#sittang

[namu-the-orca]

Bryde's whale - 2026 - Sealife

Why the long face? Probably because they are one of my least favourite species to draw and I'm not afraid to admit it... Nothing to the fault of the beautiful Bryde's whale of course, but exclusively my own shortcoming. Even though I am usually delighted to paint a Balaenopterid (despite those ventral pleats) Bryde's whales have somehow always vexed me. The first one I painted looked absolutely atrocious. With every new iteration it became a bit better, but even this last version somehow feels not quite right. Still, it is a big improvement over the last one so I am quite happy with it. Especially their pretty face!

Their bodies are also covered in delicate markings; like the Sei whale they are one of the most finely painted baleen whales. Those beautiful markings differ from individual to individual though, making it quite difficult to settle on a set of markings for "my" whale! In the end I think I struck a pretty nice balance. Until I paint them again, of course ;-)

[namu-the-orca]

Bryde’s whale (Balaenoptera brydei/edeni)

Or perhaps I should write Bryde's whaleS, because the Bryde's whale complex is a taxonomic stew to say the least. First described in 1878 as Balaenoptera edeni, based on a type specimen from Burma, in 1913 another new species was described, based on about a dozen or so odd 'Sei whales' from Norway. This second species was called Balaenoptera brydei, having been named after Johan Bryde (which is strangely pronounced 'Brewde'). Then in 1950 a Dutch scientist compared specimens from both species with a third individual stranded on Pulu Sugi Island, and synonymised the two species into a single one: Balaenoptera brydei.

Today however the two are often seen as separate again, with the Bryde's whale (B. brydei) being the larger, cosmopolitan species, and the Sittang or Eden's whale (B. edeni) being the smaller form that may be restricted to the Indo-pacific. However the mysteries do not end there. Of course in 2003 Omura's whale has been described as a species separate from B. brydei, there appears to be a pygmy form off the coast of South Africa, and the Indo-Pacific possibly houses another kind of Bryde's whale which differs in skull morphology. 

Whatever their name though, they are certainly a pretty species. Diagnostic are the three rostral ridges, instead of the more usual single one. They are also exquisitely marked with several chevrons on their shoulder and sides, and flipper shadows like most of the Balaenopterids. While some have more faded facial patterns, there's also Bryde's whales out there with a very clear mask, which is what I've decided to showcase here. And his peduncle looks like the surface of the moon due to cookiecutter shark bites - one of the disadvantages of dwelling in warm waters for most of your life.

Let me end by saying that I really do not like this illustration. For some reason it just looks fake. I think that’s mostly due to the shading (I made this one on a different monitor than the others), but the anatomy is also definitely off. Ah well, at least it’ll make for a nice comparison picture when I illustrate this species again in the future.