Aloha,
All 3 of our Wednesday Whale Watches had very interesting things to report. On our 8:00 Breakfast with the Whales, we started the trip with a mugging by 3 whales for more than 25 minutes — the female in the pod (we’re guessing based on behavior) kept leading the two males in front of, underneath and behind the boat. We all got great sightings of the three whales as they swam just feet below the surface and then surfaced very close to us! We saw a total of 23 whales on this trip, 3 breaches, 5 pec slaps and 2 peduncle throws. We also heard great sounds when we deployed the hydrophone. On our 10:00 Whale Watch, guests saw 20 whales, 4 head lunges, 2 pec slaps and three spy hops. Our hydrophone picked up some great sounds on that trip two. On our 3:00 Whales & Cocktails cruise, we saw 8 whales, including a Cow/Calf. The calf breached 3 times about 100 yards from the boat, and then proceeded to make 4 body lunges before Mom gave one big peduncle throw. We weren’t sure if she was just getting tired of her little guy’s hyperactive activity, or if there was an escort who hadn’t surfaced and she was trying to shoo him away. We also saw 9 breaches in the distance and a lot of other big splashes (we couldn’t tell exactly how the whales were creating them).
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Humpback Whale Fact of the Day: Researchers have observed that female Humpbacks with calves are accompanied by a male escort about 83% of the time during the winter season in Hawaii. Since nursing moms rarely get pregnant, we’re not sure why these males are hanging around ..one theory is that the escort is trying to make a good impression on the female so that when she is receptive, she’ll consider the possibility of mating with him. Other researchers theorize that she puts up with the company of one male, hoping that he’ll scare off other amorous suitors (maybe dealing with one male at a time is better than having to deal with 2, 3, 4 or more).
Mahalo,
Captain Claire