Right Whale Balaena glacialis Sightings Near Hawaii: A Clue to the Wintering Grounds?

Abstract

Two sightings of the extremely rare North Pacific right whale Balaena glacialis were made during regular surface and aerial observations of the winter assembly of humpback whales Megaptera novaeangliae in Hawaiian waters. On March 25, 1979 a right whale was observed schooling with 8-9 humpback whales. On April 10, 1979 at a location approximately 122 km from the first sighting, a right whale was seen schooling with a single humpback whale. Markings, together with ancillary observations of others, suggest that the two sightings were of the same animal. At the first sighting, the right whale schooled closely with the humpbacks, surfacing and submerging synchronously with the other whales. At the second sighting, the humpback whale dlrected what appeared to be courtship behavior toward the right whale, ~ncluding ventral display, rubbing the right whale with its long pectoral fin, and nudging the flanks and genital area with the head. The right whale ventrally presented on one occasion, but otherwise remained passive a few meters below the surface. The location of the wintering grounds of the North Pacific right whale have long been a mystery. Speculations from whalers' records that Hawaii may have been a wintering ground are strengthened by these current sightings. The possibility that the numerically superior humpback whales may have 'acoustically' displaced the right whales in the Hawaiian breeding areas is discussed.

First high‐ to low‐latitude match of an eastern North Pacific right whale (Eubalaena japonica)

“…One individual NPRW was recorded off Hawaii on 25 March and again on 10 April 1979 (Herman et al 1980, Rowntree et al 1980. The 16 d residence of this particular animal suggested to some (Herman et al 1980) that the Hawaiian Archipelago represents a migration terminus for this species, yet this seems unlikely given the intensive research effort in the area and the extremely small number of NPRW sightings. That Lahaina and other ports in Hawaii were commonly visited by 19th century whaling vessels, with no record of the then-commercially valuable right whales in the area, adds to the belief that Hawaii was never a major migratory destination for this species.…”

“…In addition to the 1996 Maui sighting included here, Townsend (1935) reported right whale sightings about 1,000 nmi north of Maui in May and October. One individual NPRW was recorded off Hawaii on 25 March and again on 10 April 1979 (Herman et al 1980, Rowntree et al 1980). The 16 d residence of this particular animal suggested to some (Herman et al .…”

“…One individual NPRW was recorded off Hawaii on 25 March and again on 10 April 1979 (Herman et al 1980, Rowntree et al 1980). The 16 d residence of this particular animal suggested to some (Herman et al . 1980) that the Hawaiian Archipelago represents a migration terminus for this species, yet this seems unlikely given the intensive research effort in the area and the extremely small number of NPRW sightings.…”

Recent observations of critically endangered North Pacific right whales (Eubalaena japonica) off the west coast of Canada

“…The animal was found amidst an aggregation of about 8 humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae), and appeared to be socializing with them at the surface. Associations with humpbacks have been noted in other sightings in the Gulf of Alaska and Hawaii (Herman et al 1980;Rowntree et al 1980;Waite et al 2003;Wade et al 2011a, b). The following day, BG was joined by JKBF, GME and RMA and the animal was re-located in the same area on Swiftsure Bank.…”

Colour patterns and pigmentation variability on striped dolphin Stenella coeruleoalba in north-western Mediterranean Sea

“…Pigmentation patterns in marine mammals may be very different, even at single species level, and in some cases they are driven to change the formal recognition of presupposed forms into new subspecies (Perrin et al , 1991; Heyning & Perrin, 1994; Perrin, 1997). Often, in cetacean species, individuals belonging to different populations may also show variation in external morphology or colour patterns (Evans et al , 1982; Jefferson, 1988; Perrin et al , 1991; Amano & Miyazaki, 1996; Houck & Jefferson, 1999) and such differences might be an index of gene flow between populations (Herman et al , 1980; Braham & Rice, 1984; Schaeff et al , 1991; Schaeff & Hamilton, 1999). Variability in pigmentation pattern can also be observed among animals belonging to the same population.…”