So was the case today and what a day it was. We found 10 different Fin whales spread all throughout the ocean this morning! One of the first few whales we stopped to check out was actively feeding during a few surfacings and our passengers were thus treated to seeing a 60+ ton animal on it's side with a portion of it's tail sticking out of the water. We also got some incredible looks at a Fin whale circling around the area. This particular Fin whale pictured below is 0402, a whale first seen in 2004, and one I have only seen one other time this season in July!
As we continued further offshore we kept seeing exhalations from whales out towards the horizon. With great visibility out on the ocean today we kept spotting whales way out in the distance. Once we finally got closer we got some amazing looks at these whales as well. One of the Fin whales in the area surfaced right alongside our boat and took at least 8 breaths before it dove deeper down in the water. With so many surfacings we watched this whale as it easily moved through the water and saw the entire length of this animal just under the water. Check out the chevron pattern in this photo, it's the swirly silvery-white shading pattern seen on all Fin whales with each animal having a unique shading to it.
What a magnificent look at this massive creature. The photo below is still of the same whale from the chevron pictured above but in this photo you can see the large scar beyond the dorsal fin. Granted this marking will make it easier to match up this animal to our Fin Whale Catalog but sad to think this scar most likely materialized as a result of some sort of entanglement in rope.
Our afternoon trip began just the same as the morning. We found a Fin whale a bit inshore from the Ledge. Turned out this first animal was one of the same individuals we had seen during our morning trip, thanks to photo-identification, and spent some time with this animal before moving further offshore.
We ended up in a region where we became surrounded by whales, mainly Fin whales, surfacing in all directions around the boat. Within the mix of Fin whales a Humpback whale was also cruising through the area. This whale was identified to be Leukos, a female whale. As we began to spend time with her more Fin whales kept popping up randomly, surprising all of us aboard the boat, as these sleek moving whales would surface close by and ever so gracefully disappear back under the water. It truly is a sight to witness the ease of which these huge mammals travel through the ocean.
If that wasn't enough to be thrilled with for the day as we were heading home Captain Pete spotted a bit more activity we had not yet seen at all today. We found a pod of Atlantic white-sided dolphins! What a great way to wrap up an already wonderful day out on the water with 30 dolphins swimming just off the bow and in our wake. These dolphins are typically seen quite often on Jeffreys Ledge in the summer months, but for whatever reason, they have been a bit elusive this year. So it was a pleasant surprise to spend some time with these whales before we turned back towards Rye Harbor.
Thanks to all of our very inquisitive folks today. You all asked some great questions and were eager to learn more. A special thanks to Nancy and her friends who joined us this morning as she also works closely with the Blue Ocean Society for Marine Conservation in downtown Portsmouth at out free live Touch Tank. It was a pleasure having you on the boat again but instead of chatting with you as a Blue Ocean Intern I got a chance to share my enthusiasm for the whales over the microphone as the Naturalist. Thanks to all of our birder friends as well who continue to teach me more and more about identifying different unusual species of birds. And of course thanks to all who joined us on such a wonderful day!
Looks as though "Danny" will be interrupting our whale watching plans for this weekend but we will be out on the ocean for both trips tomorrow. I wonder what will be waiting for us to find in the morning. . . .
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