SOUTHERN RIGHT WHALE
Southern right whale showing it's penis
Other observations of Southern right whale (Eubalaena australis)
Species with which Southern right whale (Eubalaena australis) interacts
Comments
Not sure
Hi not sure of the weight but 3m long
go to "youtube" and and search for LARGE WHALE PENIS and you will see the video taken of this same one in action
Migrants
While male Southern Rights come back to our shores every year to breed, females only breed every second year - one year they give birth and the next year they mate, with the calf still in tow and being fed.
BIRTHS
some females only mate every 3 to 5 years some have a gap as long as 7 years.
the calf is only with her for the first year.
Migration -
Do females who dont have young and dont want to mate stay in the southern oceans for summer: why bother migrating north?
Is there any sign of site fidelity: do males "defend" the same areas? Do females return to the same areas (birth sites?) to breed?
Migration
The local study of Southern Rights are so limited that not much is learned about the migration patterns. History shows that not all the whales used to go south.. as they were hunted all year on the West coast ( Donkergat, Langebaan ) It now appears that a local pod is re-establishing itself in that area and I do know that a limited amount of research is being done in that area.
I do not think that males defend or even stay in the same area, they tend to move up and down along the coast.
!?
Not being versed with whale penises it is difficult to confirm the identification.
While on the topic: how long is this and how much does it weigh?