Whales of Hermanus
Hermanus in South Africa is also known as the best whale-watching spot in the world.
Southern Right Whales are easily distinguished from the other 2 baleen whales ( Humpback & Bryde’s whales ) by four distinct characteristics:
- Their large, robust bodies
- V-shaped blow,
- Large off-white callosities on their heads
- The lack of a dorsal fin on their broad backs.
"Humpback” refers to the habit of raising and curving its back in preparation for the dive, accentuating the pronounced hump in front of the dorsal fin.
The humpback whale is a baleen whale and a rorqual whale with a rounded body narrowing to a slender tail. The bulky head and jaws have numerous knobs that contain hair follicles and provide sites for barnacles and whale lice.
Humpback Whales are easily distinguished by their wing-like flippers often as long as up to as much as a third of their total body length.
Bryde's whales are named after a Norwegian, John Bryde, who, in 1912, helped construct the first South African whaling factory in the early 1900s.
