Bryde's or Tropical Whale

(Balaenoptera edeni)

Length: 14 metres (46 feet) Lifespan around 70 years.

Bryde's Whale is more commonly known as the Tropical Whale. The body is slender and the head is typically Rorqual with a broad, flat rostrum. In addition to the median ridge characteristic the Tropical Whale has 2 extra ridges, one along each side. These begin as shallow depressions level with the blowhole and run forward to the tip of the snout.

The fin is a little more than one-third of the way forward from the tail, but it is more pointed than the Sei fin, and often notched or even frayed on its curved edge. The flippers are slender and pointed, about 10% of its total body length.

The Tropical Whale uses a combination of techniques when feeding, sometimes rising up and gulping at a shoal of fish, and sometimes making horizontal sweeps near the surface.

Little is known about the behaviour of this whale. They seem to associate in loosely-knit groups of 5 or 6, probably mature after about 5 years, and mate and breed all year round. Tropical Whales are found near the shore in most tropical and subtropical waters.