Southern Right Whale

Annually – from roughly June to December – Hermanus is known as a mecca for whale watching, with the Southern Right whales choosing the area as home and their playground. The Southern Right whales migrate from their icy feeding grounds off Antarctica to warmer climates, reaching South Africa around late May/June. The coastal waters teem with the giant animals, mating, calving and rearing their young – and giving whale enthusiasts spectacular displays of raw power and elegant water acrobatics.

The Southern Right whales migrate to our area to mate and give birth, choosing the sheltered sandy bays to calve. They are usually found in these shallow coastal waters because of the haven offered and the temperature of the water is suitable to their body mass.

You can easily identify these giants of the deep by the callosities on their heads, paddle-like flippers and broad backs without a dorsal fin.