Close Encounters of the Humpback Kind

Sometimes we just get lucky.  There's a common phrase in fishing that "it's better to be lucky than good."

I'm a Lucky One

When it comes to photography, I'm definitely in the former category.  I'm spoiled by technology and digital photography - I can shoot, process, and export photos in record time... I can't imagine actually developing photos by feeling up film canisters in the dark wondering the entire time if I got the correct exposure.  Cropping?  You mean I actually need to get the scissors out?  My respect goes out to film photographers...

I'm a Lucky Two

We had this escort/mother/calf trio approach us the other day and oh my, they just kept coming.  They didn't turn away.  In fact, they came straight at me and my Nikon D40.  I didn't even have to move, just hold my breath and slap the shutter release.

I'm a Lucky Three

Machine gunning away, I realize that not only are the whales close, one of the whales decides to roll over and show us his/her pectoral fins.  Is this a threat/protection display by the escort?  You can see the two adults together.  In the last shot, you can see the calf coming up.

FYI, humpbacks usually travel (around here anyway) in groups of three - comprised of mother, calf, and escort.  An escort is usually a male, not necessarily the father, that will protect the mother and calf.  At least this is what has been explained to me.

BTW, this is rare guys, I don't see this everyday, and yes, I was excited. :)

Whale Footprints

Just as we humans leave behind prints in the sand when making our way across a sandy beach, humpbacks leave tell tale signs of their most recent surface locations.  Observable for minutes after a whale dives, these whale "footprints" were once believed to be oil slicks.  Although a semi-effective tracking tool, the oil slick theory is no doubt a biased observation from whalers hunting these gentle giants.  We now know that whale footprints are caused by the turbulence of their tails as they kick to duckdive.

  

Whale Behaviors Caught on SD Card

Got  lucky today with some whale action.  First we have the "spy hop" whereby a whale will partially expose itself to see what's going on around it on the surface.

Here's a calf breaching out of the water seemingly in play, a.k.a. "The Flying Pickle."  I've heard some theories as to why whales breach, but you know what, I haven't met anyone who can speak whale, so I can't be sure.  It really is cool though!

Competition Pod

Here's a shot of a group of all male humpbacks in a competition pod (or comp pod) fighting for a female.   It's a whale choo-choo train!  I was lucky to see this phenomenon this morning - a rare site!

Humpback diving down to the depths, set against West Maui in the early morning light:

Hawaiian humpback whale boundaries?

If you didn't know, the humpback whales are here in Maui right now.  The peak season occurs during the months of January, February, and March.  As we take tourists out snorkeling, we inevitably stop to watch the whales breathe, breach, and slap.  We, as boat operators, have always been told to stay at least 100 yards away from whales at all times.  However, while reading the Maui Weekly, I found an article on the established Pacific Humpback Whale Sanctuary and the sanctuary boundaries.  The protected area seems quite small and does not cover the entire Hawaiian Island chain as I assumed.

So does this mean we can motor outside of the boundaries and then snorkel with humpback whales?

http://hawaiihumpbackwhale.noaa.gov/