Facts about Bryde's whales

Scientific name:	Balaenoptera brydei
Family:	Balaenopteridae
Range:	Warmer Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans
Habitat:	Oceanic waters
Status:	Locally common
Population:	Less than 100,000
Diet:	Schooling fish and sometimes krill and copepods
Length:	12-15m, females larger than males
Weight:	13-22 tons

Flukes:	Commonly arches its tail stock before diving. Flukes are elongate with a notch in the middle. Does not raise flukes.
Dorsal fin:	Prominent dorsal fin is set about three-quarters back along the body and has a very arched trailing edge
Flippers:	Slender and comparatively small, smokey grey above and below
Shape of head:	Broad and flattened, narrow in profile. The top of the head has 3 parallel ridges (other rorqual whales have 1)
Body:	Streamlined body is long, back and flanks are smokey grey. Underside ranges from white or pale yellow on throat to blue-grey or creamy grey near vent
Blow:	Tall, narrow blow up to 4m high
Group size:	Found singly, in pairs or in small pods of up to 7. As many as 30 may gather on good feeding grounds
Behaviour:	An erratic swimmer, at the surface its sudden changes in direction are like those of a large dolphin. Can be very acrobatic, breaching near vertically several times in a row. When undisturbed, dives of 1-8 minutes are often followed by 4-7 blows