late March. During this time the species has also been observed in the
Gulf of Mexico off southwestern Florida and Texas. Right whales pass the
coast of New England in fair numbers in spring and continue as far north
as at least Nova Scotia. Right whales are also found off Iceland, though
the migration routes to and from Iceland waters are not known. The
recent apparent increases in numbers at the northern and southern
coastal approaches in New England and Florida, respectively, lend
credibility to the hopeful contention that the species will again
recolonize its historical range.
Stranded Specimens
Stranded right whales can be easily identified by all the characters
discussed on p. 49 and summarized in Table 2.
[Illustration: Figure 47.--The V-shaped blow characteristic of right
whales. Note the two distinct spouts, bushy in appearance. (_Photo off
Cape Cod by W. A. Watkins._)]
[Illustration: Figure 48.--A right whale off the northeastern Florida
coast. Note the robust body, the smooth back, completely lacking a
dorsal fin, and the narrow rostrum, bearing the characteristic yellowish
callosities. Right whales, primarily mothers with calves, show up on the
Florida coast in the early spring on their slow annual migration to the
north. (_Photo by N. Fain, courtesy of Marineland of Florida._)]