Wildlife & Railway Art - Frédérique Lucas

• HYBRID DOLPHINS • - Species: Northern right whale dolphin (Lissodelphis borealis) x Common dolphin (Delphinus sp.) - Parentage: unknown, possibly sire x dam - Status in the wild: probable | Status in captivity: X View the entire hybrid dolphin series

On the 21st of October, 2018, a very special dolphin was spotted in Monterey Bay, California. Although part of a larger mixed pod including Risso’s, Pacific white-sided and Common dolphins, it swum most closely with Northern right whale dolphins. But unlike its companions, this animal bore a small dorsal fin two-thirds of the way down its back and was an unusual warm grey colour with lighter accents. It would never be seen again. This brief encounter, and the few photographs that were taken, are all that is known of this putative hybrid. The V-shaped dip beneath the dorsal fin, subtle criss-cross pattern and slender snout indicate a Common dolphin as the most probable other parent. Since the animal swum amongst Northern right whale dolphins, they may be the mother species but this can’t be confirmed. This is the third and final right whale dolphin hybrid currently known.

The photos only show the animal surfacing. Luckily he poked his face out over the waves, but otherwise only the upper 1/3 of the animal is visible. Which means colouration for the pectoral fins, flukes, and the largest part of the belly, flank and peduncle had to be an educated guess. It was a bit of a toss up on how Delphinus-y to make the colouration. It was clear from the photos that no white reached the V-shaped dip so I went for a rather subtle criss-cross pattern but couldn’t resist adding a nice genital stripe. It may all prove to be too distinct. Kate Cumming and Marilia Olio, who both saw this dolphin in person, were kind enough to talk to me about their sighting and give some pointers about the illustration. 

• REFERENCES • - Photographs by Kate Cummings, Blue Ocean Whale Watch  - K. Cumming & M. Olio, personal communication

DOLPHINS OF A DIFFERENT COLOUR 2 Part 1 is here. A small addition to the ‘Dolphins of a different colour‘ series. This time a pair of species that mirror each other across the hemispheres. Watercolour on hot-pressed paper, 14.8 x 21 cm.

• the ‘northern’ southern right whale dolphin • Lissodelphis peronii - Both right whale dolphins posses a most striking black-and-white colouration: but whereas the northern right whale dolphin goes in for mostly black and some white, the southern is mostly white with some black. At least usually. There exist many sightings of oddities: all and partial white individuals, white spots, greys and dappled grey instead of black. Sadly none seem to have been recorded in photographs - none except these all black animals. In New Zealand a group was spotted with no less than four odd dolphin, including one mother-calf pair. Like the dusky dolphin of before these dolphin are melanistic: an exces of melanin is produced, obscuring the normal colouration pattern. Unfortunately due to the poor sighting quality it is unknown whether these dolphins are truly yet black, or more of a deep ebony like the dusky dolphin.

• the ‘southern’ northern right whale dolphin • Lissodelphis borealis - Northern right whale dolphins are a bit more conservative in their strangeness. There is only one anomalous colouration pattern, seen with some regularity all across the species’ range, which is more or less the same in all individuals. Dubbed ‘swirled’, these animals appear to possess some form of leucism whereby the white markings are extended beyond their normal reach. The face and throat in particular are substantially stained, the belly marking reaches higher up the flanks and the pectoral fins are often more light than dark. On some individuals, faint outlines of the regular colouration can still be seen, which I have illustrated here.

Sei whale (Balaenoptera borealis)

This one I actually like, a lot. The greyhound of the ocean (oops not really that’s actually the fin whale) - better known as the sei whale. They get this nickname from their speed: thanks to their immensely strong tails and slim bodies, seis are amongst the fastest of all cetaceans, capable of reaching 50 km/h in short bursts. The name 'sei' itself comes from the Norwegian word for Pollock ('Seje'), a fish whose arrival in Norwegian waters roughly coincides with that of the sei whales. Compared to other rorquals, sei whales are quite different in terms of their movements and distribution. All around the world they are known for their unpredictable nature, sometimes showing up in an area in great numbers, only to disappear and not be seen again for years of even decades. They also have the broadest range of prey of all balaenopterids, feeding on krill, fish and copepods, and are the only whale species to practice both 'lunge feeding' (characteristic of the rorquals) and 'skimming' (normally only found in right whales). They have an exceptional colouration pattern that is all too rarely captured on photo, and often forgotten in illustrations. Which is unfortunate, because it is truly beautiful: besides the obvious countershading, the sei whale carries several backsweeping light strokes on the shoulder, which sharply turn forward to form a very light pair of chevrons that meet on the back. A little bit behind these chevrons the light flanks edge up onto the dark back with a few finger-like protrusions, after which the edge between light and dark more or less evens out. There are also a variable set of 'shadows' behind the flipper, which may take the form of a single dark band or several thinner lines, as shown here. The multiple white circles and 'dents' in the body are scars from cookiecutter sharks and/or lampreys. Just goes to show that the great whales are in fact no less intricate in their markings than the smaller cetaceans :)