Whale Sightings 10/12/23 to 10/18/23. Please find the Naturalist Notes for the week of 10/12/23 to 10/18/23 from the onboard team of naturalists for our New England Whale Watching tour in partnership with the New England Aquarium.
10-12-23
10am Whale Watch Sightings
Good afternoon,
On the Aurora today we headed out the SW corner in beautiful glassy seas (a treat for mid-October!). Along the way we saw many common eiders. As we first arrived, we found Lollipop and her calf slowly traveling together at a restful pace. As you may have followed along this season, Lollipop’s calf has had an ongoing monofilament entanglement embedded into its flipper. Unfortunately this little calf has had even worst luck – last month it was found entangled in 350 feet of rope – the Center for Coastal Studies Disentanglement worked hard to remove a lot of that gear, but the calf is still believed to be critically entangled (but the entanglement is not visible at the surface). We documented what we could of the calf and sent photos to the to the CCS team. You can learn more about their program here: https://coastalstudies.org/rescue/disentanglement-network/. Additionally, you can directly impact the health of the ocean by choosing sustainable seafood options. You can learn more about those options here: www.seafoodwatch.org
We also spotted Putter, and a parasitic jaeger attacking a laughing gull to steal some food. We spotted a trio of veteran females, Apex, Nile, and Milkweed. At one point this trio gave us an up-close look alongside the boat. We also spotted A-Plus, her calf, Spell, and 3.14. A-Plus’s calf surprised us with a wonderful breach to end our trip as well! Additionally – Spell did several huge flipper slaps. Unfortunately after reviewing my photos post-trip, I found that Spell has a gear entanglement wrapped around her flipper. We made a report to the CCS team. Hopefully we will have some positive reports of both Lollipop’s calf and Spell to share soon – stay tuned.
Sincerely,
Laura & Sian
12pm Whale Watch Sightings
Hello all,
Today aboard the Asteria, the 12pm whale watch made its way towards the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank in search of whales and other marine life. We started on a trio of humpback whales that consisted of A-Plus, A-Plus 23 Calf, and Spell. This trio was very sleepy at first so they were spending a lot of time hanging at the surface which allowed us to get some incredible looks! All of a sudden after a dive, a fourth whale named Strikeout joined the group which woke up the trio. Strikeout and A-Plus 23 Calf began flipper slapping up a storm! Once Strikeout calmed down, the group of four began cruising. We noticed some other commotion not far away so we decided to go check it out. This turned out to be several whales feeding! We started on a humpback named Chunk who was solo feeding, but she was quickly joined by three more humpbacks we ID’d as Pleats, Wizard, and Abrasion. Right before we left, the group did a beautiful bubble net right off our bow! It was really incredible to see four large mouths filtering at the surface! After the whales took a dive, we had to head back to Boston. It was a really great day out on Stellwagen Bank!
Until next time,
Colin and Jane
10-14-23
10am and 2:30pm Whale Watch Sightings
Good evening!
The 10am whale watch headed out on the Asteria towards the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary in search of wildlife. A few miles west of the bank, we stumbled upon three humpbacks: the duo Four/Strikeout and the solitary Hammock. After watching these whales for a little bit, we continued to travel southeast and found an even larger cluster of blows from at least 8 more humpback whales! We spent time with Nile, Spell, Milkweed, A-Plus, and her 2023 calf, as they forcefully fed and sped through the water. All of a sudden, A-Plus launched herself out of the water in a massive spinning breach! The attention of this breach drew in the nearby humpbacks: Apex and 3.14. 3.14 eventually joined the association, to make our group increase to 6 individuals. We got some fantastic looks at these animals when all six whales approached our vessel – swimming in a coordinated group and forcefully trumpeting.
The 2:30 whale watched headed out to the southwest corner again and were pleased to find at least 10 humpbacks still in the area! We started our trip with Spell, Milkweed, A-Plus, and 2023 calf, who were continuing to subsurface feed! The calf was clearly trying to join the adults in feeding activity, and we got some adorable looks at its “little” fluke as it dove with mom. Putter tried to join the group of 4, but quickly left the association after an exchange of angry trumpeting. Other whales that weaved in and out of associations included 3.14, Nile Chunk, Lollipop, and Lollipop 23 Calf. It was very interesting to watch the quick joining and splitting of the whales in the area, and a great example of how fast-lived certain associations can be. We spent extra time with and took careful attention to Lollipop’s calf, who is unfortunately actively entangled. This entanglement case has been monitored throughout the season, and we communicated an update to the Center for Coastal Studies disentanglement team.
Kate and Kiley
12pm Whale Watch Sightings
Good afternoon whale enthusiasts!
The Aurora headed south in search of cetaceans for the 12pm whale watch where we found 10-12 humpback whales! We had some additional passengers on board, maybe excited for whales, or just looking for a place to rest, as a sparrow and a warbler joined us for the duration of our trip. We started with a single whale who was travelling quickly towards a larger group of humpbacks. This individual turned out to be 3.14! We were also treated to a quick look at a Minke whale. 3.14 led us to a group of 6 whales that included A-Plus and her calf, Spell, Milkweed, Chunk and Nile. These whales were charging quickly at the surface with water steaming from their mouths, indicating that they were likely busy feeding below the surface! All of the sudden, one of the adults erupted into a massive spinning breach, right before Nile split up from the rest of the group. We continued to watch the other 5 individuals, and A-Plus 23 calf did several tail breaches and whale “handstands” while the adults were busy feeding. We spent the end of our trip with a very sleepy duo and were delighted to get incredible looks at Nile and 3.14 as they napped side by side right next to the vessel! While watching these large whales sleep, we were surprised by some much smaller cetaceans as a pod of 3-5 harbor porpoise quickly travelled across our bow. 3.14 frequently snaked at the surface, maybe stretching while he rested.
We got some beautiful last looks, before making our way back to Boston after a wonderful fall whale watch.
Sydney and Sian
10-16-23
10am Whale Watch Sightings
Hello all,
Today aboard the Asteria, the 10am whale watch made its way out towards the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank in search of whales and other marine life. After a little bit of searching in the wind and the waves, we noticed a large splash in the distance. This turned out to be A-Plus 23 Calf breaching! This little one breached several times when we first arrived in the area! A-Plus was not too far away, and she was joined by Arcus, 3.14, and Spell who were taking short dives, most likely subsurface feeding. As baby was playing, mom and the other adults were busy focusing on getting food. We had some really great close approaches from the adults, with A-Plus even popping up right next to the boat! After a few more breaches from the little one, we had to start making our way back towards Boston. It ended up being a really great day out on Stellwagen!
Until next time,
Colin and Christina
12pm Whale Watch Sightings
Good afternoon!
We boarded the Aurora for the 12pm whale watch in true fall conditions. Across some sporty seas, we made our way towards the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank, and met up with a group of five humpback whales! The star of this group, and much of the season, was A-Plus’ 23 calf, who engaged in activities such as “try to board the boat” and “play peek-a-boo with passengers.” The curiosity cannot be tamed in this little one, as even in between bouts of probable subsurface feeding, it couldn’t help but investigate the boat. Mom A-plus, and associates Spell, Milkweed, and 3.14, even made some awesome approaches, slowly turning up at the surface to check out all sides of the boat. We spotted a few other blows, including one of a fin whale, counting for about 8 other large whales in the area. Some migrating songbirds hopped on for a visit, and gannets circled the whales allowing for some wonderful avian sightings as well. All in all, a wonderful October Monday!
Flukes up,
Ashlyn and Sian
10-17-23
10am Whale Watch Sightings
Good afternoon,
The 10am whale watch headed out on the Asteria towards the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. Approaching the area, we spotted at least 8 humpbacks and spent time with the group of five: A-Plus, A-Plus 23 Calf, Milkweed, 3.14, and Spell. Our association was busy sub-surface feeding, evidenced by their fast explosive movements at the surface and some whale poop! During the second half of our trip, we watched in absolute awe as the 4 adults repeatedly surrounded and approached our vessel. Clutched out and not moving, we were basically “trapped” by these 4 humpbacks, who seemed just as curious of as we were of them. Again, and again and again, the whales would pop up directly next to our boat, basking everyone in wafts of whale breathe, and then swim around our vessel. In a behavior called “mugging,” we got some absolutely thrilling and spectacular looks at our whales as they captivated our attention. In my time as a naturalist, I can’t remember having so many close approaches by a group of such curious adults!
On a personal note, this was my 200th trip. Thank you to everyone who has helped out along the way – and what a wonderful and special whale watch to spend the day!
Kate and Kiley
10-18-23
10am Whale Watch Sightings
Good afternoon,
Today we spent a rare glassy-sea day in October in the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary aboard the Asteria. On our way out to sea, we spotted several pods of harbor porpoise along with many flocks of scoters, eiders, and gannets. When we arrived on the SW corner, we were elated to find 10-12 humpbacks spread out on the horizon – with their blows glistening amongst a gorgeous horizon. We spent time with a group of 6 that formed up that included A-Plus and calf, Spell, 3.14, Milkweed, and Chunk. This group quickly spread out after some trumpeting and thrashing – Spell went off on her own and began bubble cloud feeding, while A-Plus, 3.14, and Milkweed continued to subsurface feed together while the calf checked out our boat a few times. We even got a great close approach from these females! We also spotted the lovely Grand Dame herself, Salt, out on her own logging and taking some deep dives (we got a wonderful look a huge high-fluking dive from her!). With all her years around Stellwagen, this old lady deserves some R&R. The hardworking Center for Coastal Studies disentanglement team was also in the area monitoring Spell’s active entanglement, along with looking for Lollipop’s calf who remains critically entangled – we hope to have some positive updates soon about these whales!
We wrapped up our day with a final look at Salt, a young harbor seal, and a distance flipper-slapping humpback!
Cheers,
Laura, Sian, and Jane
Boston Whale Watching: Naturalist Notes – 10/12/23 to 10/18/23