Close Encounters of the Whale Kind!

Hello everyone and thanks for checking in! We are very pleased to report that we have been seeing many whales in the last few days, mainly humpback whales but also a few fin whales and minke whales. On August 28 we were pleased to sight North Atlantic Right Whale, the rarest large whale in the world. They are considered to be critically endangered.

Tigris coming in for a closer look!

Each cruise does indeed offer something different and on a few occasions the humpbacks approached the boat to examine the occupants within by spy hopping next to the boat. This is when they lift their head out of the water to see what is above. This curious behaviour does not happen very often but when it does, it is quite memorable! Each humpback whale seems to have their own personalities and there are some who are more prone to come close to the boats such as Peajack, Tigris and Lacuna.

Peajack and Tigris approaching our boat the Cetacean Search.

On top of a humpback's head, you will notice that they have a lot of bumps there and they are called tubercles. Each one has a hair growing from it that has a sensory function. So probably very sensitive to its surroundings. At times we will see humpbacks playing in rock weed streaks, raising their heads through the rock weed, seeming to like the feel of it on the tubercles. Lacuna was amusing us by doing this on August 30. It was fun to watch how whales will play with the kelp the same way a kitten plays with a roll of string!

We continue to add to our calf list. It has turned out to be a record breaking year with the arrival of 19 calves! This number is far better than our typical 3 or 4 that we usually see during the summer. The latest mother that has arrived in the Bay has been Wigwam.

What a great day!

OK, just when I thought things couldn't get any better....but on Wednesday, August 22 we decided to conduct an all day research cruise to determine just where the larger numbers of humpback whales have been hanging out. We have been seeing quite a number of humpbacks on our regular 3 hour whale watch cruise but we wanted to get a general idea of just what was out there. We left port at 6 AM and headed south to an area called the McDormand Patch, but were forced to go elsewhere when the fog shut in and we were glad we did! It wasnt' too far into the cruise when we spotted 9 whales in the vicinity and all were involved in surface feeding. We were able to determine that they were feeding on krill, a small shrimp-like crustacean. Once we documented and photographed the individuals, we headed further and found more humpbacks. As the day progressed we were able to record 39 individual humpback whales, including two mother and calf pairs! They were identified as Knuckles, Foggy and Vector. Other whales that we photoidentified and sighted for the frist time in 2007 were: Mallard, Stub (Who we haven't seen here in the Bay since 1988), Hopper, Sequin, Ditto, Dapple, Spy, Porthole, Bungee and Cat's Paw.
We also recorded a number of Pilot whales in the area as well. This species is not native to the Bay of Fundy but will occasionally wander into the area chasing prey. The most interesting behavior that we witnesses was when Sunburst and his companion charged after the Pilots, as if protecting their territory. Maybe there is a reason why these smaller toothed whales do not come into the Bay!

Sunburst chasing Pilot Whales

To top things off , Gremlin and Luna flipper slapped next to the boat and for the grand finale, Gremlin breached so close I could almost touch him.

I felt so fortunate that day to have a job that I love, where I can observe these animals in their own habitat and for them not to feel threatened by our boats. Things sure have come a long way since the whaling days when boat were a definite threat. Now these creatures can approach these boats, investigating the occupants within and not feel that threat, instead we are in awe!

Brier Island Whales and Weather

Greetings whale watchers! The weather and whales have been excellent at Brier Island The last few days! Not only has the fog cleared......and hoping it stays that way.....but the whales have moved in as well. We have noticed an abundance of krill in our waters, which has been enticing the herring and the whales into our area. Not only are we seeing more humpbacks righ now but also more fin whales too! Fin whales are the second largest whale in the world, reaching lengths of 80 feet! Most of the humpback whales that we have seen have seen have been individuals that we have sighted previously such as Ase, Milkyway, Baton, Patch, Flame, Gondolier, Slumber, Raindrop, Foggy and her 2007 calf, Colorado and Patches. The above photo is of Foggy's calf. We have also documented some new whales for our area and they were identified as Calanus, Unequal, Mets, Iron and Zero. On a sad note Colorado was sighted without her calf. We had previously documented her with a calf in June but were dismayed when she was without. She was close by Foggy and her calf as if she wanted to be nursemaid. Sad!

Humpback whale named Ase.

Another treat has been sightings of the rarest large whale in the world, North Atlantic Right Whales. We were pleased to see a mother and her calf.

The birds have been very numerous with sightings of Puffins, Northern Gannets, Northern Fulmars, Wilson's Storm Petrels, Greater Shearwaters, Sooty Shearwaters, an occasional Manx Shearwater, Red and Red Necked Phalaropes.

Phalaropes in flight.

Whales Galore!

Lunge feeding humpback whales

Last night was one of the best cruises that I have been on so far this year. There were plenty of humpback whales on Moore's Ledge due to the abundance of herring and krill. Whales could be seen surface feeding on the mixture. There was plenty of activity as well with breaching, tail breaching and tail lobbing.

Last week, we were able to conduct a short research cruise. It was quite productive as we documented two new moms for the area. They were identified as Shuttle (a local favourite) and Mocha. this brings our Bay of Fundy calf count to 13!

As always we are looking forward to the upcoming cruises, never knowing what they may bring!

Whales in the Bay of Fundy Fog

OK, so where did all this fog come from? But not to worry, whales are still being sighted. It's always a bit intriguing to go whale watching in the fog. Usually on a clear day, we are looking for the spouts of the whales which can be seen a few miles away but on a day where the visibility is diminished, we have to rely on our ears to locate the whales. We go to the areas where the whales had been sighted on previous occasions, and shut down the engine and listen for the exhalation of the whales. Once heard, we then head in the direction from which is was heard and shut down again. This continues until we locate the whales. Though fog does make it more challenging, it is usually successful. Yesterday, we had thick, thick fog and we were able to watch 7 different humpback whales. The first two were adult females, who we identified as Lace and Touchdown. After watching Touchdown roll and flipper slap, we then watched 3 others who we identified as Churchill, Cloud, and Luna. Cloud has the distinction of being the oldest whale of known age. He was born in 1977 to Istar, who is now a Gulf of Maine grandmother! The last two whales we watched were Flash and her calf. So despite the fog, it turned out to be a very successful day!

Another calf arrives in the Bay of Fundy

On July 10, Brier Island Whale and Seabird Cruises welcomed another mother and her calf to the Bay of Fundy. The mother was identified as Squiggle, an individual we have been sighting in the Bay since 1990. The arrival of Squiggle and her calf brings our total up to eleven, much better than our calf count in 2006 which was three! Usually in a season we average 4-5 calves but in later years we have seen that average increase as we are covering a broader range.

The calf swam beside its mother but entertained us in the meantime by rolling and tail lobbing (slapping the surface of the water). We obtained excellent photos of the calf's fluke print and dorsal fin so that we will recognize it when it returns to the Bay of Fundy.

On July 14, we were pleased to see a North Atlantic Right Whale move into the Bay. This species is critically endangered with only approximately 350 remaining in the world! The Grand Manan Basin in Bay of Fundy is a summer feeding ground for the majority of this population. Another popular feeeding area for them is at Roseway Basin, off Nova Scotia's South Shore.

Birth Announcement

Foggy is one of the new mothers that have been sighted in the Bay of Fundy

The Bay of Fundy has become a bit of a nursery as of late with the arrival of ten humpback mothers with their calves. The moms that have been identified are Foggy, Flash, Colorado, Mirage, Umbra, Eclipse and Teo. There were three whales that we have not been able to identify. Foggy is special to researchers at Brier Island Whale and Seabird Cruises as we watched her grow to adulthood since she was brought here as a calf by her mother whose name was Bermuda. This calf is the third born to Foggy; her first, Sparkler, was born in 2000 and her second, Motley, was born in 2003. Her 2007 calf will not be named until it makes its return to the Gulf of Maine after it leaves its mother.

Humpback whale calves are born in the Caribbean after a 12 month gestation. They drink about 50 gallons of milk from their mother, gaining several hundred pounds per week. They stay with their moms for about a year after they have been weaned at the Northern feeding grounds.

There has been plenty of other activity as well. We have seen the humpbacks move in a bit closer to Brier Island. On one occasion, which was a research cruise, we watched as 4 adult humpback whales surface fed on herring. They would blow a column of bubbles and lunge through it with their mouths agape, taking in several hundred pounds of fish with each gulp. Humpbacks are baleen whales and use those to filter the food out from the water, much like a sieve.

There were also some curious whales, such as Orion, who approached us and spy hopped next to the boat as if he was doing the watching! It is times like this that we wonder who is watching who?

Humpback whale named Orion spyhopping next to our whale watch boat.