noun
pygmy right whale
A small baleen whale species (Caperea marginata) found in the Southern Hemisphere. The Japanese name is usually written in katakana.
コセミクジラは南半球の冷たい海に生息している。
The pygmy right whale inhabits the cold waters of the Southern Hemisphere.
コセミクジラはあまり研究が進んでいない珍しいクジラだ。
The pygmy right whale is a rare whale that has not been studied much.
Refers to the right whale (genus Eubalaena), a larger baleen whale. コセミクジラ is the smaller 'pygmy' relative.
The name combines 小 (ko, 'small') + 背美 (semi, an old name for right whales, from 背美鯨) + 鯨 (kujira, 'whale'), literally 'small right whale'. The exact origin of 'semi' is uncertain, but it may refer to the whale's back shape.