Birds and dolphins taking full advantage of any "scraps" from the hauling of the fishing gear These whales were most likely catching a nice mid-morning bite to eat as they went after any fish that happened to break free from the net. As we watched from afar for a bit (as to not disturb the fishermen at work!) it did not take long for the dolphins to change direction and start to head away from the boat. As we spent time with these animals it did not take long to see another pod of Atlantic white-sided dolphins as eventually the two groups joined up!
All in all there were at least 60-70 of the whales scattered around the boat and with such close encounters everyone was able to get some amazing looks at these cetaceans!With the ocean being as calm as it was, anything that made a ripple nearby we seemed to catch, including over 7 different Blue Sharks throughout our trip! We stopped and looked at a few of these fish before continuing on in search of more whales.
We then came across a Fin whale that we have seen this season, but one we have not sighted since mid-July! It was #0354 and this whale was doing some feeding.
While this animal was not feeding at the surface we did get the chance to see this whale's lower jaw completely extended outward, indicating a whole mouthful of food and saltwater, and actively filtering out the water! A few times this whale was so close by that you could see the white lower jaw and underbelly of this animal as it swam underneath the surface. Incredible views of the 2nd largest animal in the world!
The chevron pattern of Fin whale #0354 Our trip did not end there. We also came across a second Fin whale that was a familiar whale to us. It was Crow!
This whale has a very distinct dorsal fin (the indentations in the fin look like an open beak from a bird!) and almost as soon as the crew saw it, we knew exactly who it was. This is the first time Crow has been seen this season as this whale has not been documented on Jeffreys Ledge since August 2008! What a great surprise to know this whale is back and as big as before. To make things even more exciting a critically endangered North Atlantic Right Whale was seen in the distance as we were positively identifying Crow the Fin whale.This afternoon our passengers were doing a great job searching the horizon and spotting whale activity during the trip. We started the afternoon with another large Fin whale zig zagging back and forth in the area.
This whale would surface for a few breaths, go on a deeper dive and then 7-8mins later show up in a completely different place! This whale was keeping us on our toes as we attempted to get a look at this sporadic animal. With a strong arch and this animal headed back to the inshore waters of the Gulf of Maine we decided to press on a bit further offshore. Well we ended up finding the afternoon hot spot, or at least that's what it seemed like!We had 5 Fin whales in the area. Five animals, larger than any of the dinosaurs to ever roam the earth, were being seen on the horizon! Perhaps the most intriguing and fascinating part of the whole experience was that during one of the surfacing there were 3 Fin whales surfacing together, and right in the mix of all three was a different baleen species; it was a Right Whale! What??? This animal was literally associated with 3 Fin whales! It appeared to be surfacing along with the Fin whales, breathing as frequently as the Fin whales, and even going on a deeper dive at the same time the Fin whales did! It may have been one of the most bizarre and random sightings I have ever witnessed during our whale watches. We were almost perplexed as we watched in amazement as these 2 completely different species of animals were side by side. It was not a long-lasting behavior as the Fin whales continued to move into and circle the area while the Right Whale moved away. With such a highly endangered whale in the area (and thus extremely strict regulations for vessels of all shapes and sizes!) we were unable to approach any of the cetaceans associated with the Right Whale until both species separated and we maintained the necessary distance from the critically endangered animal. Thankfully the Fin whales were moving in towards us and with the Right whale moving further away so eventually we were allowed the opportunity to spend some time with these massive Fin whales. We ended up having the group of three split up into a pair and a single which at one point literally surfaced on either side of the boat!
The chevron pattern and dorsal fin from one our our Fin whales One Fin whale was on our port side and 2 Fin whales were on the starboard side. Wow, where to look, it was awesome! If that wasn't enough, 2 more Fin whales were moving into the area, so in total we were surrounded by 5 Fin whales.... how often does that happen? Not all that often at all!
Marine life of all sorts was out on the Ledge today as it was even more exciting to note the fact that we were quite inshore from where our travels have taken us in the past few weeks. Tomorrow is a new day and we cannot wait to see what the whales have in store for us, as it is they who hold the upper hand, as we go in search of these wild and always moving creatures!
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