Bryde’s whale©M.Dewynter/CARIMAM

Bryde’s whale (Balaenoptera edeni)©P.Lenrume/Biotope

• TAXONOMY
  Class : Mammalia
  Order : Cetartiodactyla
  Infraorder : Cetacea
  Parvorder : Mysticeti
  Family : Balaenopteridae
  Common names :
  English : Bryde’s whale
  Spanish : Ballena de Bryde
  French : Rorqual de Bryde
   

• MORPHOLOGY AND BEHAVIOR
  Morphology : slender body. Pointed head with three parallel, conspicuous longitudinal ridges on head, before blowholes. Tall, falcate dorsal fin.
  Color and patterns : Uniformly dark gray body with pale to pink belly, some pale botches or mottling.
  Size : 13-16.5m.
  Group size : mostly single individuals or mother-calf pairs but aggregations of 10-20 individuals can be observed on feeding sites.
  Specific behavior : often associated with seabirds and tunas when feeding.
  Feeding : it seems to feed essentially from the surface to few hundred meters, on small pelagic fish.
   

• DISTRIBUTION
  Global distribution : they occur in tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate waters around the world. They live in all oceans from 40° south to 40° north. Unlike most large whales, most Bryde’s whale populations do not seem to undertake a systematic north-south migration.
  Currently, there are two subspecies of Bryde’s whales. Eden’s whale (Balaenoptera edeni edeni) is a smaller form found in the Indian and western Pacific oceans, primarily in coastal waters. The Bryde’s whale (Balaenoptera edeni brydei) is a usually larger form, found primarily in pelagic waters. B.e. brydei is the form that has been identified in the Caribbean, notably from molecular methods and morphological analysis of four stranded Bryde’s whales in Aruban waters. Detailed taxonomic work of the Bryde’s whale group is ongoing, and elevating existing subspecies to species level is proposed by scientists.
  Sightings in the Wider Caribbean region : It can be observed throughout the region, but it seems to be rare around the Caribbean Island arc and more frequent on the continental slopes, in waters with depths between 100 to 1000 meters.
  In the Gulf of Mexico, recent genetic, morphological and acoustic studies have shown that the species previously identified as a Bryde’s whale was in fact a new species of Balaenoptera. It is observed exclusively in the northeast Gulf and is classified as "Endangered" in the American Endangered Species Act. Visual observation alone does not allow to differentiate the two species.

• CONSERVATION
  Threats recorded in the Wider Caribbean region : entanglements in Fish Aggregating Devices (FADs) and in ghost fishing gears and collision with large vessels.
  Global IUCN status : LC (Least Concern)
  SPAW status : The Bryde’s whale is classified in Annex II of the SPAW Protocol since 1991.

Sources  :
International Whaling Commission
De Boer, M. N. (2015). Cetaceans observed in Suriname and adjacent waters. Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals, 10(1), 2.
IUCN (2021) The IUCN redlist of threatened species.
IUCN and Zoological Society of London (2012) National Red Lists
Jefferson T.A., Webber M.A., Pitman R.L. (2015) Marine mammals of the world : a comprehensive guide to their identification. Academic Press.
Kaschner, K., Reeves, R. (2011) LifeWeb species distribution factsheets.
NOOA (2021) Species fact sheets - Marine mammals.
Luksenburg, J.A., Henriquez, A., Sangster, G. (2015) Molecular and morphological evidence for the subspecific identity of Bryde’s whales in the southern Caribbean. Marine mammal Science, 31(4):1568-1579.
Pusineri, C., Bordin, A., Martinez, L. et al. (In press). Cetacean community off French Guiana. Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals.
Rosel, PE, Wilcox, LA, Yamada, TK, Mullin KD (2021) A new baleen whale (Balaenoptera) from the Gulf of Mexico, with a review of its geographic distribution. Marine Mammal Science, 2021 : 1-34. DOI : 10.1111/mms.12776.
Savouré-Soubelet A., Aulagnier S., Haffner P., et al. (coord.) (2016) Atlas des mammifères sauvages de France volume 1 : Mammifères marins. Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, Paris ; IRD, Marseille.
Society for marine mammalogy-Species fact sheets
SPAW-RAC. (2020). Implementation of the Action Plan for Marine Mammals in the Wider Caribbean Region : A Scientific and Technical Analysis. Authored by Vail, C. and Borobia, M. UNEP, SPAW-RAC.
Ward, N., Bogomolni, A., Potter, C. (2013) A stranding guide to marine mammals of the Wider Caribbean region : An introduction field for stranding responders. Gecko Production Inc. ISBN : 978-1-891694-00-4.