Wildlife & Railway Art - Frédérique Lucas

A Rally of Right Whales

Seems another month has just flown by. I’ve been so busy with the trains, I’ve hardly painted at all this year. Things are coming to a close though so I really hope things will calm down a bit soon. I miss painting! I’ve very slowly started work on another “colour anomalies in x” poster, and luckily I still have last year’s commissions to upload.

Here a trio of right whales - or actually a duo, pygmy right whales are in quite a different family. Some believe they belong to the Cetotheriidae, an ancient lineage of baleen whales previously thought to be extinct. Others dispute this and say they are the sole member of the Neobalaenidae, a sister family. I highly recommend checking out their skeleton because they are unlike any other cetacean. They have a comparatively huge ribcage with almost plate-like ribs.

The true right whales count three in number: two northern species - one for each ocean - and a single southern one. All species have varying white markings on their ventral side. Southern animals can have very large swatches of white, grey patches, or even be white or grey all over, but on average they look quite like their northern counterparts. Their heads have raised patches of rough skin (present at birth) which are infested by barnacles and whale lice turning them yellow. The shape and placement of these callosities are unique and can be used to identify individuals.

Southern right whales also have a fun hobby: sailing. Occasionally, when the wind is right, they’ll stick their huge flukes up in the air and “sail” around for a bit. Apparently great fun, because once they’ve gone a little ways the whales often swim back to where they came from, to have another go.