Tag Archives: whale behaviors

A “People Watch” for the Humpbacks

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Aloha,
It was another very windy day out on the ocean yesterday, so I only have information to report from one whale watch…but it was quite the trip! On our 10:00 Whale Watch from Kawaihae, guests enjoyed the gusty conditions seeing 11 Humpbacks. We saw 3 different Cow/Calf/Escort pods, and one Cow/Calf pod who decided it might be fun to take a look at us too. Mom allowed her baby to swim right underneath our stern (which is pretty unusual…most times she’ll put herself between her baby and anything bigger). The water was so clear, and they were so close to the surface that we actually got a great look at baby’s tubercles (the sensory nodules on his head). While this was going on, the sounds of  cameras taking sequential photos almost blotted out the sounds of all of us on board oohing and aahing! We also saw 3 body lunges, 4 head lunges, 2 tail lobs, and off on the horizon, 3 breaches. We did attempt to deploy the hydrophone, but in those windy conditions, all we could pick up was faint singing.
Experience the Humpback Excitement for yourself — join Ocean Sports for a whale watch. Call 886-6666 ext. 103 or visit www.hawaiioceansports.com to reserve your spot today.
Humpback Whale Fact of the Day:  The intestines of a fully grown Humpback whale are about 200 feet long (approximately 5 times the length of her body).
Have a great weekend — I’ll send the next report out on Monday.
Mahalo,
Captain Claire

Muggings, Spy hops, Baby Breaches, and Escorts

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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).
Join Ocean Sports on a Whale Watch you’ll never forget. Call us at 886-6666 ext. 103 or visit www.hawaiioceansports.com to reserve your adventure today.
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

A weekend we’ll never forget

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Aloha,
It’s always difficult to write the weekend whale watch report because there’s just so much to say! Both Friday and Saturday’s Breakfast with the Whales cruises were dominated by calves. On Friday, we watched as Baby tail lobbed, pec slapped and breached. Then we got to see Mom breach, followed by baby making another attempt. On Saturday, we spend most of our time with a very active and curious little calf. We saw 21 whales both days. On the 10:00 Whale Watch on Friday we saw 10 Whales of which 2 groups were competitive pods, and we even saw a few dolphins. On Saturday, guests aboard our 10:00 Whale Watch saw 15 whales in pods of twos and threes. The most exciting part of that trip was getting to witness MULTIPLE BREACHES! We saw 10 full-on breaches from the same pod of 3 whales. Our 3:00 Whales and Cocktails on both Friday and Saturday were a little quieter than the early trips. On Friday, we saw 6 whales and watched a competitive pod of 4 whales for most of the trip. On Saturday, we didn’t see anything for the first 20 minutes of the trip and then it was like someone set off an underwater alarm clock, waking up the Humpbacks. Everywhere we looked we saw spouts, tails and peduncle arches. We watched a Mom with her Calf for a good portion of the trip. Baby seemed very interested in a floating research station and kept surfacing around it. On Sunday, we ran 4 whale watches — 2 from Abay, and 2 from Kawaihae. On both our Anaeho’omalu trips we found ourselves the object of curiosity for a calf. We also some some incredible breaches, pec slaps and peduncle throws from an excited adult whale on the first trip. On the second, we watched a baby perform the same behaviors (at least that’s what we thought he was trying to do — a few of those peduncle throws ended up with sideways splashes)! On the trips out of Kawaihae, the surface activity was a bit quieter, but we did encounter Spinner Dolphins. All in all, a great February Whale Watch Weekend.
Join Ocean Sports for a Whale Watch you’ll never forget! Call us at 886-6666 ext. 103 or visit www.hawaiioceansports.com to reserve your adventure today.
Humpback Whale Fact of the Day: There’s a time when a whale is still in its fetal stage that it’s covered in fur. By the time the calf is born, the fur has disappeared. Many researchers believe that this is another indication that whales have evolved from an animal with a common ancestor to a hippo. The idea that the stages of an animal’s fetal development reflect evolutionary development or “Ontogeny recapitulates Phylogeny” was first proposed by Ernst Haeckel around 1900.
Mahalo,
Captain Claire

Close encounters and Double Pec Slaps

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Aloha,
We had a great day on the water on Thursday with the Humpbacks. On our 8:00 Breakfast with the Whales, Captain Baker reports that everyone saw 7 pods of whales, 8 breaches and 6 tail lobs. When we deployed our hydrophone, we were astounded by the clarity of the sounds we heard. But the most exciting thing that happened on that trip was when Mom, Baby and Escort decided to check out our boat. Baby swam within about 20 feet from the boat! On our 10:00 Whale Watch we saw 10 different whales and 5 breaches. We encountered a competitive pod of 4 adults and watched them lunge with their bodies and heads. We also saw 8 pectoral slaps, and 4 double pectoral slaps (that’s when the whale is lying on his or her back and hitting the surface of the water with both of his pectoral fins alternately). Our hydrophone broadcast some beautiful sounds to everyone on this boat too.
Join Ocean Sports on a Whale Watch you’ll never forget. Call 886-6666 ext 103 or visit www.hawaiioceansports.com to reserve your adventure today.
Humpback Whale Fact of the Day:  Humpback whales have 52-54 vertebrae, of which 42 are articulating (jointed) and 10 are fused forming the sacrum. Humans usually have 33 vertebrae, of which 24  are articulating and 9 fused forming our sacrums.
Have a wonderful weekend. I’ll be sending out the next whale report on Monday.
Mahalo,
Captain Claire

Lots of Muggings, Dolphins, and Barnacles

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Aloha,
There’s a lot to report from our weekend’s worth of whale watching. Beginning with Friday, both our 8:00 Breakfast with the Whales and 3:00 Whales & Cocktails cruises report seeing 6 whales with a few breaches — we think the whales had moved up towards Kawaihae that day, since our 10:00 Whale Watch reports seeing 17 whales, 3 breaches, 4 cow/calf pods (1 accompanied by an escort), 3 breaches and a HUGE pod of Spinner Dolphins. Jonathan, our naturalist estimates there were more than 200 animals in that pod. On Saturday, the whales seemed to be moving back down the coastline again. The 8:00 Breakfast with the Whales cruise, and the 3:00 Whales & Cocktails cruise both report seeing close to 25 different whales. The highlight of the first trip was watching a very small calf attempting to check out our boat, and the highlight of the last trip of the day was watching a very active competitive pod on the surface right near the boat for more than 30 minutes. On our 10:00 Whale Watch, our naturalist Nick reports that guests saw 20 different whales, mostly in pods of 2’s or 3’s. We also had a close encounter with a very small baby whale…but the most interesting part of the trip had to be when we encountered a pod of about 15 Rough Tooth Dolphins interacting with a couple of adult whales. Nick reports that the whales appeared to be irritated by the dolphins, because it looked like the whales were trying to slap their smaller cousins away! On Sunday, patience paid off for guests on our 8:00 Breakfast with the Whales, as towards the end of the trip, we encountered a very active pod of two whales who slapped the water with their pectoral fins, made several peduncle throws, and lots of tail lobs all about 100 yards from the boat! And on our 3:00 Whales & Cocktails, we saw 18 whales, and were mugged by a curious baby (who was accompanied by his fairly permissive Mom and an escort). We saw breaches (7), peduncle throws (4), pectoral slaps (4), tail lobs (2) and 8 peduncle throws.
Don’t miss out on all the Humpback Action. Call Ocean Sports at 886-6666 ext. 103 or visit www.hawaiioceansports to reserve your adventure today.
Humpback Whale Fact of the Day:  Humpback Whales play host to all kinds of other animals. Besides the barnacles we often see on the Humpbacks’ flukes and other skin surfaces, the whales can also carry tape worms, lung worms, sinus flukes, and whale lice (which are related to skeleton shrimp) among others. Not all of these parasites actually harm the whale (which means that technically, they can’t really all be considered “parasites”). In fact, the barnacles might actually benefit the male Humpbacks who appear to use the sharp edges of the shells (perhaps inadvertently) as weapons during competitive battles.
Aloha,
Captain Claire

Almost too many to count!

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Aloha,
We had some great times the past few days watching the Humpbacks along the Kohala Coast! On Friday, both our 8:00 Breakfast with the Whales cruise out of Anaeho’omalu and our 10:00 Whale Watch out of Kawaihae reported seeing 5 different Humpbacks. Each boat reported seeing breaches (8:00 guests saw 4, and the 10:00 guests saw 2) but the guests aboard the 3:00 Whales and Cocktails trip reported an astounding 25 breaches from 2 whales about 200 yards from the boat. Even Captain Will, who has been running charters for more than 30 years was so excited he could barely describe the action! On Saturday, the 8:00 Breakfast with the Whales cruise reports seeing 14 Humpbacks, and the 10:00 Whale Watch reports seeing 11 Humpbacks. Both boats were approached by whales, and both boats report some pretty loud and clear singing. Sunday’s 8:00 Breakfast with the Whales trip reports seeing 25 different whales with 7 breaches, and on our 10:00 Whale Watch, guests saw only 13 Humpbacks, but they report seeing 28 tail lobs, 6 peduncle throws and 3 breaches. What a show! Of course we have to save the best for last…   the final trip of the weekend was the 3:00 Whales and Cocktails, where 27 different whales were seen, and guests counted 7 breaches, 15 tail slaps, 3 head lunges, 2 pec slaps and some “motor boating’ — that’s what we call it when the whales are travelling near the surface of the water with their massive heads angled up, creating an actual wake…it’s generally an aggressive behavior for the Humpbacks.
Join Ocean Sports on any of our daily Whale Watch trips for a guaranteed adventure – our morning Whale Watches even guarantee sightings — See Humpbacks, or ride again for free! Call us at 886-6666 ext. 103 or visit www.hawaiioceansports.com to reserve your spot today.
Humpback Whale Fact of the Day: Humpback Whales don’t have teeth — they have approximately 270 – 400 pairs of baleen plates hanging from the top palate of their mouths ranging in length from a foot to about 3 feet long. Where the baleen is attached to the palate, it feels like a horse’s hoof — but it fringes out to form dense mats allowing the whale to “strain the soup of the ocean” when feeding.
Mahalo,
Captain Claire

Humpback Breaches, Tail Lobs and Peduncle Throws

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Aloha,
Guests aboard Thursday’s boats report good sightings, but the highlight of the day happened during the 10:00 Whale Watch cruise on Alala out of Kawaihae Harbor. Not only did guests see 7 different Humpbacks multiple times, but our naturalist for that trip, Jonathan, reports seeing 7 breaches, 3 tail lobs, and 2 peduncle throws! For those of you wondering, the difference between a tail lob and a peduncle throw is really one of degree. A “tail lob” describes the behavior of the whale slamming his or her 15 foot wide flukes against the surface of the ocean with a resounding splash. A “peduncle throw” describes the whale throwing the entire back half of his or her body out of the water and landing with an even bigger splash! When Captain Shane deployed the hydrophone on the 10:00 Whale Watch, guests heard singing — they said it wasn’t extremely loud, but it was described as being quite “clear”.
Join Ocean Sports for a Whale Watching Adventure on any of our  daily Whale Watch cruises, Black Sand Snorkel Sails of Sunset Sails. For more information, and to reserve your adventure, call 886-6666 ext 103 or visit www.hawaiioceansports.com.
Humpback Whale Fact of the Day: Just how difficult is it for a 40 ton, 45 foot long animal to “fly” from the sea in a total breach? Observers have reported seeing Humpbacks breach after only two kick strokes for propulsion. Based on the formula for calculating horsepower, measurements of laminar flow around cetacean skin (how water flows past the skin of the animal), girth and drag in the water, the breaching whale is producing between 1500 and 1700 horsepower in order to “catch air”. We used to think it was closer to 5000 horsepower, but with the aid of a calculator and more accurate measurements, we’ve been able to recalculate more accurately…still, try this yourself next time you’re in the water. We’re betting you won’t get very far!
Mahalo, and have a Great Weekend!
Captain Claire

Baby Whales, Breaches, Peduncle Throws and…Pilot Whales

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Aloha,
Guests aboard Whale Watch Cruises yesterday had some very interesting encounters to report. First of all, guests on both our 10:00 Whale Watch on Alala out of Kawaihae Harbor, and our 3:00 Whales & Cocktails Cruise on Seasmoke out of Anaeho’omalu Bay reported seeing a whale calf! The afternoon trip reports 12 whales in total, but the Cow/Calf pod were spotted right near the bay as the boat was concluding the trip. The calf even breached! Guests on the 10:00 trip saw a total of 7 Humpbacks, 3 breaches, 2 pectoral slaps, and 4 peduncle throws (that’s what we call it when we see the whale throw the “back” half of his or her body out of the water). But even more interesting and exciting than all that, we also got to watch a pod of three Humpbacks (they appeared to be two big adults and a yearling) interacting with a pod of Pilot Whales! Since the water was so clear, we were actually able to watch these two species of whales swim over and under and all around each other! it was a great example of inter-species communication.
Join Ocean Sports for the adventure of your life! We offer 3 different cruises just to watch the whales, plus Snorkel Sails and Sunset Sails! Call us at 886-6666 ext. 103 or visit hawaiioceansports.com for details.
Humpback Whale Fact of the Day: A baby whale, called a “calf” looks so small and cute when seen playing with her Mom. But everything is relative…when the calf is born, she can already be 10 to as much as 15 feet long, and she weighs 2000 to 3000 pounds!
Mahalo, and have a great weekend,
Captain Claire

Aggression, Excitement, Irritation???

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Aloha,
Once again, we spent a windy morning on the water on Monday, but the guests aboard our 8:00 Breakfast with the Whales Cruise on Seasmoke were treated to sightings of 12 different whales. They got to see 7 peduncle throws (that’s when the whale throw the back half of his or her body completely out of the water). And if that wasn’t already exciting enough, they also got to witness a complete breach about 130 yards from the boat! Guests on our 10:00 Whale Watch on Alala out of Kawaihae also had some action, with 3 different Humpback sightings.
Ocean Sports offers 3 different cruises to see the Humpbacks daily from two different locations within the Hawaiian Islands National Marine Humpback Whale Sanctuary Waters. Call us at 886-6666 ext 103 or visit www.hawaiioceansports.com to reserve your adventure today.
Humpback Whale Fact of the Day: Why would a whale waste the energy to throw the back half of his or her body out of the water in a Peduncle Throw (sometimes repetitively)?? Since the whales aren’t telling, all we can do is try to interpret their behavior in terms of what else is going on in their lives at that moment. We know that Humpbacks very rarely eat while they’re in Hawaii, and since a Peduncle Throw is a huge expenditure of energy (if you don’t believe me, try it yourself next time you’re in the ocean), it’s got to be important to the whale. Throwing half of yourself out of the water results in a huge splash and might be a way to communicate location, health, excitement, aggression or irritation to near-by whales. Especially if the near-by whale happens to be so near that he gets landed upon!