Bryde’s Whale (Balaenoptera brydei) in False Bay (South Africa)

After twice seeing Bryde’s Whale (Balaenoptera brydei / Balaenoptera edeni brydei) in False Bay in Feb 2019 I posted (April 2019) a mammal-watching report on searching for these whales from the R44 coastal road between Gordon’s Bay and Rooiels. They are generally elusive but I have now seen them on about 15 occasions and updated the post (here at pacapix.com). The taxonomy summary is also updated (further to Penry et al, 2018). Penry et al (2018) estimate that the population of the inshore form of B. brydei is only a few hundred animals. Notes on the entanglement deaths are in Appendix 2. The last death was in September 2020; there have been 4 found dead in False Bay in the last 4 years. Paul Carter