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Humpback whales surfacing with Atlantic white-side dolphins.
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| Gray Seal. |
9 am Whale Watch - Krill
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| Our fearless leader! Capt. Jonny |
Well, we were very lucky today for the rain and thunderstorms that were predicted for the morning and afternoon never materialized. We headed to the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank and found over 25 humpback whales, 50 - 75 Atlantic white-sided dolphins, 2 gray seals and a handful of Northern gannets.
The big baleen whales were feeding deep, but what was interesting was the fact that many individuals were feeding in small groups. We had groups of 2 animals all the way up to 6 individuals. And the other interesting thing we noticed was the fact that these groups were very fluid, that is, the individuals in these groups didn't always stay in the same group. There was a lot of mixing and matching, leaving and joining. This can be a nightmare for the data collector and I want to thank Carly, our data collector from the New England Coastal Wildlife Alliance, for helping keep track of the whales and identifying our unknowns on the way back to the dock.
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| Venom and Mostaza |
Venom is a whale that recently lost part of her right fluke due to gear entanglement. Ventisca is a whale that has a lot of white pigmentation on her dorsal fin and lower half of her body. This pigmentation is most probably a natural marking. And Nile is a humpback who was satellite tagged last summer and although the tag has worked its way out, you can still see the hole that is left behind.
Mostaza is the 2000 calf of Salt, the most famous humpback whale in the world. So although the calves only stay with their mom's for one summer, they tend to return to the same feeding areas that mom first introduced them to. How cool is that!
Here are the humpback whales we have been able to identify so far: Nile, Division, Bounce, Whiplash, Mastaza, Venom, Cajun, Alphorn, Perseid and Music.
Can't wait for Saturday's whale watch at 12 noon! Hope you can join us soon!
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| Alphorn, showing the scar from a vessel strike many years ago. |
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| Whiplash. |
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| Fluke out dive by Nile |
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| Nile showing the hole from the satellite tag. |
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Gray seal.
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