by: Dagmar Fertl
The word caperea is Latin for "to wrinkle" which refers to the earbone in this species. Marginata is the Latin word for "enclose with a border" which refers to the dark border observed on the baleen of this species.
This species shares characteristics of the rorquals and the right whales. This is the only right whale with a dorsal fin. It is set two-thirds the way down the back. This animal is streamlined and has a smaller head than other right whales. The pygmy right whale has an arched jawline, and the upper jaw curves downward toward the tip. There are two shallow throat creases. Its flippers are slender and small with rounded tips.
This species reaches a maximum length of approximately 6.5 m with weights of at least 3200 kg.
There are records of this animal off of South Africa. This species does not appear to go south of the Antarctic Convergence at about 60 degrees south, nor does it travel north of 30 degrees south.
There is less known about this species than any other baleen whale species. Pygmy right whales are typically seen in singles or pairs and feed on copepods.
Some individuals are caught accidentally in nets off South Africa.
Insufficiently known.
Baker, A.N. 1985. Pygmy right whale, Caperea marginata (Gray 1846). In: S.H. Ridgway and R.J. Harrison (eds.). Handbook of Marine Mammals, vol.3: The Sirenians and Baleen Whales. Academic Press, London. Pp. 345-354.
Klinowska, M. 1991. Dolphins, porpoises and whales of the world: the IUCN Red Data Book. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland.
Jefferson, T.A., Leatherwood, S. and M.A. Webber. 1994. FAO Species Identification Guide, Marine Mammals of the World. FAO of the United Nations, Rome.
Leatherwood, S. and R.R. Reeves (1983) The Sierra Club Handbook of Whales and Dolphins. Sierra Club Books, San Fransisco.
Threatened Fauna of Australia Home Page
URL for this page: http://csiwhalesalive.org/csipygmyright.html