On Fri, 7 Aug 1998, John Leonard wrote:
>
> What months of the year do Southern Right Whales arrive off the SA coast, and
> where are good spots for observing them?
>
We have one right here in Port Phillip (i.e. the pond between Melbourne &
Bass Strait for out-of-towners). It was seen around Frankston and other
SE suburbs - apparently by hundreds of viewers, and as close as '10
meters' ('The Age' Wed 5/8). They apparently seek shallower and warmer
(?) waters in winter and calve. I'm not sure if the one in the bay is
likely to calve or not. And I don't know if anyone has determined the sex.
Peter Menkhorst may be able to tell you a thing or two more if anyone is
interested. (He wrote a sensational book on Victorian mammals a couple of
years ago - sorry, I don't have one handy for more details).
Peter is on Birding-Aus so it should be easy to find his email address if
you want to ask him more questions - I don't like giving out addresses etc
to the whole list.
Maybe the whale will visit our side of the bay this weekend. We've had
dolphins very recently - right up into Limeburners Lagoon (Corio Bay).
Cheers
Russell Woodford
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