Pygmy Right Whale

Pygmy (aka Pyg, aka Pygmy Right Whale)

Male / smallest baleen whale / 6 meters long (19.5 ft) / 4.4 tons (1.95 chevy silverados) / population unknown

Pygmy right whale the species:

Typical baleen whales are absolutely enormous, but this baleen whale is relatively small.  They're found only in the southern hemisphere and typically they spotted in the coastal waters of southern Africa or the south side of Australia.  This baleen typically eats copepods, but will also eat krill.  They're small but solidly built.  They have a relatively smaller head size than other baleen whales, but they have the hardest actual baleen (filtering teeth) and extra ribs that offer added protection.  Typically, whales will swim mostly with the use of their flukes, but a pygmy right was spotted using it's whole body to thrust itself through the water.  It's is believed that they're strong swimmers and probably fast as well.  There's little data out there about the pygmy right whale and a lot of what is known about them comes from studying the pygmy rights that are beached up onto the shores rather than behavior observed in the wild.  The lungs and heart are somewhat small which would suggest that this cetacean is not a deep diver.

Pygmy the character:  

Pyg is worried about his population becoming extinct and so he's decided to join The Pod to find an answer to his species woes.  He's on the small side of the group but he's got a can-do attitude.