The Whales
Kaikoura is New Zealand's world famous whale watching destination. Sperm Whales can be seen here year-round while 7 other whale species visit regularly.
Humpback Whale
Weight 40 tonnes.
Length 15m.
Can live for over 50 years.
A species of baleen whale that migrates from the Antarctic to the tropics to mate and give birth in winter. Humpback Whales tend to feed within 50m of the water's surface, taking krill and shoaling fish.
They are frequently seen in Kaikoura during winter months where they sometimes perform spectacular displays of spyhopping, breaching, lobtailing and flipper slapping. The tendency for Humpbacks to come very close to shore means they can become tangled in craypot lines. In 2003, a local Kaikoura fisherman, Tom Smith, was accidentally killed while trying to free a trapped Humpback Whale in South Bay.
The common name 'humpback' describes the method of diving and swimming that exposes the great humped back and small dorsal fin. The scientific name Megaptera novaeangliae means 'big-winged New Englander'. The 'big wings' refer to the Humpback's huge flippers that can be one third of the total body length. The name 'New Englander' comes from that region of north-east America where contact with Humpback Whales first began through commercial whaling.
Between 1900 and 1940, over 100,000 Humpbacks were taken in the Southern Hemisphere. 95 percent of the population was eliminated. They were the mainstays of the Australian and New Zealand whaling industries until the late 1960s where the Humpback's slow speed and preference for coastal waters made them an easy whale to catch. By 1966 Humpbacks received full protection from commercial whaling but the Japanese continue to lobby the International Whaling Commission to lift the ban. Humpback Whales also face threats from entanglement in shark nets and fishing gear, collisions with ships, oceanic noise pollution and the dumping of waste at sea.
Did you know?
Humpback Whales have complex songs that are a language unique to specific populations.
Giant Sperm Whale
Length: 18.5 metres.
Weight: 57 tonnes.
Lives for over 60 years.
Giant Sperm Whales are the biggest of the toothed whales and the world's largest predator. They are equivalent in size to four elephants.
This deep-diving whale (up to 3 km) may stay submerged for over two hours while hunting prey such as the Giant Squid. Many of Kaikoura's Sperm Whales wear battle scars from close encounters with this monster of the deep.
Sperm Whales have the largest head, proportionally, of any animal. This giant head contains a fibrous tank full of white waxy oil early whalers thought was sperm. It is believed the oil tank amplifies the whales powerful acoustic clicks used for echolocation and hunting.
Kaikoura is one of the few places in the world where Sperm Whales can be seen year-round and close to shore. They congregate here because the 3km deep Kaikoura Canyon runs right up against the coast creating a rare system of sea currents that sustain an incredibly rich marine food chain. Sperm Whales are at the top of this food chain and the abundance of fish ensures they make the waters of Kaikoura their home.
Download SPERM WHALE Facesheet (PDF)
Blue Whale
Weight 200 tonnes (181,000kg)
Length over 33m.
Lives for 70 years.
Blue Whales are the largest, heaviest and loudest animal that has ever lived on Earth. They can be as long as a Boeing 737 and six times as heavy. Their heart is the size of a small car and their tongue as big as an African Bull elephant.
The whistle emitted by a Blue Whale is so loud it can be heard underwater across entire oceans. The Blue Whale blow is over 9 metres high and so large it forms a cloud that floats above the sea long after the whale has dived. A single Blue Whale needs to eat as much as 4.5 tons of krill a day to fuel their massive bodies, filtering them from the water with 400 pairs of baleen plates and feeding around the clock. The name 'Blue Whale' comes from their startling electric blue skin pigmentation that gives off a spectacular neon glow under water.
Once numbering around 225,000, Blue Whales have been hunted to near extinction. In the 1930-31 whaling season alone 30,000 Blue Whales were killed, mostly by British and Norwegian whalers. Less than 2,000 remain in the Southern Hemisphere today. They have been protected since 1965. Blue Whales are a member of the Fin and Sei whale family. The endangered Sei Whale is still killed by Japanese whalers. All three whales are seasonal visitors to Kaikoura.
Did you know
The 180-decibel whistle emitted by a Blue Whale is greater than the sound of a commercial jet taking off.
Minke Whale
Length 10m.
A small inquisitive baleen whale still killed in large numbers by Japanese whaling vessels. An occasional visitor to Kaikoura.
Pygmy Sperm Whale
At 3.4m and 400kg, Pygmy Sperm Whales are miniature versions of Giant Sperm Whales. They have the same large bulbous head containing spermaceti oil and a short narrow mouth with no teeth on the upper jaw. They eat small fish, deep-sea shrimps and cuttlefish.
When startled, the Pygmy Sperm Whale emits a dense cloud of reddish-brown intestinal fluid that acts as a decoy much like the ink of a squid. Small numbers of Pygmy Sperm Whales continue to be killed by Japanese and Indonesian whalers.
Southern Right Whale
Length 17m.
Weight 80 tonnes.
A baleen whale now very rare but still a visitor to Kaikoura. Hunted to near extinction for their plentiful oil and tendency to float once harpooned. This led them to become known as the 'right' whale to kill.
Beaked Whale
Length 7m.
These slender whales are occasional visitors to Kaikoura. Adult male beaked whales grow large curved tusks that protrude from the lower jaw. Strangely, these tusks eventually grow so long they prevent the whale from fully opening its mouth to eat.
