Down the Hatch

Bryde's whale gulping down fish in Cape Verde.
I took these photos of the 37 - 49ft giant of the ocean on holiday in Antigua.The Bryde’s whale (pronounced “broo-dess”), is named after Johan Bryde who helped build the first whaling factory in Durban, South Africa in 1909. The Bryde’s whale is the only baleen whale species that lives all year-round in warmer waters near the equator. In addition to the “ordinary” Bryde’s whale, with a worldwide distribution in the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic oceans, one or more smaller forms which tend to be more coastal in distribution have also been described. For the moment, the taxonomic status of the smaller forms is unclear and there may be several additional species and-or subspecies however currently two are recognised; B. e. brydei – offshore Bryde’s whale, B. e. edeni – Eden’s whale.
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