The Southern Right Whale appears only in the Southern Hemisphere and is the most common whale to be seen in South African waters, while thw Northern Right Whale appears only in the Northern Hemisphere
Right whales were originally named by whalers because they were the "right" whales to catch. They were easy to approach, lived close to shore, floated when they were dead, and provided large quantities of valuable oil, meat, and whalebone. Both species came very close to extinction, but they have been protected since 1937.

Common Behavioral Characteristics.

Breaching.
Right Whales often breach sometimes upto to ten times or more in a row. They launch themselves into the air head-first and fall back into the water with a splash that can be heard 1 km away or more. This is known as "breaching", and is undoubtedly the most spectacular surface activity.
Larger whales normally propel at least two-thirds of their bodies into the air and their breaches end in a belly flop, or they turn to one side and onto their backs.
Breaching is still something of a mystery, although there are numerous possible explanations: it may be a courtship display, a form of signalling, a way to herd fish or dislodge parasites, a show of strength or a challenge, or it could simply be for fun.

Head Slaps.
Resembles breaching but only involves lifting only the head and top part of the body out of the water before pounding them onto the surface.

Fluking.
When some whales and dolphins embark on a deep dive they lift their tails into the air to help them thrust their bodies into a more steeply angled descent to deeper waters. This is called "fluking."
There are basically two kinds of fluking " a fluke up dive", when the flukes are brought high into the air, so that the undersides are visible, or the "fluke down dive", when the flukes are brought clear of the water but remain turned down, hiding the undersides from view.

Sailing.
Southern Right Whales sometimes raise their flukes at right angles to the wind and use them as sails, allowing themselves to be blown along the water. This appears to be a form of play, because they will often swim back to the starting point and do it again.