*Photo courtesy of Jim Shubert
More than 122 individual fluke IDs were sighted in ten days this
month.
An unusually prolonged period of beautiful, hot weather and calm
seas appears to have led to record numbers of whales being
identified in the month of March.
Great numbers of humpback whales pass though Bermuda during the
months of March and April on their way from their breeding grounds
in the south to the feeding areas of the northern Atlantic.
However, winter storms usually hinder whale-watching trips in
the early part of the season making it difficult or near impossible
to spot the majestic animals on a regular basis.
Wild life videographer Choy Aming said: "The weather has made it
more accessible this year - people have been able to get out a lot
more. We have had about nine days of unusually nice weather in a
row for this time of year. Normally we would get one to two days of
weather of that calibre.
"There is also a huge plankton bloom right now. Despite how nice
the weather is, the visibility, even out at the banks (Challenger
and Argus), is only about 40 feet.
"It is so thick with life right now and I think that's why we
are getting such a good show."
Andrew Stevenson of the Humpback Whale Research Project, Bermuda
has been collecting visual and acoustic data of our migrating
whales since 2007. Through photographs, he has been identifying
individual whales by their unique fluke markings which are then
sent to Allied Whale - the marine mammal research group at the
College of the Atlantic. Mr Stevenson says that this year has "by
far" surpassed previous years' numbers in terms of the number
individual flukes he has identified as part of his research.
He said: "This year we have had 122 individual fluke IDs in ten
days. We have matched five re-sightings in the full catalogue of
450. Some people are saying it's all about global warming and the
whales are coming early but these statistics tell me that is not
the case.
"The whales tend to come back in the same week almost. Last year
we had 150 individual fluke IDs and about 30 of those were
re-sightings to the previous four years.
"We don't have as many re-sightings this year for a very simple
reason - because we are not usually out there in March to see them.
We've not had the ten-day period where we can go out every day.
"We normally have the winter storms so when we get out we don't
see them."
To add to the spectacle of the whales, Stevenson also reported
seeing a pod of 50 spinner dolphins and swimming with four sperm
whales which are much less common in Bermuda's waters.
*Whale watching footage courtesy of Choy Aming
We could hear them
communicating
By Sarah Lagan
As a gigantic 40-foot female humpback whale swooped belly-up
beneath us, she waved her great fins as if to say "good day little
ones".
I have been swimming with humpback whales on a handful of
occasions but nothing prepared me for the epic hour-long encounter
I had with a playful pod of seven on Saturday.
I was lucky enough to accompany an experienced group of
underwater videographers and photographers who have been swimming
with these majestic mammals for years.
I followed close behind videographer Choy Aming, partly for
protection and partly because I know he is good at being in the
right place at the right time.
Sure enough the female swam right up close to us until she was
about 15 feet from my outstretched hand.
In the hour that followed we were never far from a whale as the
whole group swam in circles to get an eyeful of us. I swam along
side two whales at their gentle pace and was able to get close
enough to get full eye contact with one.
It is then that you can really see the intelligence and sense
the sentiment in these magnificent animals.
They were clearly in a playful mood, on a few occasions they
swished their tails to break the surface of the water and they were
all communicating though high-pitched chirps that belied their
enormous size.
It's an experience I will never forget - I wonder whether they
may still be thinking of us.
