Southern right whale diving in the Golfo Nuevo near the Valdes Peninsula, Argentina

© Gabriel Rojo/Minden Picture

Giants of the Southern Ocean. Southern right whale

The end of September in the Southern Hemisphere means warm weather and the nearing of summer. For southern right whales like this one off the coast of Argentina, this means a transit southward toward Antarctica and rich feeding grounds. Southern right whales are subspecies of right whales that inhabit the oceans below the equator. They feed on krill at the surface of the water, holding their mouths open as they swim through the clouds of the tiny crustaceans.