Whale Sightings 08/16/23 to 08/21/23. Please find the Naturalist Notes for the week of 08/16/23 to 08/21/23 from the onboard team of naturalists for our New England Whale Watching tour in partnership with the New England Aquarium.
08-16-23
10am and 3pm Whale Watch Sightings
Herkese merhaba!
Passengers aboard the Sanctuary on the 10AM whale watch were eager to get offshore and search for whales! On our way to the southern edge of Jeffrey’s Ledge, we encountered an ocean sunfish and got some wonderful looks at this large fish. After a bit of searching, we saw some flipper slapping in the distance. As we got closer, we recognized this humpback whale due to the large chunk missing from its flipper—it was Patches! There was also another humpback whale in the area who we gave some space to, while a research vessel was flying a drone to collect a blow sample from the whale. A great morning spent on the ledge!
For our 3PM trip, we headed in the exact opposite direction of our morning trip; all the way down to southern Stellwagen Bank, just off the beaches of Provincetown. As we entered the area, we were surrounded by a sea of birds and blows! We estimated up to 15 humpback whales in the area. Much of our time was spent with a group of 7 bubble feeding humpbacks, with familiar flukes including: Freckles, Ember, Dome, Sanchal, and Tunguska. We got some breathtaking looks as these whales slowly rose up from the bubble clouds with their mouths wide open. In the middle of this excitement, there were also several minke whales swimming around the area. What really caught our eye were two fin whales that were slowly swimming around our vessel and surfacing frequently. We were lucky to get some super up-close looks at these massive baleen whales! Sadly, we had to leave all of this excitement and make our way back to Boston, but just as we made our turn, we got some bonus looks at an ocean sunfish! How lucky we were to see a variety of species displaying many different behaviors!
En iyi balıklar,
Meg and Jane
11:00 Balina Gözlemleri
İyi günler,
The Asteria cruised out to Stellwagen Bank where we found a mola mola lazing about at the surface. We had some great looks at this giant fish as it basked in the bit of sunlight it could find, occasionally sticking its tongue out. After some time, we continued on where we came to find 20-30 humpbacks bubble net feeding in groups of up to a dozen individuals! Mayo, Tear, Buckshot, Dome, Ember, Draco, Freckles, Abyss, and Bounce were just a few of the whales who fed closest to us out of the sea of whales, while Bounce’s calf bounced around and came up near a bubble net in either a small chin breach or an attempt at a lunge. A minke whale and several fin whales made for a three species day and we headed back to Boston, thrilled with the experience!
Laura L. and Reilly
12pm Balina Gözlemleri
İyi akşamlar,
On the noon whale watch, the Aurora set out toward Stellwagen Bank to find some whales to brighten up the dreary day. Our journey took us all the way to the beaches off of Cape Cod where we discovered 25-30 humpback whales and 4-6 minke whales feeding! Our first encounter was with a group of five humpback whales that immediately blew a bubble net right off our bow! We watched these whales surface through it with their mouths wide open and baleen on display. Shortly after, the group dissipated as a few members beelined it further South where at least twenty whales were surface feeding using bubble clouds and bubble nets. As we slowly headed toward these whales, we came across another smaller group of humpback whales which included Bolide, Chairlift, Bristle, and Woodwind. These four whales were subsurface feeding on the periphery of the rest of the whale chaos. We watched these whales swim and surface for a few minutes before continuing on. As we got closer to the surface feeding whales, we discovered three massive groups of whales! We spent our time situated between a group of six and a group of eight bubble feeding humpback whales. We watched as the spirals of bubbles slowly formed at the surface (attracting tons of birds!) before these massive cetaceans emerged with their mouths wide open! Among the many whales identified were Draco, Hippocampus, Crossbeam, Mayo, Bandit, Ember, Dome, Freckles, Bounce and her 2023 calf, and Buckshot. Before we knew it, it was time to head back to Boston. Luckily for us, we got several bonus looks at whales as we made our way back! A few miles off away from the bubble feeding frenzy, we found a group of six humpback whales blowing bubbles clouds, two minkes whales, and two other single humpback whales traveling.
It was an incredible day to be on the water!
Eman ve Lily
08-17-23
9am Balina Gözlemleri
İyi günler,
We had a nice morning aboard the Cetacea, where we found 3 humpbacks, a few minkes, and many great shearwaters spread out north of the SWC. Spell was busy at work – moving fast in quick directions taking lots of turns hunting for fish. After awhile she must have found some bait because she began making bubble clouds over and over! It’s great to see her feeding well – Spell has had a tough summer – we’ve watched a minor prop scar slowly heal on her fluke & peduncle (see photos), and she also has had a monofilament entanglement earlier this season as well. I encourage folks to share the resource www.seeaspout.org to spread awareness of safe boating around whales!
Şerefe,
Laura
10am and 2:30pm Whale Watch Sightings
Herkese merhaba,
Today aboard the Sanctuary, the 10am whale watch made its way towards Stellwagen Bank in search of whales and other marine life. After a little bit of searching, we stumbled across a few minke whales! These minkes were spending a lot of time at the surface so we were able to get some great looks at them. We then noticed a larger blow in the area, so we went to go investigate it. This turned out to be Spell the humpback whale! Spell was taking very short dives, and she was even blowing bubble clouds. She even lunged up through them a few times! Spell was not moving far so we were able to get some great looks at her. After a few more bubble clouds, a few close approaches, and of course a few beautiful fluking dives, we made our way back to Boston.
The 230pm whale watch made its way towards Provincetown in search of whales and other marine life. We were delighted to notice several blows in the area. The humpbacks were spread out at first, but then began forming larger groups. Some of the IDs I was able to make include Zither, Buckshot, Bounce, Bounce 23 Calf, Wizard, Mayo, Startrail, Ember, GOM-2232, and Dome. The whales began coming together, and they began bubble feeding! We had a few bouts of bubble feeding right off the side of the boat! We also got some fabulous looks at several of our whales as they dove right off our bow! One of my favorite parts about the feeding was hearing Dome make her strange but amazing noise right after she feeds. After a few more amazing looks at the bubble feeding humpbacks, we had to make our way back to Boston. It was a really amazing day out on Stellwagen Bank!
Bir dahaki sefere kadar,
Colin and Indi
11:00 Balina Gözlemleri
İyi akşamlar,
The Asteria trekked South of Stellwagen Bank on the 11am whale watch. Our arrival was greeted by the blows of 30-35 whales! We started with two groups of seven that contained Milkweed, 3.14, Eruption, Pele, and three others unidentified whales. These seven whales were taking short dives and moving slowly as they cruised at the surface. After a few minutes them them, some dark clouds hovering over the surface of the water in the distance caught our attention. These were absolutely enormous flocks of birds crowding around surface feeding whales! We slowly moved over to them to find massive groups of whales bubble net feeding at the surface! Among the dozens of whales in the area were Freckles, GOM-2232, Infinity, Pleats, Piano, Mend, Mayo, Wizard, Hippocampus, Abyss, Bounce and her 2023 calf, Bandit, Hammock, Draco, Ravine and her 2023 calf, Tear, Dome, Buckshot, and Ember. We watched enthralled as these whales continuously blew rings of bubble in the area, surfacing moments later with mouths wide open and birds completely surrounding them! Some bubble nets would contain as many as twelve whales feeding at once! In the midst of this feeding frenzy, we could hear the whales trumpeting at the surface as they took their time dragging and resting between bubble nets. We also caught sight of Ravine’s 2023 calf feeding in a bubble net right next to its mother and Bounce’s 2023 calf mimicking lunging behavior as adults around it fed! Now that these calves are a bit older, their diets are slowly switching from milk produced by their mothers to fish which means they need to practice these new feeding behaviors. We let our boat idle in the periphery of the piles of feeding whales, but these whales were constantly moving which meant they dove beneath our boat several times! We got incredible looks of these whales as they would dive and surface close to us while chasing down their next meal. Time entirely escaped us as we got completely caught up in all the whale activity. Before we knew it, the Asteria was slowly leaving all the hungry whales behind as we headed back to Boston. Luckily for us, we got some bonus surface activity as we were leaving! A few passengers pointed out a pair of breaching humpback whales in the distance and we got to see several breaches from them (including two synchronized double breaches!!)!
Suda harika bir gündü!
Eman ve Josiah
12pm Balina Gözlemleri
İyi günler balina meraklıları!
The Aurora headed south in search of cetaceans and found a group of 4 humpbacks that included A-Plus, A-plus 23 calf, Chunk and Bolide. These whales were travelling at the surface and we were excited to start our trip. A small vessel was traveling quickly through the area, and the whales surfaced after a very short dive directly in front of this vessel, mere feet away. Fortunately the vessel did not seem to hit the whales, but this was by far the closest call I have ever personally witnessed. This vessel unfortunately continued to travel very quickly through the area while also trawling with fishing gear behind them, causing the whales to change directions repeatedly. This incident of harassment was reported to NOAA. It was unfortunate to see the major threats to these whales in action, and we encourage you to share the See a Spout resource page to get the word out about safe boating practices to hopefully reduce incidents like this in the future. To learn more check out their website at https://seeaspout.org/.
We decided to continue heading south were we found over 20 humpback whales busy feeding. We got a quick look at Dome before carefully making our way to a group of 9 bubble net feeding humpbacks! In this group of cooperative cetaceans we found Draco, Etch-A-Sketch, Piano, Crossbeam, Samara, Chinook, Mend, Hippocampus, and Pleats! The birds and distinct bubble nets were great clues to show us where to watch, allowing everyone on board to get incredible sightings. We even heard Crossbeam a few times, who makes a unique sound when he exhales, similar to his mother Dome! We quickly realized we were out of time and began to make our way home, when we got a bonus look at a Mola Mola who was cruising at the surface.
Sydney and Lily
08-18-23
10am ve 14:30pm Balina Gözlemleri
İyi akşamlar,
Aboard the Sanctuary, the 10am trip braved the downpour of rain as we headed out to Stellwagen Bank to find whales to brighten our day. Our search was quickly met by a dozen whales in the southern portion of the Bank! We spent most of our time with Ravine and her 2023 calf, A-Plus and her 2023 calf, Bristle, Startrail, Nile, Bolide, Milkweed, and Spell. The adults were grouped in three distinct associations and going down on short dives. It appeared they were feeding below the surface. While the adults were down below, the calves kept us quite entertained! The two younger whales were up at the surface rolling, flipper slapping, head breaching, tail breaching, lobtailing, and full breaching! There was rarely a quiet or calm moment while the calves were around us. We had several wonderful close encounters with the adult humpback whales as they surfaced right next to our idling boat. Once the whale activity calmed, we returned to Boston soaked and grateful for an incredible trip!
The 2:30pm whale watch was gifted beautiful clear skies as we returned to the Bank to find more whales! We ventured back out to the southern part of Stellwagen Bank to find 10-13 whales spread throughout the area. Most of our time was spent with a trio of whales that included Milkweed, Eruption, and Pele. These three whales appeared to be subsurface feeding in the vicinity and were constantly surfacing and diving around us! In addition, we caught sight of Bolide, Bristle, Startrail, Nile, and several others. These other adults were moving around the area quite quickly and taking short dives. It seemed as through most of the adults in the area were busy feeding below the surface. Several times throughout our trip, Milkweed, Pele, and Eruption surfaced right next to our boat! We got absolutely incredible views of their tails as they dove off our bow halfway through our trip. In between dives, we also caught several breaches from individuals both near and far! Before we knew it, the Sanctuary was slowly heading back to Boston. Luckily for us, we got bonus looks at six other humpback whales along the way!
It was a fantastic day to be on the water!
Eman ve Josiah
11:00 Balina Gözlemleri
İyi günler balina meraklıları!
The Asteria headed out, braving the wind, rain, and swells in our search for cetaceans. We thankfully found 15-18 humpback whales! We started our trip with Bounce 23 calf, who was blowing bubble clouds, and lunging up through them! We got some great looks at the calf as it tried to engage in this feeding behavior, and while not perfect yet, this calf is definitely becoming more skilled at these feeding techniques. It was so cool to watch this calf as it was practicing this new skill! We were treated to several other groups of whales who closely approached our vessel, and then spent some time with Ravine 23 calf who was busy engaging in some surface activity. The calf breached once, and then flipper slapped, tail breached, and lobtailed for the rest of our trip. We were able to ID several of the other groups including Pele, Eruption, and Milkweed; Bounce, Bristle, and Chairlift; Woodwind, Sprinkles, Bolide and Startrail; and Ravine, Nile, and 3.14.
We got some last looks at Nile as she dove towards the beach before heading home to Boston.
Genel olarak balina izlemek için harika bir gün!
Sydney and Lily
12pm Balina Gözlemleri
Herkese merhaba,
Today aboard the Aurora, the 12pm whale watch made its way towards Provincetown in search of whales and other marine life. After a bit of searching, we spotted many blows in the distance. We started on a trio of humpbacks consisting of Pele, Eruption, and Milkweed. Milkweed breached a few times not far from us! After Milkweed calmed down, the trio was moving around a bit, probably focused on feeding. After some great looks at the trio, we went for a little bit of a ride. We were in luck when noticed the birds started to go crazy not far from us. We came across around 20 different individual humpbacks feeding in different groups! Some of the individuals we were able to identify include Freckles, Ember, Dome, Draco, Piano, Mayo, Infinity, Joy, Hippocampus, GOM 2232, Abyss, Banyan, Tear, and Crossbeam! These whales were bubble feeding, and they even did this several times right around our boat! It was such an amazing experience to see these whales open mouth feeding! The whales made several close approaches, and one even breached right off the bow! After some of the most incredible looks one could get at whales, we had to make our way back to Boston. It was a really fantastic day offshore!
Bir dahaki sefere kadar,
Colin and Jane
08-19-23
Sabah 9 ve 1:30 Balina Gözlemleri
İyi akşamlar!
Our 9am whale watch aboard Sanctuary took us southeast towards Race Point Beach – the travel was definitely worth it! We found ourselves scattered amongst 20+ humpback whales and thousands of great shearwaters and gulls. Most of the whales were working to feeding in groups of 2-3, such as Venom, Milkweed, 3.14, Bolide, Sprinkles, and Woodwind. However there was also a group of 10 humpbacks surrounded by birds that stole our attention! Our captain Marc made sure to give this group space – our patience paid off, as suddenly a big bubble net appeared right along side us! We were surrounded by bubbles, baleen, whale breath, and the familiar sound of Dome’s distinct “sound” (aka the same sound as when you blow the top of an empty glass bottle). Amongst the giant group we also spotted Bounce and calf, Draco, Snare, and Ravine. Shortly after, we had a huge breach alongside us as well! (likely Ravine’s calf). A spectacular trip, followed by two fin whales on our way home.
Our 1:30pm trip took us back to the same area, where we found 15-20 humpbacks spread out subsurface feeding. The late afternoon lighting gave a peaceful horizon of whale blows and Wilson’s Storm Petrels. We spent time with a trio, Milkweed, Pele, and Eruption. Several of their dives were synchronized, and each time came up in a different configuration, indicated they were working hard feeding below. A lovely way to end the day!
Şerefe,
Laura & Josiah
10am Balina Gözlemleri
Herkese merhaba,
Today aboard the Asteria, the 10am whale watch made its way out towards Provincetown in search of whales and other marine life. After some searching, we spotted a few blows in the distance. We started on a group of three humpbacks consisting of Sprinkles, Woodwind, and Bolide! This group of three was spending a lot of time at the surface so we were able to get some great looks at them. While this group was down on a dive, a minke whale swam right across our bow! After the minke dove and we got some more great looks at our trio, we ventured over to another trio of humpbacks consisting of Mend, Bristle, and Chairlift. This trio swam right by the boat and gave us some really beautiful fluking dives! As we were leaving we even got a glance at a very large fin, making today a three species day! After the fin whale dove, we made our way back to Boston. It was a really amazing day offshore!
Bir dahaki sefere kadar,
Colin, Eman, and Lily
11:00 ve 15:30 Balina Gözlemleri
İyi akşamlar balina meraklıları!
The Aurora headed south for the 11am whale watch and found an area chock full of humpback whales! Some of these whales were blowing bubble clouds and feeding deeper in the water column. We were able to ID 2 groups, including Chairlift, Mend, and Bristle; and Bolide, Woodwind, Sprinkles and Bounce and her Calf. The highlight of the trip was during our last looks when Bounce and her calf making an incredible close approach to our vessel while we were sitting out of gear! After our incredible trip, we headed home to Boston excited to return in the afternoon.
The 3:30 pm trip returned to again find plenty of humpback whales! Most of these whales were quickly traveling West during our trip. We also got to see several breaches from whales throughout the trip! We were able to ID Woodwind, Bolide, Draco, A-Plus and her Calf, Wizard, Sprinkles and Abrasion during our trip. We got some great looks at these whales before heading back to Boston in time to enjoy the start of the sunset over the skyline.
Genel olarak balina izlemek için harika bir gün!
Sydney, Jane, and Indi
14:30pm Balina Gözlemleri
İyi akşamlar,
The 2:30pm whale watch sailed out to find whales on Stellwagen Bank today. Our journey took us a little further south of the Bank where we came across 20-25 whales spread out in the area. As we approached the blows, we watched an adult humpback whale breach right in the middle of all the activity! It was an incredible start to our trip! Our first encounter with the whales included two familiar tails belonging to Nile, Startrail, and Palette (our first sighting of her this season!). These whales were trucking it away from the area, and we got a few quick glances before they disappeared. As we watched these whales, a group of three made their way over to us. This included Milkweed, Pele, and Eruption. The trio was taking relatively short dives and staying up for quite some time. We watched them for several moments before some splashing caught our eye. The splashing came from Ravine’s 2023 calf who was rolling at the surface and breached once! It is possible this calf may also have been feeding since some photos appear as though the calf has a fish hanging out of its mouth! It wasn’t long before Ravine made her appearance with Spell and 3.14 at her side. While we watched these four, we also came across Mend, Bristle, Chairlift, A-Plus and her 2023 calf, Draco, and GOM–2232. A-Plus’ 2023 calf kept us quite entertained with multiple breaches while the adults were traveling and possibly subsurface feeding throughout the area. Before we knew it, our time with the whales was up and we returned to Boston grateful for an incredible day on the water!
Eman, Colin, and Lily
08-20-23
9am and 1:30pm Whale Watch Sightings
İyi günler,
The Sanctuary made its way into the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary and cruised until we found two humpback whales, Chunk and Arroyo. The two were swimming steadily to the northeast, allowing us to predict just about where they would surface. We had some great looks at the two, especially Chunk with her fluking dives. We even made friends with a Canadian tiger swallowtail butterfly who seemed to be looking for a spot to land! Just as we were readying ourselves to head back to Boston, Arroyo’s back end launched out of the water in an impressive tail breach, followed by a second about a minute later. We watched as she seemed to distance herself from Chunk and we were left to ponder their actions on the way in.
Our afternoon trip’s sightings began with two species spotted almost simultaneously- a finback and a humpback. With the fin whale being a bit elusive and the humpback flanked by two recreational boats, we decided to move on to whales off on their own and discovered the trip of Sprinkles, Bolide, and 3.14. They seemed to be circling in one general area, but as Sprinkles does, he led the trio right under the port side of the Sanctuary and up from the starboard! It was an amazing experience to round out our sightings, so it was even more of a bonus when Putter suddenly emerged before us. We had a few moments watching him before cruising back to Boston with an absolutely wonderful group of happy whale watchers.
Laura L. and Anjali
10am ve 14:30pm Balina Gözlemleri
İyi Akşamlar Balina Meraklıları!
What an incredible day on Stellwagen Bank! We boarded the Asteria excited for a sunny and breezy day on the water. Approaching the Southwest Corner, we immediately spotted some white water in the distance. On arrival we found ourselves in the company of Abyss, who was flipper slapping with abandon, showing off her distinctly dark flippers. We watched her for several minutes as she rolled onto her back and slapped the surface with both of her flippers, reminding us why this species is known for their wings.
As if on cue, we spotted a whale breaching half a mile away and soon were in the company of Banyan, who continued to breach for almost 15 minutes in a beautiful rhythm, eyes closed as if in joy while flying through the air. Hearing reports of bubbles in the area we moved on to a group of whales who formed a balletic bubble net before erupting with open mouths, engulfing their prey amidst a flurry of feathers at the surface. Among the whales in this group were Tear, Snare, Pleats, Wizard, Samara, and Abrasion!
We were reluctant to leave but in awe of our full whale behavior bingo cards.
Eager to get out for our 2:30PM trip, we arrived on Stellwagen Bank excited for new encounters with whales. Our first stop was a sudden breach off the starboard bow! Before we could blink, the whale disappeared and we continued our journey.
The horizon soon contained blows that seemed to multiply before our eyes, and before long we identified Pele, along with Eruption and Milkweed, Startrail, Chairlift, Draco, Nile, A-Plus and her playful calf! We got some good looks when the curious calf ventured so close to the boat that I was unable to see it from the catwalk! We were treated to numerous beautiful fluking dives along the glistening evening ocean, a gentle breeze sending us home. It was also a beautiful sendoff for our intern Indi who heads back to school in the next couple of weeks. Overall, a day to remember!
Until next time, periscope down.
Linnea and Indi
11:00 ve 15:30 Balina Gözlemleri
Herkese merhaba,
Today aboard the Aurora, the 11am whale watch made its way out towards Provincetown in search of whales and other marine life. We noticed several different blows in the distance. We had several groups super close together and a few of them even swam right near our boat! A few of the whales we saw include Woodwind, Spell, 3.14, Draco, A-Plus and her calf! After several amazing close approaches, the groups started to break off a bit. We focused in on the trio of A-Plus, her calf, and Draco who at first were cruising at the surface. When all of a sudden, A-Plus and Draco erupted from the water in an epic double breach! Then Draco decided to do one more for good measure! Then the group proceeded to swim right up to our boat! After the group went down on a beautiful fluking dive, we made our way back to Boston.
The 330pm whale watch made its way towards the same area in search of whales and other marine life. We spent time with two different trios, one consisting of Bolide, Sprinkles, and 3.14. The other consisted of Tear, Nile, and one other I am still working to ID. Bolide’s group decided to surprise us all by popping up right next to the boat! The trio even swam right under our boat! After they dove, we got a nice bout of flipper slapping from Tear! Tear proceeded to do this for several minutes which was a delight to see! Once tear dove, we got a look at both trios before heading back to Boston. It was a really amazing day out on Stellwagen!
Flukes yukarı,
Colin, Antonia, and Reilly
08-21-23
Sabah 9 ve Öğleden Sonra 2:30 Balina Gözlemleri
İyi akşamlar!
We boarded the Sanctuary for the 9 a.m. whale watch and made way for Stellwagen Bank. After a bit of searching, intern Anjali keenly spotted a pair of fins in the water- indicative of a shark! We were able to determine it was a white shark before it dove beneath the surface, and although we eagerly awaited, it did not return to the surface. Hammock the humpback then announced its presence, remaining at the surface for extended periods and intermittently tail breaching and tail lobbing! We spotted another humpback whale, two minke whales, and as we moved south we noticed another shark circling us, this time a blue shark. We spotted a few more blows south of us before returning to Boston, awaiting our afternoon adventure.
The Sanctuary once again returned to the southern end of Stellwagen Bank, under lake like conditions and to a multitude of cetaceans. We spent time with roughly 20 humpback whales, many of the adults taking turns breaching in between bouts of feeding, but A-Plus 23 calf proved to be our afternoon star. Breaches, flipper slapping, rolling, and tail breaching the afternoon away, this not so little one stole our attention in its majestic routine. Mom, A-Plus, stayed close by subsurface feeding with Tunguska, Spell, Draco, Milkweed, Chairlift, and Bristle. Our trip wrapped up with a brilliant look at an ocean sunfish, or so we thought! Crunching our time as best he could, after spotting some rapid movements on the glassy seas, Captain Marc granted us some extraordinary looks at Atlantic White Sided dolphins! This pod of roughly 50 individuals circled the area and swam right under the boat, an incredible sight to see. We made one last stop on our way home, where Senior Deckhand Nate heroically helped save our blue planet by retrieving three Mylar balloons from our precious sea. All in all, it was a wonderful start to the week!
Flukes up!
Ashlyn and Anjali
10am Balina Gözlemleri
Herkese merhaba,
Today aboard the Asteria, the 10am whale watch made its way out towards the southern portion of Stellwagen Bank in search of whales and other marine life. After a bit of searching, we noticed a pair of blows in the distance. This turned out to be Ravine and Ravine 23 Calf! The pair were cruising at the surface so we were able to get some great looks at them. While the two were down on a dive, we noticed a fin flopping in the water. This turned out to be an ocean sunfish aka a mola mola! This large fish was hanging out on the surface, and it even swam right next to the boat! For several minutes we were able to get some incredible looks at this bizarre but adorable fish. After it swam off, we continued to watch Ravine and her calf. The calf even erupted from the water in an almost full body breach! After a beautiful fluking dive from Ravine, we continued our search for whales. We noticed a few blows in the distance. This turned out to be a pair of humpbacks consisting of Joy and Bandit! Both of these whales are not ones I get to see often so I was delighted to see them hanging out together! While waiting for the pair to come back up, we also got some cool looks at a blue shark! After a series of beautiful fluking dives from the pair, as well as a drive-by from a small fin whale, we made our way back to Boston. It was a really awesome day offshore!
Flukes yukarı,
Colin and Reilly
12pm Balina Gözlemleri
Merhaba,
Aboard the Aurora, we set out to find some cetaceans on Stellwagen Bank. We typically spot whales by their distinctive blows, but today the splashing grabbed our attention first! The commotion was created by a Humpback whale named Arroyo who was up at the surface flipper slapping! We watched this whale slap her massive pectoral fins against the surface for over ten minutes. After some time with this wonderful whale, we continued on to see what else the Bank had to offer. It wasn’t long until we spotted the black backs and dorsal fins of minke whales. We caught sight of 3-5 minke whales in the area, along with a small porbeagle shark! We stayed in the area until all the whales (and the shark!) dispersed and continued South. Our search ended when we came across Bounce and her 2023 calf. The two were traveling at the surface for most of our encounter with them. We got absolutely beautiful views of them as they swam parallel to our boat. With the water incredibly calm, we could see almost their entire body as they swam just below the surface. After spending some time with the pair, we realized our time with the whales was nearly over and began our return to Boston. Our journey back was quickly interrupted by an ocean sunfish (Mola mola) that was up at the surface, along with a blue shark we spotted right next to it! We also caught sight of several more minke whales in the area. After a quick stop to look at these species, we continued home.
It was a fantastic five species day on the Bank!!
Eman and Antonia
Boston Whale Watching: Naturalist Notes – 08/16/23 to 08/21/23