The North Pacific Right Whale is a very large, robust
baleen whale. It very closely resembles the other right
whale species. Indeed, without knowing which ocean an
individual came from, the physical similarities are so
extensive that individuals can only be identified to
species by genetic analysis.

The North Pacific Right Whale is easily distinguished in the
wild from other whale species in the North Pacific. Right whales
are very large and can reach 18.3 m (60 ft) in length, substantially
larger than the Gray or Humpback Whales. Right whales are also also
very stout, particularly when compared to the other large baleen whales
such as the Blue and Fin Whales. For 10 North Pacific Right Whales taken
in the 1960s, their girth in front of the flippers was 0.73 of the
total length of the whale.

Facts