Whale Sightings 7/19/22 to 7/24/22 Please find the Naturalist Notes for the week of 7/19/22 to 7/24/22 from the onboard team of naturalists for our New England Whale Watching tour in partnership with the New England Aquarium.
7-19-22
11am Whale Watch Sightings
We enjoyed a beautiful break from the heat in the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary today and spotted lots of whales! We started just west of the bank itself and came upon three humpback whales spread out over a one square mile area, then spent most of our time with Dross as she fed amidst a few bubble clouds before settling in to rest. After some quality time with her, we received word of more whales far to the west and went on to check them out. When we got there, we found Etch-a-Sketch and a buddy logging together with Ravine, Bounce, and Wyoming also snoozing nearby. There were several additional humpbacks nearby and a dorsal fin broke the surface, leaving us wondering what else we had spotted.
Laura L. and Maddie
07-19-22
12pm Whale Watch Sightings
Good afternoon Whale Lovers,
Today we were planning to go to Stellwagen Bank but before we even got close, we ended up in whale soup! There were about fifteen humpbacks in the area, and we spent quality time with twelve of them. Since they were so far west, we got to spend over an hour and fifteen minutes with these cetaceans! We began with a group of three humpbacks: Wyoming, Bounce, and Ravine. When these whales went down on a dive, Etch-a-Sketch and another unidentified humpback popped up. We watched this group and the group of three for a bit but decided to venture on to other whales in the area. We saw flipper flapping and it turned out to be Spoon flipper slapping with her calf and Jabiru following alongside her. There was some white water in the distance, so we headed that way. As we made our way, we came upon Music and Conflux. We sallied forth to two whales that had breached and were now flipper flapping. It was A-Plus and Shuffleboard. These whales were wicked curious swimming back and forth underneath the boat and then rolling and flipper slapping on both sides. They were very fun whales! Sunburnt (because Mira’s hat kept falling off so Caitlin was wearing it as a bracelet to keep it from flying away) and satisfied, we returned to Boston!
Pip pip,
Mira and Caitlin
07-19-22
10am & 2:30pm Whale Watch Sightings
This morning, the Sanctuary headed to the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank in search of whales. We had to continue a little further to the east before we came across a few scattered blows. We made our way over to two Humpback Whales, named Fern and Tear. These two were travelling near the surface and taking short dives, which allowed us to get some nice looks at them travelling just beneath the surface! With the time ticking down and a schedule to keep, we made our way back to Boston, excited to see what the afternoon would bring!
The afternoon trip on the Sanctuary decided to try switch it up and we made our way to the middle of the bank. We had not even made it to the bank itself before started seeing blows! These all turned out to be Humpback Whales, and we made our way over to two of them travelling together, who were named Music and Conflux. They were slowly travelling before they suddenly rolled over and began to flipper slap next to the boat, giving us a rare close look at this incredible behavior! They did this for a long stretch of time before they eventually settled into longer dives. So, we decided to go and make our way to another cluster of Humpbacks close by. When we arrived, we were surprised by a breaching calf, who landed back in the water with a big splash! We then watched this calf’s mother, a whale named Spoon, accompanied by Jabiru and Hippocampus, surface nearby! These whales were all travelling in close quarters, spending long periods of time near the surface before going on brief dives. Spoon’s calf even came and gave both sides of the boat a very close approach. After watching these whales for quite some time, we sadly had to bid farewell to these amazing animals, and we headed back to Boston. It was an incredible day on the water!
Until Next Time!
David & Rachel
07-20-22
11am Whale Watch Sightings
This morning the Asteria headed out towards Stellwagen in search of whales and quickly found two sleepy humpbacks. These logging whales were spending quite a bit of time at the surface, allowing for some great looks! We were able to ID this pair as Conflux and Fern! We even got to see a lazy flipper slap from Conflux, before we moved on to some other whales in the area. We found a group of 3 humpbacks, Spoon, her 2022 calf, and Jabiru! Unfortunately, shortly after we found these whales, we were reminded of one of the major threats to whales as a recreational boater sped through the area where these whales had just dove, and disrupted the path of travel of the calf who surfaced as they sped in front of us. We used this as a learning opportunity, and continued to watch these whales from a respectable distance. Spoons calf then surprised us with a breach, before meeting back up with Spoon and Jabiru and started rolling and flipper slapping! We realized we had run out of time and had to make our way home to Boston after a great day on the Bank!
Sydney, Linnea, and Rachel
07-20-22
12pm Whale Watch Sightings
Today aboard the Aurora, the 12pm whale watch made its way towards the middle of Stellwagen Bank in search of whales and other marine life. Before we got to the bank, we spotted a few blows. The first blow we explored turned out to be Wyoming the humpback. Wyoming was taking fairly long dives so we decided to take a little bit of drive. We came across a trio of humpbacks who turned out to be Jabiru, Spoon and her 2022 calf! This trio at first was moving a lot and we got some beautiful fluking dives. After they surfaced again, they started logging. Since it was a calm day offshore, we were able to get some really amazing looks as this trio was resting at the surface! After some great looks we had to head back to Boston. It was a really amazing day offshore today!
Flukes up,
Colin and Olivia
07-20-22
10am and 2:30pm Whale Watch Sightings
The 10:00 whale watch welcomed staff and volunteers from the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary and the Boys and Girls Club from Lawrence, MA and it was wonderful to have them aboard! We found several humpback whales scattered throughout an area to the west of Stellwagen Bank, many of them snoozing and remaining rather quiet in their movements. Sleepy whales are great in the sense that even novice photographers have time and opportunity for great photos of them since they aren’t swimming along and diving out of sight shortly after surfacing. Ravine, Conflux, and Fern are three of the whales identified, as whales could be spotted in all directions- some near, some far, and some rolling over (see photo of flipper). We were having a great time enjoying the calm waters when a smaller body began leaping from the water about a quarter mile away, and its shape and long, whiplike tail made it obvious that we were seeing a breaching thresher shark!!! I’ve tried typing out a sentence three different times to try and describe how exciting this once-in-a-lifetime sighting was, but nothing can replicate the excitement and energy that was felt across the boat. Truly an awesome, awesome experience.
In the afternoon, we headed out in the same direction and found ourselves once again surrounded by whales. After a few looks at 2-3 individual humpbacks, we notice breaching and flipper slapping from two whales who joined together by the time we reached them, quickly identifying the two as Stellwagen regulars, Shuffleboard and Freckles. The splashy activity stopped but other activity picked up, even though it left us saying, “what are they doing?!” more than the oohs and ahhs from breaching. Shuffleboard especially was moving around a little oddly, coming up tail first, wiggling side to side, and seemingly mimicking a North Atlantic right whale behavior called “sailing”, in which the whales stick their flukes up above the surface and remain that way for some time. A passenger asked if the humpbacks might learn from right whales, and I suppose you can never say never, right? Before we began the ride back to Boston, we watched as Fern and a friend surfaced nearby, with Fern engaging in a brief bout of lobtailing. We are absolutely loving this season and the spectacular experiences these awesome animals provide!
Laura L. and Liza
07-21-22
11am Whale Watch Sightings
Whale hello there all,
Today aboard the Asteria, the 11am whale watch made its way offshore in search of whales and other marine life. Through the wind and the waves, we spotted a few blows a little west of Stellwagen Bank. We started on a humpback who was being very sneaky, doing a lot of movement beneath the water. We decided to check out another blow which turned out to be Ravine the humpback whale. She was taking fairly long dives, but she was spending a lot of time at the surface so we were able to get some great looks at her. At one point she did this beautiful high fluking dive right near the boat! After some great looks at her, we spotted another blow not far away from us. This ended up being Conflux the humpback whale. After a beautiful fluking dive from him, we headed back to Boston. It was a really great day out on the water!
FLUKES UP!
Colin and Addy
07-21-22
12pm Whale Watch Sightings
The Aurora headed out to Stellwagen Bank without incident and cruised into the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, spotting great, Cory’s, and sooty shearwaters along with Wilson’s storm petrels on the way out. In the recent whale hotspot to the west of the bank, we spotted several whales milling about the area. Two solo individuals flanked our boat while we were greeted by a surprise and fast-moving pod of Atlantic white sided dolphins! Ravine and Conflux were swimming close by to each other, but after watching what we thought was a different individual, we realized that they had split and we were following Ravine to the south. Two whales flipper slapped in the distance and when we approached more closely we found Pitcher and Hippocampus. My absolute favorite part of the trip, however, was the enthusiasm and joy felt by passengers who had the time of their life!
Laura L. and Gracie
07-21-22
10am & 2:30pm Whale Watch Sightings
Today the 10AM Sanctuary whale watch set out in white-capped haze to look for whales. We found Ravine who was going on decent dives and giving us nice high flukes, but we decided to venture on to see if we could find anything else. We got a few long-distance views of Conflux. Ravine was great as always though so satisfied we returned to Boston. On the way in we saw a harbor porpoise.
The 2:30 followed a similar course East although it took us much longer to find whales as it had gotten grayer and windier. We saw one single Atlantic white-sided dolphin. Thankfully Music tail lobbed for us making it easier to find her. She was with Conflux and Shuffleboard. These three gave us some lovely looks before we had to return to Boston again.
07-22-22
11am Whale Watch Sightings
Today was a very special day on the 11AM Asteria trip because it was the Captain’s birthday! As such we had great sea conditions, good whales, and Mira’s first shark of the season! We began with two whales, Fern and Wyoming, who gave a mighty tail slap before going off on a dive. We watched these whales for a while longer before moving on to join, Pitcher and another humpback. We watched them for bit until there was a steady movement on the water. It was a blue shark! This was followed shortly thereafter by an ever-attractive gray seal. There were about nine humpbacks in the area but we went off to see a finback whale. It was a fantastic day on the water with so many different species!
Smooth sailing!
Mira and Liza
07-22-22
12pm Whale Watch Sightings
Happy Friday Whale Watchers!
Today the Aurora headed out to the middle of Stellwagen Bank in search of whales. We were delighted to see they were still slightly closer to shore than normal, and quickly found ourselves in the presence of two slow moving Humpback Whales, named Fern and Wyoming. They were sitting just beneath the surface, and with the flat calm conditions offshore today, we could see every inch of them as they gracefully sat beside us. Fern even pooped near the surface! After getting some awesome looks at them, we moved along to an area with more scattered Humpback Whales. We were able to identify Shuffleboard and Ravine before another massive Humpback surfaced close by. It was none other than Spoon, with her calf surfacing right by her side! As we floated motionlessly, the calf came over and spent time right next to the boat, while Spoons enormous flippers could be seen deeper in the water nearby. These two allowed us to spend a lazy afternoon with them, and as we waved goodbye to them, we saw a huge splash ahead of us! Shuffleboard had started breaching. We looked around and noticed a lot of whales in the area had started to breach too! We even got to see a Fin Whale in the middle of all this commotion. Once the Fin Whale dove, we spotted two breaching Humpback Whales close enough for us to go check out before we went home. We were delighted to find Conflux flipper slapping and breaching repeatedly next to the boat! Music was the second whale there, though she had settled down, but not before giving us a close approach. With a high dive from both Conflux and Pitcher, we said goodbye and headed back to Boston. What an action packed day on the water!
Stay Cool!
David & Gracie
7-22-22
10am & 2:30pm Whale Watch Sightings
Good evening whale enthusiasts!
This morning the Sanctuary headed out towards the middle of Stellwagen Bank in search of whales, and we were excited to quickly find some cetaceans in this area! We started our trip with a pair of humpbacks consisting of Fern and Wyoming, who were logging at the surface, giving us some fantastic opportunities to view these whales as we could see their entire bodies due to the glassy seas. We got some great looks at this pair, and then continued on to find a trio of humpbacks that included Conflux, Bounce, and Music! While these whales appeared to also be napping, Conflux surprised us with a brief tail lob, and later also engaged in some lazy flipper slapping, almost hitting Music with his enormous flipper! Some eagle eye passengers spotted one of the highlights of this trip, which was a Blue Shark, as it cruised just below the surface on our starboard side! We got to watch this shark as it swam right next to the boat for over 5 minutes offering everyone on board the opportunity to appreciate this rare sighting! We saw a different species in the distance, and we were excited to get to spend some time with 2 fin whales. The incredibly calm seas allowed us to see their white lower jaws as they surfaced. While watching these fin whales, we also saw 2 minke whales, and before heading home were surprised by a napping mom and calf pair, Spoon and her 2022 calf! We got some final looks at these 2 before we had to head home, but not before we got some bonus sightings of a gray seal, as well as a small pop of Harbor Porpoise, making for a 6 species trip! More then satisfied, we returned home to Boston excited for the afternoon!
The 2:30pm trip returned to the same area, and quickly found some more sleepy humpbacks! We started with humpbacks Freckles and Ebony, as well as another pair of whales we are still working to ID. These whales were taking longer dives of at least 15 minutes, so we moved on to find what else might be around. While heading towards some blows we had seen about a half mile away, we also saw some breaching! We first saw 2 humpbacks breach back-to-back, and then a 3rd whale breached…based on what we saw from the flippers of this whale, we believe that this 3rd whale was a breaching Fin whale! We made our way over to this area to find that the surface activity had stopped, and these whales who had maybe tired themselves out from this bout of behavior, had begun to nap! We spent some time with a pair of sleepy humpbacks that included Jabiru and Shuffleboard. As we watched these sleepy ladies, we estimated over 12 humpback whales were also in this area around us! A familiar trio had come closer to us, and we were able to spend some more time with Conflux, Music, and Bounce! We were about to head home, when this trio surprised us with a close approach as they quickly headed towards Jabiru and Shuffleboard. While heading towards the pair, the trio began loudly trumpeting, leading us to wonder what these whales may be communicating to each other. After a beautiful afternoon on the bank, we had to leave these whales behind and head home.
Overall, a wonderful day for whale watching!
Sydney and Caitlin
07-23-22
10am Whale Watch Sightings
Good Evening Whale Watchers!
What a FANTASTIC day we had! The Asteria headed to Stellwagen Bank in search of wildlife. We had scarcely made it to Mid-Bank before spotting a Minke Whale ahead of us! After getting some quick looks at our curious Minke and a passing Humpback Whale, we saw large splashes out ahead of us. These were flipper slapping Humpback Whales! We were able to identify them as Spoon, her calf, and Shuffleboard. Spoon and Shuffleboard were both flipper slapping, while Spoon’s calf sat nearby at the surface. After repeated bouts of this splashy activity, they settled into resting at the surface, also known as logging. We were intending to leave them and go watch another pair of Humpbacks before our intern Liza spotted a dorsal fin cutting through the water right behind us. We were in the presence of a shark. But this was not just any shark…it was a Great White Shark! This shark swam right up to the side of the boat, giving us a beautiful view of its entire body. We spent several minutes next to this shark, giving both sides of the boat an up close and personal look at this apex predator of the deep. As the shark finally swam off, Spoon, calf and Shuffleboard had made their way over to where we had moved, with the calf even breaching once! Shuffleboard rolled over some more and was flipper slapping, while Spoon was on a deeper dive. Spoon’s calf even approached our boat and gave us a close look before we had to make a turn home for Boston. What an incredible day on the water!
Until Next Time!
David, Eman & Liza
07-23-22
2:30pm Whale Watch Sightings
The 2:30 PM aboard the Asteria ventured out in search of our cetacean friends. Our first sighting was of a mom/calf duo – Spoon and her 2022 Calf! These whales were up at the surface for the few minutes before going down for a long dive. While waiting for them to surface, we slowly moved over to a group of three whales. Two were humpback whales known as Music and Conflux! The other blow came from a fin whale that was traveling near the Humpback duo. The fin whale went down on a dive after a few minutes of traveling at the surface, and then we focused our attention on Music and Conflux. Both whales were surfacing regularly, and we happily spent some time appreciating their activity. Not wanting to crowd these whales, the Asteria ventured toward some other blows. Along the way, we found two additional fin whales, a minke whale, and some small harbor porpoises! We ended our trip with some incredible views of Spoon and her 2022 calf as they were logging at the surface.
It was a fantastic four-species day!
Eman, David, & Liza
07-23-22
11am & 3:30pm Whale Watch Sightings
We set out aboard the Aurora towards the middle portion of Stellwagen Bank. It was difficult to see whale blows against the hazy horizon, but we were soon able to detect 3 pairs of blows scattered in the area. Arriving on our first pair of humpback whales we identified Conflux and Ravine, followed closely by a second pair of Music and Jabiru. Upon arrival it seemed that both pairs were engaging in some napping, or logging, but after a while the whales became active and the two pairs milled about, splitting and joining in their associations faster than we could keep up! Once they settled into slumber again, we made our way toward our third pair, who we soon identified as Spoon and her 2022 calf! The calf did a little spy hop, checking us out and pirouetting slowly before executing a perfect little fluking dive following her mother below the waves.
We were excited to get back out to Stellwagen for our second trip, but to our surprise found ourselves in a completely different landscape when we reached the coordinates we had only left hours ago! The wind had kicked up more of a wave on the water, and we soon found ourselves surrounded by the usually elusive fin whales! They made several forceful surfacings, also in pairs, and we even got a close drive by! After several sightings of these impressive creatures, we took a drive along the bank to the Southern edge to see what else we might find.
Before we knew it we were in the midst of small splashes breaking the surface and found ourselves surrounded by Common Dolphins! They porpoised around us for several minutes before making their way out of the area. Flabbergasted, we saw more fin whales before finding a pair of humpback whales in the mix. These turned out to be Bandit and second, yet unknown whale , closely followed by a singular humpback named Dusky. They swam around our vessel, switching sides and taking brief forays into the deep.
We reluctantly tiptoed Boston-ward, baffled and pleased with our adventures at sea.
07-23-22
12pm & 5pm Whale Watch Sightings
Good evening, my baleen buddies!
The noon whale watch headed towards Stellwagen Bank on the Sanctuary. We came upon quite a few pairs of humpback whales! There were sixteen humpbacks in the area, and we began with a sleepy Jabiru and friend. We then scooched over toHippocampus and another friend! Then we saw a gray seal that Maddie was very disappointed was not a shark. After that a fin whale zipped through the area followed by our final pair of humpbacks: Shuffleboard and Bounce. We headed back to Boston to grab some ice cream before our second trip.
The sunset whale watch headed to the same spot, but things were radically different! We now had over twenty humpbacks in the area, and they were no longer tired! We were excitedly watching Ravine tail lob when Music and Conflux breached at the same time! A double breach! Then Music began tail lobbing and Ravine went onto flipper slapping. The three went on a dive and then Music came up to flipper slap some more. We decided to move on towards a small flipper that was slapping the water; it was Spoon’s calf! Spoon and Jabiru were close by keeping an eye on this curious critter. They lead us onto our next group of four whales which included Bounce, Shuffleboard, and Pitcher. While we were watching them, a minke whale splashed through the area and a fin whale went by further out. Everyone was very satisfied with our three species,
Pip pip cheerio,
Mira, Caitlin, and Maddie
07-24-22
10am Whale Watch Sightings
The Asteria was full of excited passengers as we made our way to Stellwagen Bank today! We trekked out south of the Bank, stopping in an area crammed with blows indicative of the presence of whales. We counted over fifteen blows in the area! Before we could take time to appreciate the numerous blows, a humpback whale we identified as Parens began blew a bubble net right next to our boat! We got spectacular looks at Parens‘ baleen as this whale fed numerous times around us. While watching Parens, we almost missed some bubble clouds blown by one of my favorite whales on our other side! Conflux was blowing bubble clouds around the boat, demonstrating the difference between the two types of bubble feeding (bubble nets and bubble clouds) we see on the bank! After spending a good portion of time with the two Humpbacks, some other blows in the distance caught our eye. As we moved over to them, we were pleasantly surprised to find that they were three fin whales! These fin whales were spending a significant time at the surface as they swam toward an area where several other whales happened to be feeding. We trekked after them, making sure to keep a respectful distance as we appreciated their enormous size and incredible chevron patterns. As these fin whales went down on a dive, we found ourselves in the presence of two more humpbacks – Bandit and Dusky! Both of these whales were bubble feeding together! We watched the two humpbacks feed, during which the fin whales surfaced around us several times!
Despite our SHARED desire to stay on Stellwagen Bank all day, we had to turn back home. But before we could fully leave the area, Dusky and Bandit blew an incredible bubble cloud and lunged with Conflux in the mix! Just as they surfaced, the three whales dove in different directions, which appeared to be a group split! It was a great example of how fluid and dynamic these associations can be in baleen whales.
It was a fantastic day on the bank!
Eman, Linnea, & Maddie
7-24-22
2:30pm Whale Watch Sightings
This afternoon we boarded the Asteria after a blustery, but very successful first outing South of the Southwest Corner of Stellwagen Bank. We were eager to get back out on the water, and hopeful we would be treated to more incredible sightings.
Arriving where we had left the whales earlier in the day, we were confronted by rising seas and a strong, gusty wind. Between whitecaps we were able to spot a few blows and soon found ourselves in the company of a myriad of mysticetes! A few fin whales darted around, showing off their chevron patches as they forcefully rose to the surface. Before we knew it the blows multiplied ahead and we found some humpbacks in the mix! Of the 6 or 7 humpbacks all around us, at least 4 were actively feeding. We were able to observe several different behaviors all around us including bubble net feeding, dragging, and even some kick feeding! Of the humpbacks in the area we were able to identify Parens, Bandit, and Glo! Glo put on quite an impressive show of tail breaches between bouts of bubble feeding, allowing us tremendous last looks before making a rocky way home.
A windy and wonderful day on the water!
Until next time,
Linnea, Eman, and Maddie
7-24-22
11am and 3:30pm Whale Watch Sightings
Good evening whale enthusiasts!
This morning the Aurora headed out towards the Southwest Corner of Stellwagen bank in search of cetaceans and were excited to find many feeding humpback whales! We spent most of our trip with Parens, Bandit and Dusky, who were busy bubble net and kick feeding! We also got some brief looks at some fin whales in the area. We got some fantastic looks at these whales, and even got to see Parens poop at the surface frequently, reminding us of the important role these cetaceans play in nutrient cycling. We also got some unfortunate reminders of the major threats to these whales, discovering that Dusky had been hooked and entangled in monofilament fishing gear, and observing a boat speed over a forming bubble cloud. We used these as learning opportunities, allowing us to discuss in greater detail how passengers on board can help protect and preserve these whales. After getting some final incredible looks at these whales, we had to return to Boston, looking forward to the afternoon.
The afternoon trip returned to the same area, and found ourselves surrounded by 5 fin whales! We got some great looks at these behemoths before continuing on to an area full of feeding humpbacks! We spent most of our trip with Dusky, Cats Paw, Soot and Doric, who were all busy displaying different feeding behaviors. We got some incredible looks at these whales, as well as a few distant breaches, before we realized we had run out of time and had to head home. While trying to slowly leave the area, we were treated to many bonus sightings on our ride home, making for a wonderful day on the bank!
Sydney and Caitlin
7-24-22
12pm and 5pm Whale Watch Sightings
Happy Shark Week!
We boarded the Sanctuary for the 12pm whale watch set on a southerly course in search of whales. Upon arriving in the southern end of the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, we noticed quite a few blows. Making our way toward a surfacing humpback, we were suddenly interrupted by a fin whale off our port pulpit! Just as soon as we spotted one, we spotted several more, counting at least 9-12 fin whales! We spent a majority of our time with three individuals who were engaging in lunge feeding and staying relatively close. Even with the building seas, we were able to follow one individual by its chevron pattern as it swam subsurface. Some minke whales could be seen lunging intermittently, and several hundred shearwaters. We slowly had to start making our way back to Boston, eager to return for our sunset trip.
Our 5pm trip had some building winds and seas to conquer, but we did just that, arriving off of Race Point to an abundance of feeding whales. We spent much of our time with a kickfeeding Sundown, a lunge feeding Catspaw, and Dusky. These whales wowed us with spectacular displays of their unique feeding styles, emerging through bubble clouds with mouths full of fish. A lazy fin whale popped up around us, deep in a slumber. We wrapped up our trip with a group of four feeding whales, carefully making our way out of the whale soup we had entered.
Flukes (and fins!) up!
Ashlyn and Addy
More Images from This Week
Boston Whale Watching: Naturalist Notes – 7/19/22 to 7/24/22