Matariki whale: All you need to know about the ocean giant gracing Wellington Harbour
Saturday, 7 July 2018
It was meant to be a day for fireworks to dazzle, instead the sight of a rare whale in Te Whanganui-a-Tara has captivated Wellingtonians on Matariki.
The rare southern right whale, also known as tohorā, was seen playing in Wellington Harbour on Wednesday and has decided to stick around, captivating locals with its presence.
Acting Wellington Mayor Jill Day postponed the council's Matariki fireworks display after taking advice from the Department of Conservation (DOC) and mana whenua.
'The advice we've received is that the noise from the fireworks is unlikely to cause harm to the whale but that it could cause it to act unpredictably if it is in the vicinity,' Day said.
**READ MORE:
* Whale continues to star in Wellington, but won't get to see Matariki fireworks
* Wellington's Matariki fireworks may be postponed because of visiting whale
* Rare southern right whale puts on a show in Wellington Harbour
Nadine Bott, from the Department of Conservation (DOC), said right whales were spotted in Wellington Harbour only about once every two years. They were usually seen in the winter months.
The whales were hunted to near extinction in the 18th century, but sightings are slowly starting to increase, Bott said.
There were two right whale populations in New Zealand – one in the sub-antarctic Auckland Islands and another that travelled along the coast and stuck closer to the mainland.
Whale sightings were typically seen about once a year in Wellington Harbour, Bott said.
Bott suspected it was a male from its behaviour - breaching and slapping its tail to make more noise to attract other whales or a mate.
This was the time of year the whale should be breeding, but it could be struggling to find another whale, she said.
SOUTHERN RIGHT WHALE
Tohorā are baleen whales, and one of three species classified as right whales. Approximately 10,000 are spread throughout the southern part of the Southern Hemisphere.
They are typically black in colour, but can have irregular white patches, and their flippers are large and paddle-shaped, according to DOC.
They are a native migrant to New Zealand and are the only large baleen whales that can be seen from the beach. Tohorā are slow swimmers, but are very acrobatic, and also inquisitive.
During the breeding season in winter and spring, they are mostly found in the waters around the subantarctic Auckland and Campbell Islands, but there are occasional sightings around mainland New Zealand.
These whales can come very close to shore, and they tend to form groups at feeding grounds, despite many animals typically being solitary or part of a very small group.
They feed on planktonic crustaceans such as copepods and forage using a technique known as skim feeding, where they open their mouths and slowly swim through large concentrations of prey.
As water enters their mouth, prey is sieved from the water and becomes trapped in their fine baleen plates.
They enjoy mating in warm waters in winter and gestation lasts about 11 months before weaning for another year.
Females are sexually mature at around eight years old with calving generally occurring regularly every three years.
Killer whales may occasionally kill tohorā, they are known to form hunting packs to take down larger whales but the success rate and frequency of this is largely unknown - other potential predators are large sharks.
Predation is likely to affect calves more than adults. It is possible that such attacks were one of the pressures leading to the evolution of right whales' use of shallow coastal habitats for calving.
A WHALE OF A TIME
Aotearoa is blessed with places to watch whales by - our waters are the fourth largest marine territory in the world with a whale migration route going straight through them.
Check out these great locations for whale watching.
Kaikōura
It's the only place on Earth where you can see giant sperm whales on tour all year round.
Hauraki Gulf
Orcas and dolphins are known to be regular visitors into the Auckland harbour, making the Hauraki Gulf a great place to catch a glimpse.
Bay of Islands
Whales, and their whale shark cousins, are frequent visitors to this beautiful spot of New Zealand - most often seen between May and July.
Whakatāne
A cruise around the active volcano on White Island and the nearby Whale Island can be awash with wildlife encounters - particularly whales and dolphins.
Marlborough Sounds
The water between our two islands has its fair share of marine mammals - most likely during June and July when whales migrate through the Cook Strait.