Whale Sightings 8/23/22 to 8/28/22 Please find the Naturalist Notes for the week of 8/23/22 to 8/28/22 from the onboard team of naturalists for our New England Whale Watching tour in partnership with the New England Aquarium.
08-23-22
10 صباحا و 2:30 ظهرا مشاهدة الحيتان
This morning, the Sanctuary headed towards the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank in search of marine life. Shortly after arrival, we spotted a sleepy Humpback Whale resting (or logging) at the surface. It was a whale named Shuffleboard, and she was with another whale who we are still working to identify. They were taking it nice and easy at the surface, breathing frequently and allowing us some great looks at them. After saying goodbye to them, we pressed on to find 10-12 Humpbacks spread throughout the area, which included some favorites like Dross, Mogul, Conflux, Tripod and Dyad! While we had them all around us, it was Dross who stole the show, blowing bubble rings before surfacing sideways with her flipper poking up into the air. She did this next to our boat several times, allowing us some remarkable looks at her. After watching Dross and the other whales around us for a while, we had to make our way back to Boston, eager to come back out in the afternoon.
In the afternoon, we headed back out to the southwest corner through some scattered showers to find one of our Humpback Whales, Shuffleboard, in the same place we left her in the morning. She was awake this time, travelling towards the north and taking short fluking dives. After getting some lovely looks at her, we continued on and found ourselves in whale soup again, with Humpbacks in all directions. We decided to head towards two blows, which turned out to be Nile and her calf. Nile was surfacing forcefully, mouth full of water and fish! The calf was close to her side, learning how to feed as well as its mother. With these two headed towards Race Point, we waved goodbye to them and headed back to Boston, missing most of the rain!
It was a great day on the water!
حتى المرة القادمة!
David & Maddie
08-23-22
11am Whale Watch
On the 11am whale watch aboard the Asteria, we headed out in glassy gray seas to the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank. Beautiful glass seas make the perfect weather to spot for sharks, and we spotted three blue sharks throughout our trip (and one elusive mola mola). We spent the first half with some sleepy pairs of humpbacks – first Shuffleboard and an unknown juvenile, and then later Valley and Ravine. After spending time with these loggers, we moved on to some quicker moving solo humpbacks that were bubble cloud feeding! Mogul was making quick turns and lots of bubbles, while Dross began doing some spiral nets. We also spotted Dyad – in total we spotted at least 10-12 humpbacks!
الهتافات
Laura & Gracie
08-23-22
12 ظهرا مشاهدة مشاهدة الحيتان
أعزائي رفاق بالين ،
Today the noon whale watch headed out to the Southwest Corner of Stellwagen Bank. The sea conditions could very easily be defined as “Lake Atlantic”. There were between twelve to nineteen humpbacks in the area and about three minkes. We also saw three sharks but only got a good look at one of them! The shark we got a good look at was a blue shark. We began our trip with an adorable harbor seal sightings before going on to join Ravine and Valley. We then went on to watch Pitcher lunge feeding and blowing bubble clouds. After that we moved over to Dross and a friend who were blowing bubble nets. Satisfied and sunburnt, we returned to Boston!
See ya next time!
Mira and Eman
08-24-22
10 صباحا و 2:30 مساء مشاهدة الحيتان
مساء الخير عشاق الحيتان!
Today we boarded the Sanctuary and headed into the fog in search of wildlife. Upon arriving at the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank, we were initially surrounded by nothing but fog. Holding our breath, we soon heard the exhalation of a whale nearby. Almost like a mirage that single blow turned into several dorsal fins breaking the surface all around us!
Before we knew it the sun emerged from behind the clouds and the fog vanished, revealing over 8 humpbacks in the area and even a pod of Atlantic white-sided dolphins! We were surrounded on all sides by humpbacks exhaling forcefully and taking energetic dives, suggesting they were feeding below. Of the whales around us, we were able to identify Freckles, Etch-A- Sketch, and Bounce. The former two took turns making close approaches and swimming beneath our bow, lending great looks on all sides.
As we began to tiptoe out of the area we were stopped by two approaching pods of dolphins! The still water and brightening conditions gave us beautiful looks at these animals cruising right below the surface on either side. The first pod to approach was composed of Atlantic White-Sided dolphins, but much to our surprise the second pod were Common Dolphins!
We carefully made our way back to Boston, excited to head back out for our second trip.
After boarding for our second trip of the day, we set our sights back on the southwest corner, now under sunny skies and a comfortable breeze.
Arriving where we had left the whales this morning, we found some scattered blows and turned our bow toward a pair nearby. These two humpbacks were in deep slumber and after watching from a distance we elected to give them some space. Just as we moved off the pair stretched and dove. Tripod gladly revealed her identity, but her companion, Valley was a little more shy, and hid her flukes from us. We could tell from her dorsal fin and some scarring on her tail stock that it was indeed Valley.
Leaving the snoozing pair behind, we made our way over to a solitary blow and soon found ourselves in the company of Etch-A-Sketch! She seemed to be moving a little more slowly than she had been in the morning, but stayed close to our boat, even emerging with a flipper raised between the pulpits of our bow! She took several short dives and gave us great looks at her flukes.
After a final dive we had to wave goodbye to our cetacean friends and make our way back to Boston.
حتى المرة القادمة!
Linnea and Liza
08-24-22
11 صباحا مشاهدة الحيتان مشاهدة
مرحبا بكم جميعا،
Today aboard the Asteria, the 11am whale watch made its way towards the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank in search of whales and other marine life. As we approached the area, we spotted a few blows and some small splashing next to them. It turned out to be a pair of humpback whales consisting of Nine and Dyad, who were accompanied by a pod of Atlantic white-sided dolphins! The pair was taking a nap while the dolphins were darting through the area. The dolphins were even porpoising, and they even swam right next to the boat! The sleepy pair ended up waking up and began moving around a bit more. After some beautiful fluking dives from the pair, we noticed some splashing in the distance. It turned out to be Zodiac the humpback whale who was flipper slapping! Zodiac eventually quieted down and began napping, but gave a very high and beautiful fluking dive before we headed out of the area. We got a brief look at another humpback before we made it back to Boston. It was an amazing day out on Stellwagen Bank!
حتى المرة القادمة
Colin and Gracie
08-24-22
12 ظهرا مشاهدة مشاهدة الحيتان
مساء الخير!
The Aurora headed out on the 12:00 whale watch towards the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank. We quickly spotted at least 10 humpback whales and spent time with 7 of them! We saw the individuals – Dyad, Etch-a-Sketch, Freckles, Nine, Mogul, Pinball, and Tripod. These humpback whales were all busy feeding, blowing bubble clouds in all directions! No matter where we looked, there was a frothy green patch of bubbles at the surface. During our whale watch, these whales kept joining and splitting – seen feeding together in one dive cycle then feeding by themselves in the next. We were able to see great examples of how incredibly fluid these associations can be. Many of these whales – including Nine, Dyad, and Mogul – kept approaching our vessel after feeding – giving all passengers some awesome looks! With glassy seas, we eventually returned back to Boston.
Kate and Olivia
08-25-22
10 صباحا و 2:30 ظهرا مشاهدة الحيتان
Good evening, Baleen Buddies!
Today the 10AM whale watch headed out to Stellwagen Bank. We had some actually spotters on board who pointed out a pod of twenty to thirty Atlantic white-sided dolphins. We started to make our way to the whales and on our way to them saw a Mola mola and three sharks! We finally got to Pinball and Etch-a-Sketch who logged for the first half hour we were with them. Suddenly they woke up and began being incredibly active! Etch-a-Sketch breached, chin breached, and flipper slapped. Pinball breached, tail lobbed, and flipper slapped! It was awesome. As we made our way home, we saw another four sharks and a second Mola mola. Satisfied and sunburnt we returned to Boston to do it all again.
The 2:30PM headed to a similar spot. There were now eight to nine humpbacks in the area. They were traveling randomly through out the area–probably subsurface feeding–and Dross was blowing some bubble clouds. Other whales in the area included Etch-a-Sketch, Dyad, Pinball, and Valley. Fulfilled we returned to Beantown.
سلسه!
Mira and Olivia
08-25-22
11am Whale Watch
مساء الخير
Today aboard the Asteria, we headed out in beautiful calm seas towards the middle of Stellwagen Bank. The perfect seas allowed us to spot unlimitedly on the horizon. Our first sign of whale life was a small splash, which turned out to be a pod of Atlantic White-Sided Dolphins. This pod even had a few mom-calf pairs in the mix! As we approached the bank we saw some splashing in the distance, who were a pair of female humpbacks, Etch-a-Sketch and Pinball. As we got closer, the pair got very sleepy and began logging in-between foraging dives. After spending time with this pair, we found a trio of humpbacks, Dyad, Conflux, and Rapier, two of which did a synchronized dive! To wrap up the trip, Pinball approached us one last time.
Great day on the water!
Laura & Gracie
8-25-22
10 صباحا و 2:30 ظهرا مشاهدة الحيتان
مساء الخير
The 12:00 whale watch headed out on the Aurora towards the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank. The seas were incredibly glassy and were able to spot three blue sharks before reaching the bank. We also found two different pods of Atlantic white-sided dolphins! The first pod of dolphins was a small, spread-out group – and our second pod was a larger group of around 75 individuals quickly moving through the area! Once we reached the bank, we spotted multiple blows. We first spent time with Etch-a-Sketch, who was feeding using bubble clouds around the boat. We then spent a little time with Dross before finishing our trip with the trio Dyad, Rapier, and Conflux. Towards the end of our time with this group, they surfaced quickly and seemed to bump into each other. We saw a loud exchange of trumpets between these whales, with some quick tail flicks at the surface – a likely reaction towards hitting each other. We then made out way back to Boston with beautiful weather conditions!
كيت وكولن
08-26-22
10am and 2:30 pm Whale Watch
مساء الخير
The 10am whale watch headed out on the Sanctuary towards the southern region of Stellwagen Bank. After a bit of searching, we found a mom calf pair – Samovar and her 2022 calf! We haven’t seen this mom and calf pair yet this season, so it’s fantastic to see a new pair in the later half of the season! This calf and mom pair were absolutely fantastic – we spent the entirety of our trip watching this little whale flipper slap, roll, and breach! This calf was constantly on its backside – “backstroking” with both flippers up around our vessel. Mom also launched into a bit of surface activity – tail breaching and lobtailing! At one time, both mom and calf were both on their backsides – lobtail/flipper slapping, and we got some spectacular views of these whales!
The 2:30 headed out towards the midbank of Stellwagen Bank and spotted around 9 humpbacks in the area. The wind had picked up considerably since the morning trip – and with all the wind and scattered individuals we saw a flurry of surface activity! Surrounding our vessel, we saw breaching and flipper slapping on all sides from the various humpback whales. We spent time with Jabiru and Etch-a-Sketch, who were both breaching and flipper slapping. Etch-a-Sketch eventually joined up with Dyad and Conflux, and we got some fantastic looks at these trio of whales! Conflux flipper slapped and pooped near our boat, and towards the end of our trip all three whales swam right towards us! Etch-a-Sketch swam around the starboard side of the boat before popping up near the left pulpit!
With winds, storms, and seas picking up, we headed back to Boston!
Kate and Gracie
8-26-22
11 صباحا مشاهدة الحيتان مشاهدة
Good Afternoon Whale Watchers!
Today, the Asteria headed to Mid-Bank on Stellwagen Bank in search of whales. Before got there, we were able to find some wildlife right outside of Boston Harbor! We stumbled upon a Mola Mola who we were able to get some great looks at. After this, we pressed on to Mid-Bank to find a pod of Atlantic White-Sided Dolphins surrounding two Humpback Whales. They turned out to be two females, Pitcher and Bounce. These whales were taking longer dives, but thanks to the frequent surfacing of the dolphins, we were able to detect where these whales were going to surface. The two species stayed together the entire time we were with them, and then we decided to take a ride a little to the east. We instantly found ourselves in whale soup! We had 10-15 Humpback Whales around us, who were likely feeding beneath the surface. Among the scattered solitary Humpbacks, we had a group of four, who ended up being Dyad, Conflux, Rapier and Etch-A-Sketch. They surfaced very close to our boat, with one of the whales even rolling over and flipper slapping! Throughout the area, we were able to identify some other Humpbacks, including Dross, Freckles, Mogul, Zodiac and Jabiru! They were surfacing in bubble clouds, an indication that they were actively feeding. Zodiac even tail breached twice before we left! As we left these whales, we made a farewell pass by Bounce, Pitcher and the dolphins, we headed back to Boston.
It was a great day on the water!
حتى المرة القادمة!
ديفيد وليزا
08-26-22
12 ظهرا مشاهدة مشاهدة الحيتان
Good afternoon Whale Watchers,
The Aurora ventured out to Stellwagen Bank today to escape some of the heat. When we arrived, we were greeting by Pitcher and Bounce who were logging at the surface and surrounded by Atlantic White-sided Dolphins. The dolphins were swimming under and around the boat as the two baleen whales slept next to us. We watched the dolphins and humpback pair for several minutes before moving on to some promising blows in the distance. While there were a number of whales around us, all of them were quite spread out. We traveled around the area slowly watching five whales individually travel throughout the area. The five Humpbacks were identified as Dross, Freckles, Mogul, Etch-A-Sketch, and Rapier. All of the Humpbacks were taking short dives and traveling quickly throughout the area! We spent time with each of the whales before we had to begin making our way back to Boston. Along the way, we were surprised to find Bounce and Pitcher again. They were still logging at the surface and surrounded by the pod of dolphins. We got some bonus looks at them before continuing our way back home. However, our journey was interrupted for a second time by some epic splashing in front of us. As we slowly moved closer, we discovered a minke whale breaching! We watched this whale breach half a dozen times before it disappeared into the abyss. After the exciting bout of surface activity, we continued our trip back home.
We returned home to brooding clouds threatening Boston with an absolutely epic thunderstorm!
حتى المرة القادمة
Eman & Mira
08-27-22
10 صباحا و 2:30 ظهرا مشاهدة الحيتان
Good evening, Baleen Buddies!
Today the 10AM whale watch headed to the middle of Stellwagen Bank to go searching for cetaceans. However, the whales were not where they were yesterday and after a prolonged search we found a group of three at the Southwest Corner. Conflux, Rapier, and Dyad were going on dives and while they were down, we got some quality time with a blue shark. When they came back up, Conflux flipper slapped! The whales went down again and came up on the other side of the boat and flipper slapped again. We started to head for Boston and as we went, we got a view of two T3 humpbacks in a pair going on a dive. Later we passed two whales who started breaching behind us as we carried on to Boston.
The 2:30 whale watch returned to the Southwest Corner where we were joined by the trio from the morning–Conflux, Rapier, and Dyad–and a separate pair made up of Scylla and Pinball. All of these whales were showing a plethora of behaviors from blowing bubble clouds to breaching to tail lobbing and flipper slapping. Satisfied and sunburnt we returned to Boston.
سلسه!
ميرا وليزا
08-27-22
11 صباحا مشاهدة الحيتان مشاهدة
مرحبا بكم جميعا،
Today aboard the Aurora, the 11am whale watch made its way out towards Stellwagen Bank in search of whales and other marine life. After a little searching, we spotted three blows in the distance. It ended up being a trio of humpback whales! This trio consisted of Rapier, Dyad, and Conflux. These three were spending a lot of time at the surface so we were able to get some fantastic looks at them. Dyad was doing these very high and beautiful fluking dives! Conflux even flipper slapped a few times! After some amazing looks at these three whales, we had to head back to Boston. On our way home, we got some brief but amazing looks at Scylla and Pinball the humpback whales. Both Scylla and Pinball did these very high and beautiful fluking dives before we had to head back. It was a really amazing day out on Stellwagen Bank!
حتى المرة القادمة
كولين وكيت
08-27-22
3:30 مساء مشاهدة الحيتان
مساء الخير
The 3:30 whale watch headed out on the Aurora towards the southwest corner of the Sanctuary. As we approached our destination, we saw Scylla launch into a flurry of tail breaches! As we got closer, the surface activity subsided – but we got some great looks at her and Pinball. During one surfacing, Scylla let out a large trumpet and tail flicked near Pinball. The next surfacing, we saw Scylla and Pinball split from each other. After this association dissipated, we turned our attention to the group of four – Etch-a-Sketch, Dyad, Rapier, and Conflux. We had seen this group earlier today without Etch, so it was great to see a fourth whale in the mix! We got some great look and these whales and their high fluking dives, before returning to Boston under a great sunset!
كيت وكولن
08-27-22
12pm & 5pm Whale Watch Sightings
Good Evening,
Today the Sanctuary headed out at noon towards the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank. Before we got there, we were greeted by a pair of Humpback Whale blows. It was Scylla and Pinball, who were taking very predictable 10-minute dives. This allowed us to spend quite a bit of time around them. The passengers loved Scylla’s high fluking dives, as she would bring her entire tail clear of the water on every dive. Pinball was a little closer to us than Scylla, allowing a better look at their overall size, so we got to appreciate both aspects of watching these two. Satisfied, we returned to Boston, ready for the second trip.
We headed back out towards the southwest corner and found a few clusters of Humpback Whale blows in the area. We focused on a couple of blows, who much to our delight, ended up being Pinball and Scylla once again. They were doing the exact same predictable 10-minute dives, allowing us some gorgeous views of two of these favorite females. We even got a gorgeous sunset on this final sunset whale watch.
حتى المرة القادمة
ديفيد وأوليفيا
08-28-2022
10 صباحا مشاهدة مشاهدة الحيتان
مساء الخير
The 10:00 departed Boston on a picture perfect late August day and located a humpback whale, Mostaza, just south of the shipping lanes. She was taking consistent ten minute dives and surfacing so predictably that passengers were able to soak up every minute of whale viewing time when she surfaced. Throughout the trip, at least five different sharks were sighted by various passengers and crew, illustrating the opportunity to spot your own wildlife while on a guided tour! A mola mola, northern gannets, a great and a sooty shearwater, and various gulls made for a great day on Stellwagen. Also want to give a quick shout out to a special guest we had on this morning who has contributed greatly to our research and education program in the past and has left a myriad of tools and resources that continue to benefit passengers and naturalists (Hi Kelsey!).
Laura and Eman
08-28-22
11am and 230pm Whale Sightings
مساء الخير!
We boarded the Aurora for the 11 am whale watch and headed toward the middle of Stellwagen Bank. Upon arriving, we met up with a solo humpback whale, Mostaza! She was spending ample time at the surface and taking consistent dives, and the smooth seas allowed us some wonderful looks. Deciding to do some exploring, we headed further north and stumbled across a minke whale. This whale was keeping a lower profile than usual, and the brief glimpse we were able to catch showed that its’ dorsal fin appeared to be missing. The white scarring along the are suggested an older injury, but we still couldn’t blame the whale for being so elusive. As if our sightings couldn’t take more of a turn, we were startled to find a bat flying overhead! Likely, this wayward critter was a stowaway on a boat, who happened to wake up at an inconvenient time. Satisfied with our airborne and marine mammal sightings, we returned to Boston.
The 3:30 pm whale watch faces slightly blustery conditions as we returned to the northwest corner of Stellwagen Bank. We once again met up with Mostaza, keeping up with her consistent travel. She moved slowly again, but suddenly surprised us with a massive tail breach. As she went down on a dive, we suddenly found ourselves in the company of a curious minke whale, who repeatedly swam under our boat. Held captive by this whale, we could only look in awe as the behavior it displayed so greatly contrasted what we are used to seeing from minke whales. With one last look at this newfound friend, and Mostaza, we headed back west, having spent another wonderful day asea.
Or so we thought! Our harbor whale friend had other plans, as we spotted this young humpback just off Deer Island as we made our return to port. He was traveling a little erratically but looked to be in good health as he took sporadic dives. The fishing must be good again, as it didn’t seem as though it was in a hurry to leave. We will keep our eyes peeled for this whale on our upcoming trips, and help to ensure he stays safe in the busy harbor!
حظ!
اشلين
08-28-22
12 ظهرا مشاهدة الحيتان
مساء الخير عشاق الحيتان!
The 12 pm whale watch headed towards Stellwagen bank in search of whales. We started our trip with a humpback whale who turned out to be Mostaza! Mostaza was spending a lot of time at the surface and travelling very quickly. We got some great looks at her, and while watching Mostaza some eagle-eyed passengers noticed a blue shark swimming through the area! We got some brief looks at this shark before it dove. We then noticed a flopping fin in the distance and decided to go check out, and we found a Mola Mola, who was circling a buoy! We ended up finding 2 more Molas on our way to get some more looks at Mostaza. We started to head home, and found a large fin whale, who was spending a lot of time at the surface allowing for some pretty FIN-tastic looks and making this a 4 species day! With some last looks at this fin whale, we made our way home to Boston.
عموما يوم عظيم لمشاهدة الحيتان!
سيدني
08-28-22
2:30pm Whale Sightings
Good evening Whale Watchers,
At 2:30 PM, we headed out aboard the Asteria eager to see our cetacean friends. Before reaching the bank, we spotted what appeared to be a splash from a small whale. Unfortunately, we were unable to relocate the whale and continued on East toward the bank. As we moved in, we discovered a blow belonging to a fin whale! The whale was surfacing frequently and moving at a leisurely pace. Based on the behavior, it seemed like we caught the fin whale in the middle of an afternoon nap! Because of the slow pace of the fin whale, we got some absolutely incredible looks. After spending time with this whale, we located another blow in the distance. This ended up being a Humpback whale known as Mostaza. We got two beautiful sightings of Mostaza during her surface intervals before we had to say goodbye.
It was a wonderful day on the bank!
Eman & Laura L.
المزيد من الصور من هذا الأسبوع
Boston Whale Watching: Naturalist Notes – 8/23/22 to 8/28/22