Courting pair of southern right whales underwater, Eubalaena australis

Courting pair of southern right whales underwater, Eubalaena australis. While the posture in this photo isn't quite mating, it is a courting behavior that often precedes mating. The male is below, upside down and trying to access the female belly-to-belly. However, the female does not want to mate, so she has positioned herself upside down at the surface so that the males in the courting group cannot reach her genital slit. Puerto Piramides, Chubut, Argentina, Eubalaena australis, natural history stock photograph, photo id 38446
Courting pair of southern right whales underwater, Eubalaena australis. While the posture in this photo isn't quite mating, it is a courting behavior that often precedes mating. The male is below, upside down and trying to access the female belly-to-belly. However, the female does not want to mate, so she has positioned herself upside down at the surface so that the males in the courting group cannot reach her genital slit. Puerto Piramides, Chubut, Argentina

This image is featured in: Courtship and Mating Groups Among Southern Right Whales

Species: Southern Right Whale, Eubalaena australis
Location: Puerto Piramides, Chubut, Argentina
Image ID: 38446
Format: Digital 9:16
Keywords: animal, animalia, argentina, artiodactyla, atlantic, balaenidae, ballena, cetacea, cetacean, chordata, chubut, eubalaena australis, golfo nuevo, mammal, mammalia, marine mammal, patagonia, peninsula valdes, puerto piramides, right whale, southern right whale, underwater, valdes peninsula, whale
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