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'''Right whales''' are three [[species]] of large [[baleen whale]]s of the [[genus]] ''Eubalaena'': the [[North Atlantic right whale]] (''E. glacialis''), the [[North Pacific right whale]] (''E. japonica'') and the [[Southern right whale]] (''E. australis''). They are classified in the family [[Balaenidae]] with the [[bowhead whale]]. Right whales have rotund bodies with arching [[rostrum (anatomy)|rostrum]]s, V-shaped [[blowhole (anatomy)|blowhole]]s and dark gray or black skin. The most distinguishing feature of a right whale is the rough patches of skin on its head, which appear white due to parasitism by [[whale lice]]. Right whales can grow up to more than {{convert|18|m|ft|abbr=on}} long with a highest-recorded length of {{convert|19.8|m|ft|abbr=on}}.<ref name=Ivashchenko_Clapham2011>{{cite journal|vauthors=Ivashchenko YV, Clapham PJ|year=2011|title=Pushed to the Edge: Soviet Catches of Right Whales in the Eastern North Pacific|journal=Alaska Fisheries Science Center Quarterly Research Reports|issue=Apr–May–June 2011| url=http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/Quarterly/amj2011/divrptsNMML2.htm}}</ref> Right whales are very robust whales, weighing {{convert|100|ST|t LT}} or more. The largest known right whales can attain {{convert|20.7|m|ft|abbr=on}} in length and weigh up to {{convert|135000|kg|lb|abbr=on}}. Their immense bulk makes right whales significantly heavier than other whales of similar or greater length such as the [[humpback whale|humpback]], [[gray whale|gray]], [[sperm whale|sperm]] and even [[fin whale|fin]] whales. In fact, right whales rank only behind the [[blue whale]] in sheer body mass. One (apocryphal) explanation for their name is that whalers identified them as the "right" whale to kill on a hunt due to the plentiful oil and [[baleen]] they could provide.
All three species are [[Animal migration|migratory]], moving seasonally to feed or give birth. The warm equatorial waters form a barrier that isolates the northern and southern species from one another although the southern species, at least, has been known to cross the [[equator]]. In the Northern Hemisphere, right whales tend to avoid open waters and stay close to [[peninsula]]s and bays and on [[continental shelf|continental shelves]], as these areas offer greater shelter and an abundance of their preferred foods. In the Southern Hemisphere, right whales feed far offshore in summer, but a large portion of the population occur in near-shore waters in winter. Right whales feed mainly on [[copepods]] but also consume [[krill]] and [[pteropod]]s. They may forage the surface, underwater or even the ocean bottom. During courtship, males gather into large groups to compete for a single female, suggesting that [[sperm competition]] is an important factor in mating behavior. Although the blue whale is the largest animal on the planet, the [[testes]] of the right whale are actually ten times larger than those of the blue whale<ref name=ADW /> – with each weighing up to {{convert|525|kg|lb|-1}}, they are by far the largest of any animal on Earth.Ń [[Gestation]] tends to last a year, and calves are born at {{convert|1|ST|t LT}} in weight and {{convert|4|-|6|m|ft|abbr=on}} in length. Weaning occurs after eight months.
Right whales were a preferred target for [[whaling|whalers]] because of their docile nature, their slow surface-skimming feeding behaviors, their tendency to stay close to the coast, and their high [[blubber]] content (which makes them float when they are killed, and which produced high yields of [[whale oil]]). Today,Although the [[North Atlantic Ocean|North Atlantic]] and [[North Pacific Ocean|North Pacific]] right whales areno amonglonger theface mostpressure endangeredfrom whalescommercial in the worldwhaling,<ref name=noaa5year>{{citemankind web|title=Northremains Atlanticby rightfar whalethe (''Eubalaenagreatest glacialis'')threat 5-yearto review:these Summary and Evaluation |publisher=[[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]] Fisheries Service |location=Gloucester, MA |date=August 2012 |url=httpspecies://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/pdfs/species/narightwhale_5yearreview.pdf |access-date=9the Decembertwo 2012leading |quote=Thecauses westernof Northdeath Atlanticare populationbeing numberedstruck atby least 361 individuals in 2005ships and at least 396entanglement in 2010fishing (Waring ''et algear.'' 2012).}}</ref> and both species are protected in the United States byToday, the [[Endangered Species Act]]. The North Atlantic right whale has a single surviving breeding population in the western Ocean|North Atlantic,]] and is classed as [[criticallyNorth endangered]].<refPacific name=2017NARWStatus>{{cite journalOcean|author=Pettis,North H.Pacific]] M.|author2=Pace,right R.whales M.are III|author3=Hamilton,among P.the K.|year=2018|title=Northmost Atlanticendangered Rightwhales Whale Consortium 2018 Annual Report Card|journal=Report toin the North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium|pages=2–4|url=https://www.narwc.org/uploads/1/1/6/6/116623219/2018report_cardfinalworld.pdf
|access-date=2019-09-13}}</ref><ref name=NPRWStatus/> The North Pacific right whale population is classed overall as [[endangered]] and has two surviving populations, eastern and western, with the western Pacific population much larger at an estimated 1147 individuals in 2016.<ref name=NPRWStatus>{{cite journal|author=Harcourt, R.|author2=van der Hoop, J.|author3=Kraus, S.|author4=Carroll, E.L.|year=2019|title=Future directions in Eubalaena spp.: comparative research to inform conservation|doi=10.3389/fmars.2018.00530|journal=Front. Mar. Sci.|volume=5|doi-access=free}}</ref> The eastern North Pacific population has fewer than 50 individuals remaining, and this population is considered [[critically endangered]].<ref name="iucn-japonica-EAST">{{cite iucn |author=Cooke, J.G. |author2=Clapham, P.J. |date=2018 |title=''Eubalaena japonica Northeast Pacific subpopulation'' |volume=2018 |page=e.T133706A50385246 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-1.RLTS.T133706A50385246.en |access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref>
==Naming==
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