Today was jam-packed full of marine life. This morning we saw 23 Minke whales during our trip! So many Minkes, they were popping up everywhere! In addition to all of our Minke whale sightings we also saw Crow the Fin whale, 2 Ocean sunfish and 2 Humpback whales.
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| Crow the Fin whale |
We got some great looks at one of our Ocean sunfish and that was before it decided to breach right next to the boat! Surprised pretty much all of us as it is definitely unusual to see an Ocean sunfish breach, let along right alongside us! What a sight.
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| Ocean sunfish before it breached (unfortunately I did not catch the breach with the camera, only my eyes) |
Our Humpback whales included Patches to start the trip and Mogul to end the trip.
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| Patches surrounded by the calm sea |
Mogul surprised us just before we headed for home when this whale decided to tail breach twice! Basically this whale suddenly decided to launch the back half of its body above the water and crash back on the ocean surface. Wow. A moment that shows just how much these whales always determine what they are going to do, and when, as we literally have to be in the right place, at the right time, to have the rare opportunity to see any unusual behaviors.
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| Mogul in the process of tail breaching (above and below) |
This afternoon we were once again seeing plenty of Minke whales, 9 to be exact, as we checked out even more whales. We saw 3 Fin whales including a pair charging through the water together. One whale, Streak, continuously surfaced with great force, displacing lots of water each time it got a breath of air, while the other whale surfaced behind Streak's fast movements in a much more normal (or relaxed) manner.
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| Streak |
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| Almost every time Streak surfaced there was plenty of whitewater created at the waterline |
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| Fin whale on the move with Streak |
Interesting behaviors and some great looks at the incredible maneuverability the second largest animals on Earth are capable of.
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| Fin whale rain-blow spout! |
We also saw 2 Humpback whales this afternoon: Highlighter and #0050.
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| Highlighter |
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| #0050 |
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| Fin whale seen as we started heading for home this afternoon |
Great whale sightings and some beautiful (slightly cooler temperatures) as we spent time on the ocean today.
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