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First southern right whale spotted off Sydney

Media release: 25 July 2016

The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) has welcomed the arrival of southern right whales off the NSW coast again this year after one was spotted entering Botany Bay today just off the coast of Sydney.

NPWS Wildlife Management Officer Geoff Ross said it's great to see southern right whales in NSW waters again and it is a timely reminder that we share our harbours, bays and oceans with these majestic animals.

"Every year we are seeing more southern right and humpback whales pass the NSW coast as their populations recover and they are regularly sheltering in our estuaries, harbours and major waterways, even busy Sydney Harbour," Mr Ross said.

"The recent sightings of the southern right is very exciting as it means that the species is slowly returning to their traditional places in NSW bays and inlets. These sheltered bays and inlets were traditional calving areas for right whales and we are seeing them return home after whaling pushed them to the brink of extinction.

"With infrastructure, people and large numbers of commercial and recreational vessels making the formerly quiet bays and inlets of the NSW coast now very busy, we need remind people to give these whales space and share the water. Southern rights love the shallow water, are hard to see and they travel slowly making them more vulnerable to vessel strike and entanglement.

"For the safety of the whales and the boating community, Masters should ensure their vessels stay 100m from a whale or 300m when a calf is present or the vessel is a jet ski.

"If you're swimming, diving or just enjoying the water on your own or with friends and you spot a whale, then you must stay at least 30m from the whale in any direction.

"While the humpback whale population is recovering strongly, with an estimated 24,000 individuals in the wild, sightings of the southern right whales close to shore is significant as their numbers are still very low especially in NSW waters where aerial surveys over the past four years have counted only 17 right whales."

"We can individually identify right whales by the shape and pattern of their callosities (hard growths on their head) so NPWS is working with university researchers to obtain photographs of the whales using remotely piloted aircraft or UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles).

"These photos will then be added to the Australasian Right Whales Photo Identification Catalogue (ARWPIC) providing wildlife managers with important information," Mr Ross said.

For more information on whales visit the NPWS Wild about Whales website and download the App to record your sightings. Alternatively visit http://www.orrca.org.au/

Whale Facts

  • For all vessels, a distance of between 100m and 300m is established as the 'caution zone'. In this zone, vessels must travel at a constant slow speed and leave a negligible wake. It's also important to assess the direction that the whales are travelling in, and then plan the best course of action.
  • These animals can be unpredictable in their behaviour so NPWS remind other UAV users to maintain aircraft approach distances. If you're flying a UAV or a plane, or helicopter and you spot a whale, then you must be at a height no lower than 300 metres; within a horizontal radius of 300m for aircraft, and for helicopters, gyrocopters and UAVs, the distance increases to 500m.
  • If you see a stranded, entangled or sick whale in distress, please report it immediately to the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service or ORRCA.
  • The southern right whale is a baleen whale and one of three species classified as right whales. This species is easily distinguished from others because of their broad back without a dorsal fin, wide pectoral fins, a long arching mouth that begins above the eye and small rough patches of skin (or callosities) on its large head. Its two separate blow holes produce a distinguishing V-shaped blow.
  • Land-based whaling in Australia initially concentrated on southern right whales. They get their name because they were the 'right' whale to catch: they were slow-swimming, floated when dead, and provided large amounts of valuable products - particularly oil for illumination and lubrication.
  • Commercial whaling began in Australia in 1820, taking around 75% of the southern right whale population between 1835 and 1845, when the industry collapsed. It took another 90 years before they were officially protected.
  • An estimated 12,000 southern right whales are spread throughout the southern hemisphere, compared to an original population before whaling of more than 100,000. However, their numbers are growing at around 7% each year.

Contact: Gabrielle Last

Page last updated: 25 July 2016