Whale Sightings 08/09/23 to 08/15/23. Please find the Naturalist Notes for the week of 08/09/23 to 08/15/23 from the onboard team of naturalists for our New England Whale Watching tour in partnership with the New England Aquarium.

 

 

08-09-23

9.00 en 13.30 uur Walviswaarnemingen

Goedemiddag,

The 9am whale watch headed out on the Cetacea towards the southern section of Stellwagen Bank and started off our trip in an area with a bird feeding frenzy! We were surrounded by gulls swarming and flying away with sand lance- and saw lunging minkes pushing the fish to the surface. We moved on and found the scattered blows of 4 solitary humpbacks: Diablo, Scylla, Quote, and Spoon! These whales were all in close proximity to each other and diving around our vessel. Seeing Spoon in the southwest corner was definitely a treat! She is estimated to be one of the larger humpbacks in the area- and typically is only seen in the northern section of the sanctuary. As we were watching Spoon, she suddenly changed her behavior and conducted a series of very big but lazy flipper slaps! Shortly after this, we saw her and Quote join up in a short-lived association – clearly the flipper slapping caught the attention of the other humpbacks!

The 1:30 whale watch headed a little farther north and spotted a collection of blows from multiple humpbacks! We started off our trip with a quick sighting of a mola mola before having a mysterious smaller whale approach our boat and turn directly toward us! We then slowly moved through the area – spending time with two mom and calf pairs: Ravine and her 2023 calf and Tripod and her 2023 calf. We spent most of the trip with Tripod and calf and got to watch these two animals of vastly difference sizes slowly swim through the water. We watched as the calf tried multiple times to attempt a fluking dive like its mom, and as we were leaving, we watched it complete a full fluking dive!

Kate

 

10.00 en 14.30 uur Walviswaarnemingen

Hey there!

Today’s 10AM whale watch aboard the Sanctuary left Boston Harbor to explore the northwest corner of Stellwagen Bank. After a few short moments of searching, we came across Ravine and her 2023 calf! This mother-calf pair was slowly traveling through the area, where we got some great looks at mom’s fluke and the calf’s (best attempt to) fluke. We then left this pair to investigate a blow spotted in the distance. Dashdot greeted us with a super high fluke and then slipped down into the water column. While waiting for Dashdot to return to the surface, we also saw Othello in the area. These whales then joined up and began logging at the surface. After some time viewing these sleepy whales, we made our way back to Boston.

On our 2:30PM trip, we decided to switch things up and head to the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank. We saw some large splashing in the distance and once we got closer, it turned out to be Dross’s 2023 calf breaching! This whale was super active while its mom was feeding in the area. Just as we turned to make our way home, we saw at least 4 other individual whales breach in the distance. We cruised towards the pair closest to us to get some quick looks before we had to continue back to Boston. Tripod was swimming along while her 2023 calf was breaching and flipper slapping up a storm! After removing a balloon that was floating at the surface of the ocean (thanks crew!!), we regretfully left the wiggly calf and headed home.

Here’s a gentle reminder to stop purchasing balloons and never release them into the sky!

Beste vissen,

Meg and Anjali

 

11 uur Waarnemingen van walvissen

Goedemiddag,

Aboard the Asteria, the 11am whale watched journeyed out to Stellwagen Bank. Our search for whales were very soon interrupted by blows belonging to Humpback whales! As we slowly approached, we realized it was Ravine and her 2023 calf! The pair was up at the surface nearly our entire trip as they happily slept the afternoon away. Logging whales oftentimes offer incredible views due to their slow movements and ample time at the surface. Our encounter with them today was exceptional as they slowly moved through the area, taking very slow fluking dives, and surfacing just a minutes later. Time evaded us quickly and, before we knew it, we were returning to Boston after an incredible time with these whales.

It was a fantastic time on the water!

Eman and Jane

 

12.00 uur Waarnemingen van walvissen

Goedemiddag,

The Aurora cruised out on the northern edge of the shipping lanes to the middle of Stellwagen Bank. We watched Ravine and her calf slowly swimming on their own, with the calf’s adorable little bobbing motions and chin raises. Ravine was likely enjoying an afternoon nap, but she did wake up enough to give one high kick of her fluke. Their slow, gentle movements allowed for wonderful observation opportunities and time to catch some nice photos before we happily cruised back in to Boston.

Laura L. And Lily

 

 

 

08-10-23

9am Whale Watch Sightings

Goedemiddag,

Today, the Cetacea set out at 9am to find whales on Stellwagen Bank! As we approached the area where we typically see whales, we saw a giant mouth come up out of the water and, seconds later, a massive splash from a breach!! The two humpback whales kept up these behaviors as we slowly approached them. Upon getting closer, we identified the whales as Tripod and her 2023 calf! Throughout our trip, Tripod blew multiple bubble clouds and lunged through them while the calf was busy traveling around the surface and our boat! The calf interrupted its traveling a few times to dive and lunge through bubble clouds alongside its mother! Our time with Tripod and her calf was full of their active swimming, feeding, and a few breaches from the calf! Before we knew it, time had run out and we began to head back to Boston. Our return was briefly interrupted by a sighting of a small pod of harbor porpoises! We got incredible looks at these smaller cetaceans before they disappeared below the surface.

It was a fantastic time on the water!!

Eman and Indi

 

10.00 en 14.30 uur Walviswaarnemingen

Hallo allemaal,

Today aboard the Sanctuary, the 10am whale watch made its way towards Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary in search of whales and other marine life.  Before we reached the bank, we stumbled upon a large pod of Atlantic white-sided dolphins!  The dolphins were circling the boat, and they even porpoised a few times!  While watching the dolphins, we noticed a couple of blows from larger whales not far from us.  This turned out to be a pair of humpback whales consisting of Quote and Scylla!  These two were logging at the surface which allowed us to get some beautiful looks at them.  These lovely ladies even gave us some really beautiful fluking dives right off the bow!  After they went on a dive, we ventured on to Stellwagen where we stumbled upon Tripod and Tripod 23 Calf.  Tripod and her calf were taking fairly long dives, but they were spending a lot of time at the surface, so we were able to get some quality looks at them.  After a beautiful fluking dive from Tripod and her calf we had to head back to Boston.

The 230pm whale watched decided to go for a ride to the south in search of wildlife.  We were in luck when we noticed several blows after some searching.  We started on a group of four humpbacks consisting of Woodwind, Bolide, Milkweed, and Sprinkles.  This group popped up right next to the boat a few times!  After some great looks at this group, we ventured off to find Lollipop and Lollipop 23 Calf.  The calf proceeded to suddenly breach twice!  We then ventured to see a group of three humpbacks consisting of Draco, A-Plus, and A-Plus 23 Calf.  The group swam right next to the boat!  There were several other groups in the area as we estimated around 20 different humpbacks in the area!  After some beautiful fluking dives by Draco and A-Plus, we had to head back to Boston.  It was a really amazing day offshore!

Tot de volgende keer,

Colin en Josiah

 

11 uur Waarnemingen van walvissen

Goedemiddag,

Today aboard the Asteria we had a pleasant day out in the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. We spent time with two veteran female humpbacks in their 40s, Quote and Scylla – the two of them combined have had at least 25 calves in their lifetime! It’s was wonderful to spend time with two very productive and important females to the population. As these two snoozed a bit in-between dives, we started to see some splashes in the distance of a pod of 150-200 Atlantic White-Sided dolphins charging in the distance. Eventually they approached our boat, porpoising occasionally (we spotted several calves as well!). If that wasn’t enough, we were treated to a huge breach by Quote to end the day. A great time on the water!

Proost,

Laura

 

12.00 uur Waarnemingen van walvissen

Goedemiddag,

The 12pm whale watch headed out on the Aurora towards the northwest corner of Stellwagen Bank! As we approached the area we saw a massive breach from an adult humpback – and found ourselves in the presence of Quote, Scylla, and a pod of around 50-75 Atlantic white-sided dolphins! All these cetaceans were weaving in and out of each other, likely both feeding on the same type of small schooling fish. In the pod of dolphins, we saw multiple little calves, who at times seemed to ride the “wake” of the whales. It was fun to be able watch these animals of vastly different sizes (Humpbacks are 45-50 feet, Atlantic white sided dolphins are 78-9 feet) swim in close proximity to each other. Our humpbacks didn’t seem too pleased with the pod, and often trumpeted. At one point, Scylla thrusted her head forward in an explosive manner – creating a large splash! We got beautiful looks at these two different cetaceans before heading back to Boston!

Kate en Lily

 

 

 

08-11-23

9am Whale Watch Sightings

Hallo allemaal,

Today aboard the Cetacea, the 9am whale watch made its way out towards the northern part of Stellwagen Bank in search of whales and other marine life.  As we approached the area, we spotted a couple of blows.  These blows came from Tripod and Tripod 23 Calf!  The calf greeted us with a little bout of flipper slapping!  Eventually our mother-calf pair settled into a mid-day snooze, but both were up at the surface, so we got some incredible looks at them.  We decided to let the pair snooze, so we made our way a little further south.  We then stumbled across Dross and Dross 23 Calf who were moving slowly at the surface.  Dross and her calf gave us a beautiful close approach, and then Dross went down a very beautiful fluking dive!  While these two were down on the dive, we had a close approach from a minke whale and a blue shark!  After the blue shark dove, we got some final great looks at Dross and her gave before heading back to Boston.  It was an awesome day out on Stellwagen!

Tot de volgende keer,

Colin en Josiah

 

10.00 en 14.30 uur Walviswaarnemingen

Goedenavond,

On the Sanctuary, the 10am whale watch departed in search of whales. As we neared the area where we typically find whales, we were excited to discover the fin of a large ocean sunfish (mola mola) sticking out of the water! After some excellent views of this massive fish, we continued on to whales we had spotted in the distance. We ended up spending our trip with two humpback whales: Dross and her 2023 calf. Dross was logging at the surface as we approached, but the calf seemed relatively active and awake as it travelled around and under our boat. After a quick breach from the calf, Dross rolled over and immediately started flipper slapping! This activity continued until the calf joined its mother and the two promptly went to sleep. Their nap was short, and it wasn’t long until Dross began taking some longer dives while the calf came to check out our boat. Dross’ calf spy hopped twice near our bow and swam around us for a few minutes before, once again, returning to its mother. We watched these whales return to their well-deserved naps before we began our return to Boston.

The 2:30pm whale watch boarded the Cetacea and headed out to find some cetaceans. It took some searching to find the whales, but our efforts were rewarded immensely when we came across an area with 10-15 humpback whales, a few minke whales, and a fin whale! The whales were very busy as we neared them and were constantly surfacing and diving in every direction. It appeared that most of the whales were feeding below the surface but coming up often to give us incredible looks. Among the many whales, we identified Startrail, Arroyo, Flock, Jabiru, Eruption, and Pele. We had some incredible close encounters with Pele, Jabiru, and Eruption as they surfaced and dove on our portside. We also got to see Startrail and Flock up close as they dove right in front of our idle boat! In between the feeding, we also watched Arroyo roll over and begin flipper slapping. It was a fantastic tri-species trip!

It was a wonderful day on the water!

Eman and Jane

 

11 uur Waarnemingen van walvissen

Goedemiddag!

The 11am whale watch headed out on the Asteria towards the middle of Stellwagen Bank. With glassy calm seas, we were happy to spot the spouts of Dross and her 2023 calf! When we first arrived at the area, these whales seemed to be logging (sleeping) at the surface. The water was so clear – we could see the entire length of the whales! We got fantastic looks at our humpbacks – and were able to see small details like the barnacles on the calf’s rostrum and a few cyamids (whale louse) on Dross. Although these whales eventually woke up and slowly moved through the water – we spent basically the entire trip with both whales at the surface! At one point, the calf looked like it was “surfing” the waves, and it seemed to stretch and roll gently in the swells. After Dross finally lifted her giant tail out of the water, we were able to wave goodbye and head back to Boston.

Kate en Anjali

 

12.00 uur Waarnemingen van walvissen

Goedemiddag walvisliefhebbers!

The Aurora headed towards the southwest corner in search of cetaceans were we found 20-24 humpback whales! There were several large groups, mixing and mingling, likely feeding below the waves. We found Nile, Infinity, and Crown; Jabiru, Eruption, and Pele; Ravine, Ravine 23 Calf, Lollipop, Lollipop 23 Calf, Milkweed, and Woodwind; and Spell. These whales treated us to several close approaches, and surfaced on all sides of the boat — the definition of whale soup!

We moved on to some other blows in the area. We found Ember blowing bubble clouds and lunging, and Arroyo kick feeding! We got some incredible looks at these whales as they fed around us, and watched as a fin whale entered the area, joined by 3 minke whales making for a 3 species day!

We got some beautiful last looks at these feeding whales before making our way back to Boston after an incredible day of whale watching.

Sydney en Indi

 

 

 

08-12-23

9.00 en 13.30 uur walvissafari's

Goedenavond,

On the 9am trip aboard the Cetacea, we enjoyed glassy seas, surrounded by 15-20 humpbacks, several minkes, and tons of shearwaters and laughing gulls in the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. We spent time with a trio that passed us by, Pele, Jabiru & Eruption. As we watched them, we could see a distant container ship in the midst of many recreational boats, reminding us of the shared environment of humans and whales. We also spent time with A-Plus, her calf, and GOM 2232, who like their surrounding whales, were doing lots of tight turns indicating that they were subsurface feeding. With the amount of bird life, there must have been lots of bait near the surface as well! We wrapped up our trip with Lollipop and calf, and the calf tail breached for us! Lollipop’s calf is still actively entangled in monofilament gear, and it being monitored by the Center for Coastal Studies. In addition to whale entanglement in fishing gear, seabirds can also be entangled in rod-and-reel gear. We observed a Great Shearwater actively wrapped up in fishing gear today. If you are ever on the water in a small boat, it’s recommended to pull your fishing gear out of the water if you are in an active whale “soup” area – can save the life of an animal! A great resource to share about safe boating around whales is www.seeaspout.org

On our 1:30pm trip we headed back to the SWC corner, again finding 15-20 humpback whales including Bounce and calf (a new sighting for us this season!); Jabiru, Pele, and Eruption; Bolide, Sprinkles, and Milkweed; Dome, Infinity, Hammock, Mend, and Ravine and calf among others! We saw a distance breach and some kick feeding as well. Most of the humpbacks were continuing with their subsurface foraging, working in groups of 2-4 whales. With all this bait, birds, and baleen around, it’s a great time to get out on the water!

Proost,

Laura & Jane

 

10.00 en 14.30 uur Walviswaarnemingen

Goedenavond,

The Asteria left the dock at 10am in order to find whales on Stellwagen Bank today. The seas were so calm it almost felt like a lake as we made our journey out! Due to the calm seas, it wasn’t at all surprising that our first encounter with wildlife was spotted by the small fin sticking out of the water. The fin belonged to a massive ocean sunfish (mola mola) who was up at the surface basking in the sun. We spent several minutes with this sunfish before we continued onward to find some cetaceans! It wasn’t much longer until we spotted a blow at the surface. The blow belonged to a young humpback whale named Wigwam 18 calf. Because this humpback whale is so young, it does not have its own name yet and is referred to by its mother’s name (Wigwam) and the year it was born (2018). Once the whale gets a bit older, it will be given its very own name! This juvenile was up at the surface logging as we approached, but it promptly woke up and got a bit curious of us and our boat. The small whale spent most of our time checking us out as it swam under and around us. The perfectly calm water meant we got incredible views of the whale as it slowly surfaced at our port and starboard sides of the boat. After several close encounters with this wonderful whale, we slowly made our way back to Boston.

On the 2:30pm whale watch, the Asteria made its way back to Stellwagen Bank. As we approached, there appeared to be a whale feeding party off of Provincetown! There were 20-25 humpback whales crowded in the area and we were very quickly surrounded by them! These whales were surfacing and diving every direction we looked. There seemed to be one consistent group of Pele, Jabiru, and Eruption, but all the other whales were forming and reforming groups as they moved around the area. We were delighted to find several mother-calf pairs in the area, including Bounce and her 2023 calf, A-Plus and her 2023 calf, Lollipop and her 2023 calf, and Ravine and her 2023 calf. We got to see multiple breaches from Lollipop’s 23 calf in the distance before the calf and Lollipop joined the bigger group! Putter was also quite surface active as it tail breached and lobtailed at the surface before disappearing on a long dive. Other whales that were identified in the area include Nile, Flock, Arroyo, Spell, Milkweed, and Draco. With the wonderful whale chaos, we completely lost track of time!! We quickly said goodbye to the whales after our trio of Pele, Jabiru, and Eruption went down on fluking dives.

It was a fantastic day on the Bank!

Eman and Lily

 

11.00 en 15.30 uur Whale Watch Waarnemingen

Goedenavond walvisliefhebbers!

The Aurora headed south in search of cetaceans for the 11 am whale watch, and quickly found an area with over 20 humpback whales! Most of these whales were travelling and changing directions quickly, suggesting that they may be feeding beneath the surface. We watched several groups of whales move around the area, and several of these whales treated us to close approaches as we sat out of gear allowing them to maneuver around us. Our IDs included Nile and Flock; Pele, Eruption and Jabiru; Crown and Infinity; and Ravine, Ravine 23 calf, and 3.14. We saw some evidence of surface feeding and decided to go check it out. There we found Draco lunging at the surface! He quickly joined Dome and Chunk, and they began to engage in bubble net feeding! We got our last looks at these 3 hungry whales before heading back to Boston.

We returned for the 3:30 trip to find a similar scene to the morning. We spent most of our trip watching several groups of humpbacks quickly travel around the area. We were able to ID Milkweed, Bolide, and Sprinkles; Ravine, Ravine 23 calf, Startrail, and Spell; Infinity; Chunk; Nile and Flock; and Dome, Tear, and Crown. We then found Abyss busy making a splash, as she lobtailed at the surface for over 10 minutes! This must have caught the attention of the other whales in the area, as we saw some whales close by double breach! We watched as several patches of white water formed in the distance, showing how these behaviors may be a form of communication as we saw several groups of whales “call and respond” to each other with breaches! We got our last looks at a flipper slapping whale as we made our way back to Boston.
Overall a great day for whale watching!

Sydney en Indi

 

12u en 17u Waarnemingen van walvissen

Hallo allemaal,

Today aboard the Sanctuary, the 12pm whale watch made its way out towards the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank.  We were delighted to have been greeted by dozens of blows as we entered the area.  We started our trip on a lovely trio of humpback whales consisting of Pele, Jabiru, and Eruption.  The trio was spending a lot of time at the surface so we were able to get a lot of great looks at them!  After a set of beautiful fluking dives, we ventured on to see Bounce, Bounce 23 Calf, and another whale who dove not far from our boat!  We then got some looks at Nile and Flock who were darting through the area.  We then ventured off to see Ravine, Ravine 23 Calf, and 3.14 who also gave us an amazing close approach.  We then came across A-Plus, A-Plus 23 Calf, and Startrail who also gave us several beautiful fluking dives.  We then noticed some splashing in the distance, so we decided to go check it out.  This turned out to be Abyss who was kick feeding!  Abyss did this several times not far from us!  After several awesome looks at her, we made our way back to Boston.  On the way home, we got some really cool looks at an ocean sunfish!

The 5pm whale watch headed out to the same area in hopes of similar luck as the noon trip.  We were in luck when we spotted splashing in the distance.  This turned out to be Mend the humpback who was breaching over and over!  For over 30 minutes Mend continued to breach, tail breach, lob tail, inverted lob tail, and flipper slap not far from the boat!  It was such an awe-inspiring experience to see Mend do all this surface activity for as long as she did.  Her last breach was her most impressive as she spun 360 degrees before hitting the water!  After Mend began to tire, we ventured off to look at the other flurry of activity in the area.  We spent a brief time with Bounce and Bounce 23 Calf before venturing on to Abyss who was kick feeding again.  Abyss gave us a big lunge not far from the boat!  After this, she became very curious of our boat, and she began hanging out with us for over 10 minutes!  After her curiosity waned and she dove back into the abyss, we got brief looks at Draco, A-Plus, and A-Plus 23 Calf who swam right next to the boat!  After they dove, we made our way back to Boston.  It was a spectacular day on the water!

Tot de volgende keer,

Colin en Josiah

 

 

08-13-23

9.00 en 13.30 uur Walviswaarnemingen

Good Evening Whale Fans,

Today we boarded the Cetacea under sunny skies and a light breeze, eager to make our way to whale territory. Arriving at Stellwagen Bank we soon began to see several blows emerging from the hazy horizon. We found ourselves among at least 7 whales including Bristle, Chairlift, Milkweed, A-Plus and her 2023 calf, 3.14, and Woodwind! These whales were arranged in loose associations of 3 and 4 individuals milling amongst one another and offering some close looks!

We were sad to leave but eager to get back out to the bank with our next group of adventurers!

The second trip was instantly different and can only be described as a full Bingo card of whale behaviors. Blows seemed to multiply along the horizon and before we knew it a whale was breaching! This turned out to be Bounce’s 2023 calf, who was flexing her flippers and testing her independence. She continued to breach for the remainder of the trip, only pausing once to turn upside down and show off some impressive lob-tailing! Before we could get our fill of breaching, a bubble net formed off our port bow and 7 adult whales and one calf emerged from the center, mouths open and triumphantly full of fish! We were absolutely over-whalemed by all of these impressive behaviors! This feeding group changed rapidly, some whales joining while others departed to kick feed on their own. Our confirmed IDs from this ever-changing group included: Nile, Startrail, Jabiru, Ravine and her 2023 calf, Chunk, Pitcher, Etch-A-Sketch, and Infinity, with a few whales whose identities have yet to be revealed. Amidst the humpback action we caught glimpses of a Mola mola and a small pod of Atlantic white-sided dolphins!

With full hearts and camera rolls we made our way back to Boston.

An outstanding day on Stellwagen Bank!

Tot de volgende keer!

Linnea and Lily

 

10.00 en 14.30 uur Walviswaarnemingen

Goedenavond walvisliefhebbers!

The Aurora head out towards the southwest corner in search of cetaceans for the 10am Whale watch. Here we found 2 groups of humpback quickly traveling around the area. We saw Chairlift, Woodwind, and Bristle, and Milkweed, 3.14, A-Plus, and A-Plus 23 Calf. A-plus and her group frequently close approached our boat. We got some fantastic looks at these whales before we had to make our way back to Boston satisfied with our morning of whale watching.

We made our way towards the middle of the bank for our afternoon trip where we found 20-25 humpback whales! We also saw 10-12 minke whales, a fin whale, and 2 pods of Atlantic white sided dolphins! While watching all of these whales feed around us, we were surprised by a Mola Mola! Today was Kaitlyn’s last whale watch, and her dream to see a Mola finally came true, and then was made even better when this Mola breached off the starboard side! We watched in Awe as so many whales lunged, breached, engaged in kick feeding, and close approached our boat on all sides. Pele, Jabiru and Eruption, and Nile and Conflux were the stars of the day as the close approached our boat several times, and the 2 groups repeatedly trumpeted at each other. Pele also pooped several times! We also ID’d Pitcher, Lollipop and her Calf, Flock, Startrail, Chunk, Hammock, Bounce, Etch-a-Sketch, and Ravine 23 calf.

Overall a absolutely incredible day. An extra special shoutout to Kaitlyn for working so hard this summer and we will miss her greatly!

Sydney and Kaitlyn

 

11.00 en 15.30 uur Whale Watch Waarnemingen

Goedenavond,

The Asteria made it out to Stellwagen Bank and found not one, but two logging humpback whales! One whale appeared a bit smaller than the other and barely raised its fluke above the surface while the other took higher fluking dives but had significantly more erratic behavior. We followed along as the smaller whale cruised slowly to the west, with one especially close look under the bright sunshine, allowing us to see its flippers clearly under the water. One the way out, we spotted two Saildrone conducting research autonomously.

The afternoon brought us a bit farther south where we watched numerous humpback whales as they raced up and down. Atlantic white sided dolphins appeared along with the trio Jabiru, Pele, and Eruption, but it was especially cute to watch Bounce’s 2023 calf seem to play with them, slashing its body and raising its head while surrounded by the smaller cetaceans. Nile, Ravine, Ravine’s calf, Infinity, Stairtrail, Flock, Chunk, and Etch-a-Sketch zipped around, with one or two of the adults eventually breaching in the distance as we began our trek back to Boston.

Laura L. and Antonia

 

12u en 17u Waarnemingen van walvissen

Goedenavond!

We boarded the Sanctuary for the 12 pm whale watch, relieved to beat the heat of the city. We made our way towards the middle of Stellwagen Bank, where we first encountered three groups of humpback whales. As if to announce their presence, one of these whales launched into a full breach, before rejoining its companions and taking part in bubble cloud feeding. Ravine and Infinity were working together to corral fish, while Ravine’s calf watched closely and blew its own bubble clouds! Joined by Lollipop’s 2023 calf, the two babies worked diligently to show off their newfound behaviors to their respective mothers. It did not appear they were actively feeding on the fish, but they are certainly growing up! Some splashing ahead of us grabbed our attention, and we were met with some very cooperatively feeding humpback whales, Dome (heard before seen as per usual), Nile, Chunk, Bounce, and Arroyo all worked together to create perfect bubble rings, emerging mouths agape and dragging at the surface. Bounce’s 2023 calf watched from outside the bubble ring, mimicking the movements, but taking opportunities to nurse when Bounce was at the surface. Atlantic white-sided dolphins and minke whales meandered into the area to take advantage of the feeding frenzy, and we enjoyed being pleasantly surrounded by whales, before we made the turn back to Boston.

Our sunset whale adventure started out similar, with two humpback whales launching themselves out of the water! Nile and Infinity took place in a breach off, both displaying jaw jumping leaps, landing them a perfect 10. Ravine’s 2023 joined the party, with some smaller breaches and a few tail breaches. Soon, they quieted down, and the whales in the area all came together, Ravine, Startrail, and GOM-2232 resting with their associates at the surface. They then began subsurface feeding, evident by a small pod of Atlantic White Sided dolphins surfacing and circle just before the whales. The toothed whales were not universally accepted though, Nile launching into a tail breach and several trumpets after they appeared to get in her way.  A minke whale cruised by, along with a pod of harbor porpoises, making a four species day! We cruised into the setting sun, satisfied with our seaside Sunday.

Fluke's up!

Ashlyn and Reilly

 

 

08-14-23

9am Whale Watch Sightings

Hallo allemaal,

Today aboard the Cetacea, the 9am whale watch made its way towards the southern section of Stellwagen Bank in search of whales and other marine life.  After getting a brief but awesome look at a minke whale, we spotted several blows ahead of us.  We started on a group of 7 humpbacks consisting of Bounce, Bounce 23 Calf, Lollipop, Lollipop 23 Calf, Ravine, Ravine 23 Calf, and Woodwind!  The calves were the stars of the trip, repeatedly coming up close to the boat to come check us out!  The popped up right off our bow a few times!  Lollipop’s calf even rolled on its side where its eye was above the water!  Eventually the curious calves rejoined their respective mothers as the large group did several beautiful fluking dives.  At one point, the mega group popped off right off the side of the boat!  Another group quickly joined the area.  This group consisting of Pele, Jabiru, and Eruption was darting through the area, but did come close to the boat so we were able to get some incredible looks at them.  After all the whales gave us some beautiful fluking dives, we had to start heading back to Boston.  It was a really amazing day out on Stellwagen!

Tot de volgende keer,

Colin

 

10.00 en 14.30 uur Walviswaarnemingen

Goedenavond walvisliefhebbers!

This morning the sanctuary made its way North on glassy seas in search of cetaceans. We travelled south along the bank until we found a pair of very sleepy humpbacks that turned out to be Tripod and calf! Occasionally tripods calf would roll on its side and engage in a behavior called snaking at the surface allowing for really interesting looks at this pair! Tripod and her calf took a fluking dive were tripod pooped at the surface, and then we decided to continue south to some other blows we had seen in the distance. Here we found Lollipop and her calf travelling slowly to the south, and a larger group as well. We spent most of our time with this larger group that included Bounce, Bounce 23 calf, Ravine, Ravine 23 calf, and Woodwind. We also got to see several minke whales while we watched this group. These whales were also travelling to the south when suddenly Ravine’s calf breached twice! This was followed by some trumpeting, ad we were surprised when after the next surfacing of this group Ravine herself breached, followed immediately by the calf! Ravine later breached 1 more time, and after this last breach, we saw Bounce and her calf had separated from the group. This had us wondering if Ravine and her calf breaching was their way of telling Bounce and her calf that they were no longer interested in travelling together. It was really interesting to see surface behavior as communication in action! We got some last looks at Bounce and her calf as they travelled south, now on their own, before making our way back to Boston.

The 2:30 pm trip headed to the southwest corner of Stellwagen bank where we found 20-23 humpback whales! We started with Crown who was busy flipper slapping, before suddenly stopping. This was followed by Lollipop and her calf engaging in several double breaches, chin breaches, and tail breaches about half a mile away! We went to check it out but by the time we got there they had begun to nap. We moved on to a trio that included Joy, Dome, and GOM-2232, as they travelled quickly at the surface. They led us to an area with several groups of whales and suddenly we were surrounded! The highlight of this trip was Etch-A-Sketch kick feeding right off our pulpit, before erupting in a forceful lunge! She seemed to be feeding on Herring, as evidenced by the lone survivor that jumped out of her mouth (see photo!). We got our last looks at Abyss as she flipper slapped ahead of us before heading back to Boston.

Al met al een geweldige dag om walvissen te spotten!

Sydney en Reilly

 

11 uur Waarnemingen van walvissen

Goedemiddag,

We had a lovely day aboard the Asteria for our 11am trip today. At the edge of the harbor, we spotted many resting female eider ducks, a creeping sign of fall beginning to show up. We followed glassy seas out to the SW corner of Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, spotting an abundance of Wilson’s Storm Petrels, Great Shearwaters, humpback whales, and minkes.

As our boat arrived, captain Deb decided to stay clear of the high density area of recreational boats, and our willingness to give whales space rewarded us today- we came upon a group of 5 humpbacks, Bounce and calf, Woodwind, and Ravine and calf. Bounce’s calf stole the show today, doing repeated full breaches, inverted lobtails, and a few flipper slaps! With this belly up whale, we could clearly see this calf is a female (see if you can see it’s hemispherical lobe). We also spotted Startrail who joined up with Ravine and calf, and also A-Plus and calf, making it a 3 calf day!

Een geweldige dag op het water!

Proost,

Laura & Antonia

 

12.00 uur Waarnemingen van walvissen

Goedemiddag,

The Aurora departed Boston full of passengers eager to see whales. It wasn’t long until we spotted a variety of small dorsal fins rising from the surface of the water. As we crept closer, we realized there were between 5-7 minke whales feeding in the area! They seemed to be circling the same area as they lunged at the surface. We spent several minutes with them before continuing on to see what other wildlife might be feeding nearby. The closer we got to the Southwest of Stellwagen Bank, the more blows we began to see. We ended up in an area with 20-25 humpback whales, 3-4 minke whales, and hundreds of birds! We were delighted to find several mother-calf pairs including A-Plus and her 2023 calf, Bounce and her 2023 calf, and Ravine and her 2023 calf. In addition, we got some excellent looks at Chunk, Bolide, and Sprinkles as they cruised along our portside. While we watched them, we also found Bristle, GOM-2232, Tear, Dome, Mayo, Joy, and Crown. These whales were all busy subsurface feeding and were moving around the area quite quickly as they chased down their lunch. Among the subsurface feeding whales, we also had two kick feeding ones: Etch-a-Sketch and Abyss. These two whales spent most of our time with them kicking their tail against the water and then lunging from the surface moments later. After some flipper slapping from Abyss, a lunge from Etch-a-Sketch, and fluking dives from countless other whales, we slowly made our way back to Boston.

It was a fantastic time on Stellwagen Bank!

Eman and Lily

 

 

08-15-23

10.00 en 14.30 uur Walviswaarnemingen

Goedenavond,

On the Sanctuary, 10am whale watch attempted to escape the rain as we set out towards Stellwagen Bank. Upon our arrival, we were greeted by the blows of between 20-25 humpbacks and a large pod of Atlantic White-Sided dolphins! Throughout our whale watch, we identified a number of the whales which include Crown, Infinity, Sprinkles, Startrail, Ravine and her 2023 calf, Lollipop and her 2023 calf, A-Plus and her 2023 calf, Chunk, Bolide, GOM-2232, Tear, Abyss, and Mayo. It seemed that all the adults were busy subsurface feeding and were constantly diving around us. Some of the calves were a bit more surface active while we were in the area. The calves of Ravine and A-Plus were flipper slapping, tail breaching, and rolling around at the surface for the majority of our trip! Before we knew it, the Sanctuary began making its way back to Boston after an incredible time with the whales!

On the 2:30pm whale watch, the Sanctuary returned to Stellwagen Bank. It wasn’t long until we spotted some blows in the distance. As we made our way over to them, a small pod of Atlantic White-sided Dolphins interrupted our pursuit. We watched these smaller cetaceans for a few minutes as they swam and porpoised around the boat. Once the dolphins disappeared below the surface, we continued on to find some baleen whales. Within minutes, we were delighted to find ourselves in the company of about a dozen humpback whales! Among those in the area, we identified Startrail, Abyss, Milkweed, GOM-2232, Chunk, Lollipop and her calf, A-plus and her calf, and Ravine and her calf. These whales started off in the same area together, but over the course of our trip slowly began to disperse through the area. We spent the majority of our time with A-Plus and her 2023 calf, Chunk, and GOM-2232. These whales were taking short dives and consistently surfacing near our boat. We were even treated to a few close approaches from the calf and A-Plus! After some wonderful fluking dives from our group of four, we slowly made our way back to Boston.

It was a beautiful and rainy day on the water!

Eman and Antonia

 

11 uur Waarnemingen van walvissen

Hallo,

It was definitely a wet one today as the rain poured down but the 11:00 whale watch was so exciting that no one seemed to mind! We arrived on Stellwagen Bank and found multiple groups of humpback whales scattered around the pocket of visibility that we had amidst the rain and fog. Groupings of two, three, and four whales charged around the area, likely foraging, while Atlantic white sided dolphins circled and breached in the mix as well. Ravine and A-Plus’ calves were busy splashing all over the place, and Lollipop was discovered upon review of photos of a far-away group, so we likely had at least three mom and calf pairs. A highlight for several passengers was catching a calf breach in the foreground of an adult breach in the back and we even had one full breach from an adult quite close to the boat. In the photo, you can see just how wet and windy it was out there! Milkweed, Woodwind, Bolide, Sprinkles, 3.14, Spell, and Bristle are a handful of the IDs that we have thus far, making for a spectacular day all around!

Laura L. and Reilly

 

12.00 uur Waarnemingen van walvissen

Goedemiddag walvisliefhebbers!

The Asteria headed south with a hardy group of passengers who braved the rain and swells in search of cetaceans. It was definitely worth is as we found several groups of humpbacks quickly travelling around the area! We were also treated to lots of surface activity as several whales would occasionally breach, tail breach, and show off their massive flippers throughout our time on the bank. We were able to identify Chairlift, Bristle, Startrail, Ravine, Ravine 23 calf, Chunk, A-plus, A-plus 23 calf, Infinity and Crown during our trip. Just as we were making out way out of the area, Crown and another whale double breached! We were surprised when these whales continued the surface behaviors with several chin breaches, full body breaches, and another coordinated double breach. The behaviors then stopped almost as suddenly as they had started, and we returned to our journey home, more then satisfied with our additionally bonus looks to end the trip.

Overall, a great day for whale watching!

Sydney

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Boston Whale Watching: Naturalist Notes – 08/09/23 to 08/15/23