Pygmy right whale

How it lives

Very little is known about its life. It is usually seen alone or in pairs, and sometimes in larger groups: about 80 were reported southwest of Cape Leeuwin in 1992, and more than 100 off Portland, Victoria, in 2007. Gestation, nursing time and lifespan are unknown. It swims slowly, with a small, indistinct blow. Calves are about 2 m long at birth and are thought to be weaned at about 5 months.

Where it goes

There is no known migration. Chemical clues in baleen suggest pygmy right whales stay in mid-latitude waters all year, between the southern Australian coast and the Subtropical Convergence, and do not go to Antarctic waters. Their yearly movements are still unknown. In Australia, records span about 32 to 47 degrees south, with many around Bass Strait, south-eastern Tasmania and South Australia.

We only draw a journey on the map when scientists have tracked it or clearly documented it. For this animal we have not found one yet.

Populations

The IUCN (assessed 2018) rates it Least Concern, although there is no global population estimate. Until 2008, fewer than 25 sightings at sea had been made. In Australia, about two to three strandings are recorded each year in South Australia and Tasmania, and some researchers suggest adults may be more numerous in southern waters than strandings show. It has never been hunted commercially. Entanglement in drift nets and in lost netting is a concern, and warming seas are an indirect risk. It is a listed migratory species under Australian law and is on CMS Appendix II.