Whale Sightings 06/28/23 to 07/04/23 Please find the Naturalist Notes for the week of 06/28/23 to 07/04/23 from the onboard team of naturalists for our New England Whale Watching tour in partnership with the New England Aquarium.
06-29-23
10am Balina Gözlemleri
İyi günler!
Battling some swells, the 10am whale watched headed on the Asteria towards the southern section of Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary! Upon reaching our destination, we were ecstatic to the see the scattered blows of around 25 humpback whales in very distinct associations! We spotted the groups of: Conflux, Nile and Woodwind, Sprinkles, Skydancer and Bristle, Mend, Chairlift and Cajun, Cajun 23 Calf, 3.14, Spell and Fern, Fern 23 Calf. In contrast to previous days, these associations stayed in their specific groups the entire trip. While we had repeated instances of multiple associations surfacing at the same time and traveling close together (see photo with different associations passing close together but in opposite directions) – individuals never split off from their original association to join other groups. Therefore, we were able to keep track of all our whales at the surface – something not easy to do when you have 15 whales surfacing at the same time! Our humpbacks were likely busy feeding, based on their explosive surfacing and the ample bird activity. We got some fantastic looks at our whales as they popped on all sides and even got to see some new flukes (We haven’t seen Fern and Calf yet this season!).
What a whale-tastic day!
Kate and Josiah
12pm Balina Gözlemleri
Sevgili Balina Gözlemcileri,
Today the Sanctuary headed out on her maiden journey of summer 2023 to go find whales in exciting seas. We were treated to such a delight! There were many groups of surface-active humpbacks including Woodwind, Spell, Sprinkles, Skydancer, Startrail, Flock, Cajun, her calf, Lollipop, her calf, Nile, Pele, and Jabiru. There were more than twenty whales in the area! Cajun’s calf even breached twice! It was a fantastic day on the water with our beloved behemoths.
Carry on!
Mira, Emily, and Indi
06-30-23
10am Balina Gözlemleri
İyi günler Balina Meraklıları!
The 10 am whale watch headed towards the southwest corner of Stellwagen bank aboard the Asteria in search of cetaceans. As we got close to the bank we encountered a bank of thick fog, but we persevered and were lucky to find several humpback whales! We started our trip with a group of 3 that included Venom, Woodwind, and Skydancer. We saw a breach in the distance, and within 2 minutes Venom erupted into surface activity herself! She breached twice around us, and flipper slapped in between! It was really interesting to see this call and response of surface activity. Venom breached for a 3rd time before moving deeper into the fog which had quickly intensified. We cautiously continued on and found ourselves surrounded by at least 10 whales right along the fog line. We sat out of gear as we watched these whales around us. All of the sudden, the fog bank almost completely lifted, and we found ourselves surrounded by 20-25 humpbacks! We were able to ID several groups including Flock and Startrail; Pele, Jabiru and Eruption; Nile and Conflux; Ravine and Ravine 23 calf; and Lollipop and Lollipop 23 calf. Unfortunately Lollipop 23 calf is still entangled, and we reported our sighting to the disentanglement team who we hope are able to further assess this entanglement and free the calf from the gear.
We got some incredible looks at these whales as they moved around us and treated us to close approaches on all sides, and reluctantly said goodbye as we headed back to Boston. It was a fantastic day for whale watching!
Sydney, Lily and Josiah
12pm Balina Gözlemleri
Herkese merhaba,
Today aboard the Aurora, the 12pm whale watch made its way out towards the southern part of Stellwagen Bank in search of whales and other marine life. We were delighted to spot multiple blows as we got to the area. There were several groups of humpbacks scattered throughout the area. We started off our trip by a group of three humpbacks diving right in front of the bow! We got some incredible looks at a group of four humpbacks consisting of Cajun, her 2023 calf, Milkweed, and 3.14 who swam under our boat! We also got brief looks at Lollipop and her 2023 calf who gave us a nice close approach. Venom and two other humpbacks also gave us a fantastic drive by, and Venom gave us a beautiful fluking dive right off our bow! After Venom dove, Cajun’s little one erupted out of the water! The little one breached six times allowing us to get some phenomenal looks at it! After some great looks at the little one, the rest of the group, and a drive by from Flock and Startrail, we had to head back to Boston. It was a really amazing day out on Stellwagen Bank!
Bir dahaki sefere kadar,
Colin, Indi, and Jane
07-01-23
9am and 10:30am Whale Watch Sightings
Herkese merhaba,
Today aboard the Cetacea, the 9am whale watch made its way out towards Stellwagen Bank in search of whales and other marine life. The fog made spotting difficult at first, however, it eventually cleared, and we spotted a few blows in the distance. We started our trip on Sprinkles the humpback who was booking it north to a group of other whales. We found several other humpbacks bopping around the area. We spent time with Ravine and her 2023 calf, who popped up right next to our boat! We had another pair swim right under our boat! After several close approaches from several different humpbacks, we had to head back to Boston.
The 130pm whale watch made its way towards the same area in hopes of similar luck. The fog had rolled in again, so we had to do some extra searching. The extra searching paid off when we noticed a flipper in the air! This turned out to be Ravine 23 Calf who was rolling and flipper slapping! The little calf then did a series of lob tails and tail breaches! Soon the fog lifted, and we spotted our groups of humpbacks again. Also mixed in were Cajun, Cajun 23 Calf, Ravine, 3.14, Woodwind, Lollipop, and Lollipop 23 Calf. Cajun’s calf proceeded to join Ravine’s calf, and both began rolling around! We even got a quick breach from one of the calves! After a series of beautiful fluking dives from our adults, and even a few of the calves, we had to make our way back towards Boston. It was a fantastic day out on Stellwagen Bank!
Flukes yukarı,
Colin ve Josiah
10am ve 14:30pm Balina Gözlemleri
İyi günler,
Today aboard the Asteria we ventured through thick fog to be rewarded with some clear skies once we arrived at the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. On our 10am trip we spotted 9-11 humpbacks and a few harbor seals. The humpbacks were busy feeding below the surface, making tight turns under the water, and splitting and joining with new associations pretty quickly. We spent time with Ravine and calf, Cajun and calf, Startrail, Flock, 3.14, Conflux, and Chairlift. At the end of our trip, Ravine’s calf spent a lot of time rolling at the surface!
On our 2:30pm whale watch, we found whales in the same spot as earlier, spending time with 10 different whales. We first followed Ravine and Lollipop with their calves, following closely alongside mom. We have also been continually monitoring Lollipop’s calf’s entanglement, and will update the blog as we hear more about its condition. We also spotted 3.14, Skydancer, Bristle, and Startrail throughout the trip. Our star of the show was Cajun’s calf, who breached alongside the boat a few times!
A special shot out to captain Deb and the crew today, who navigated during the challenging fog conditions throughout the day!
Şerefe,
Laura, Melissa, Emily & Jane
11am and 3:30 Whale Watch Sightings
İyi akşamlar,
Aboard the Aurora today, we sailed out into foggy conditions eager find whales on Stellwagen Bank. It was a challenging ride with limited visibility, but we were optimistic it would pay off in the end! As we neared the Bank, the fog broke and we were delighted to find ourselves in the middle of a large group of Humpback whales! Around us we had Ravine and her 2023 calf, Cajun and her 2023 calf, Startrail, Skydancer, Chairlift, 3.14, Bristle, Woodwind, Flock, and Sprinkles. These whales were moving chaotically as they dove and surfaced all around in groups that constantly shifted. It looked as if the adults were subsurface feeding while the calves were up at the surface breaching, tail lobbing, flipper slapping, and rolling. We had an incredible close encounter with Cajun’s calf as it surfaced near our bow, rolled around, and then dove beneath us! We even caught a very brief glance at a minke whale that was near the periphery of our humpback whale groups. After some time with these fantastic whales, we slowly slipped back through the fog and returned home.
On the 3:30pm whale watch, the Aurora braced the fog once again. We were hopeful that it would break as we neared Stellwagen Bank and, luckily for us, it did! We spent our afternoon with four humpback whales: 3.14, Skydancer, and Cajun and her 2023 Calf. The adults were taking short dives and spending ample time at the surface, but the calf was keeping us very occupied. Cajun’s calf was breaching, tail lobbing, and rolling at the surface! The calf’s behavior quieted down as it reunited with its mother. All four whales were spread around the area, bobbing at the surface of the water, and exhaling every few minutes as they started logging. We got some beautiful looks at these whales as they took a well-deserved afternoon nap! We watched them sleep for about fifteen minutes before 3.14 and Skydancer woke up and swam out of the area. Around the same time, we also started noticing a change in the behavior of Cajun and her calf. Cajun started slowly swimming in a linear fashion. The calf trailed behind her, diving every few seconds and quickly surfacing on Cajun’s opposite side. It appeared the calf was nursing! We watched this behavior occur for several minutes before both whales went down on dives. With some beautiful last looks at Cajun and her calf, we slowly made our way back to Boston.
Bir dahaki sefere kadar,
Eman and Anjali
12pm ve 5pm Balina Gözlemleri
İyi akşamlar balina meraklıları!
This afternoon a hardy group of passengers boarded the Sanctuary, excited for our search for whales on Stellwagen bank. We headed towards the Southwest corner through thick fog in our search for cetaceans and were excited to find a clearing that was teeming with humpbacks! We estimated 13-15 whales were in the areas, frequently joining and splitting in their social groups. We were treated to several close approaches and fantastic looks on all sides of the vessel! We also saw at least 3 calves during our trip who were rolling around at the surface, lobtailing, and flipper slapping throughout the trip! We were able to ID several groups of humpbacks, including Woodwind, Skydancer, and Sprinkles; Cajun, Cajun 23 Calf, and 3.14; Startrail and Bristle; Ravine, Ravine 23 Calf, and Lollipop 23 Calf; and Chairlift and Flock. The sighting of Lollipop 23 Calf was reported to CCS, and we will continue to monitor this whale’s behavior and condition.
We got some lovely last looks before we reluctantly headed home to Boston, excited to return on our sunset whale watch.
The 5pm trip made its way back towards Stellwagen bank, braving fog that seemed to have increased since the morning. We were shocked and delighted to find the fog had completely cleared on the bank, allowing us to see some splashing in the distance. The splashing was coming from Bristle the humpback whale who was busy lobtailing at the surface! We noticed that a second whale had arrived on the scene, and this turned out to be Startrail. It was interesting to see this surface activity as it was followed by a splitting and then later rejoining of the duo. Bristle continued to lobtail, tail breach and flipper slap throughout the entire duration of our time together. Bristle even treated us to at least 5 full breaches! It was a rare and incredible treat to watch this whales tremendous display of surface activity. In the last 5 minutes of our trip, this duo settled into a rhythm and began travelling together, giving us one final incredible look as they surfaced right off of the right pulpit.
Also a massive shout out to captain Marc and the crew aboard the Sanctuary who were able to navigate us through the challenging fog today and allow us to have these beautiful sightings.
Overall it was a truly wonderful day for whale watching!
Sydney and Indi
07-02-23
Sabah 9 ve 1:30 Balina Gözlemleri
Herkese merhaba,
Today aboard the Cetacea, the 9am whale watch made its way out towards the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank in search of whales and other marine life. As we approached the area, we noticed several blows from many different humpback whales! We spent time with a group of 4 humpback whales consisting of Bolide, Mend, Woodwind, and Sprinkles. This group was spending a lot of time at the surface, so we were able to get some great looks at them! After several amazing looks, and of course some beautiful fluking dives from all 4, we made our way back to Boston.
The 130pm whale watch made its way towards the same area in hopes of similar success to the first trip. We were in luck when we started on our same group of 4 humpbacks consisting of Mend, Bolide, Woodwind, and Sprinkles. This group gave us a close approach, and on their next surfacing they popped up right off our bow! We next got to spend time with the lovely trio of Pele, Eruption, and Jabiru who also gave us an amazing close approach! While these 3 were down on a dive, we were visited by a curious little harbor seal. This little one seemed very intrigued by our boat swimming along the side, between the pulpits, and even under the boat. Eventually our harbor seal friend went on its way, and we got some more great looks at our trio. We got some final looks at another trio of humpbacks consisting of Startrail, Flock, and Venom before having to head back to Boston. It ended up being a really amazing day out on Stellwagen Bank!
Bir dahaki sefere kadar,
Colin and Lily
10am ve 14:30pm Balina Gözlemleri
İyi akşamlar,
Aboard the Asteria today, the 10am whale watch headed out to find whales. When we got to Stellwagen Bank, we were greeted by between 25-30 humpback whales in all directions! These whales were moving around rapidly, which meant our boat mainly stayed stationary while the whales shuffled in and out of the space around us! Our very lengthy list of whales IDs includes: 3.14, Woodwind, Startrail, Conflux, Sprinkles, Jabiru, Cajun and her 2023 calf, Ravine and her 2023 calf, Lollipop and her 2023 calf, Pele, Eruption, Chairlift, Milkweed, Venom, Nile, Othello, Flock, Bristle, and Mend. The adults were taking incredibly short dives and lunging as they came to the surface. We also got to see multiple whales poop as they dove which sparked some awesome conversations about how whales contribute to the ocean’s oxygen production by depositing nutrients at the surface of the water. While the adults were feeding and diving around us, the three calves were hanging out at the surface of the water. These smaller whales were blowing bubbles at the surface and surfacing with their mouths tilted upward as if mimicking the adults around them. It was a great way to visualize the way these younger whales learn from adults around them! Time was up before we knew it and we slowly made our way back to Boston.
At 2:30pm, we boarded the Asteria and headed out for some wildlife encounters. The building seas and clouds did not deter us as we rolled out. Our arrival in Stellwagen Bank was greeted with some familiar tails including Cajun and her 2023 calf, Lollipop and her 2023 calf, Ravine and her 2023 calf, Venom, Milkweed, Jabiru, Pele, Eruption, Nile, Spell, Chairlift, and Sprinkles. The adults were busy subsurface feeding and were taking incredibly short dives and fluking almost instantly. The calves kept us quite entertained, though! The three calves were constantly breaching, tail lobbing, head breaching, flipper slapping, and rolling all around us! We had some beautiful close encounters with a few adults as they surfaced besides our boat and dove beneath us. The rain started about halfway through our trip, but no amount of rain could compel us to head back inside when the whales were so incredible! Soaked but satisfied, the Asteria headed back to Boston after a glorious time with the whales!
Bir dahaki sefere kadar,
Eman and Reilly
11:00 ve 15:30 Balina Gözlemleri
İyi akşamlar,
While the weather was a bit iffy throughout the day, the whale watching was spectacular start to finish. We headed to the southwest corner where we found ourselves sitting amongst 20-25 humpback whales and 1 minke whale. The adult humpbacks were in groups of two-five and charged about one general area, likely searching for lunch. We enjoyed many close approaches and high fluking dives, while three calves bobbed around as well. 3.14, Spell, Sprinkles, Othello, Milkweed, Venom, Chairlift, Pele, Jabiru, Eruption, Nile, Flock, Bristle, Mend, and Woodwind are the IDs we have just from flukes alone, along with moms Cajun, Lollipop, and Ravine. The calves have some distinct markings already, so we can start thinking about what we might suggest for names when their fluke patterns solidify in the coming years.
A special thank you goes out to the passengers who boarded the 3:30 in a downpour but kept their spirits light and held on to positive attitudes! They certainly were rewarded, with whales to be seen almost continuously completely surrounding our boat. The three calves in the area decided it was playtime and spent lots of time showing their growing strength with full breaches, chin breaches, tail breaches, lob tails, and rolling. We paid special attention to Lollipop’s calf and tried to photograph its entanglement, but that particular baby only breached a couple of times. I did notice, however, that one of the calves has an accumulation of cyamids (“whale lice”) on its back and assumed it was Lollipop’s, but based on some of the breaching photos I’m not quite sure. A few of these crustaceans are not anything of concern but a large accumulation is a sign of poor health. I really appreciate the passengers who took the time to look through their own photos to see if they captured any images to share.
Laura L. and Kaitlyn
12pm ve 5pm Balina Gözlemleri
Good evening all!
What a spectacular Sunday to be on Stellwagen Bank! It was thrilling to board the Sanctuary for our first excursion at 12 pm, which saw us gliding across the ocean on a southerly heading. After receiving a tip that there was a surface active whale just west of the Southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank, we decided to check out this tidbit of information. Upon discovering this individual, I immediately had to apologize to Captain Marc, as I had just unknowingly lied to him. After telling him that Dross had most recently been seen further north, we found ourselves in her 2023 calf’s presence, surfacing explosively and rolling around. Her reputation preceded her, as she was nowhere to be found, but soon a larger whale roughly a mile away erupted into a breach, and immediately began swimming in our direction. The calf changed its course toward mom, and the pair lolled at the surface before taking a longer dive, allowing us to continue our exploration. We continued to the corner, where we were met with at least 20 humpback whales- Bristle, Cajun, her 2023 calf, Spell, Mend, Bolide, Milkweed, Nile, Ravine and her 2023 calf, Venom, Woodwind, and Sprinkles among the blubbery beasts. These whales fed beneath the surface and swam close by, allowing us amazing looks at almost every individual. After some time, we grabbed some last looks, before braving the oncoming rain back towards Boston.
The 5 p.m. whale watch plotted a similar course, braving some more waves and wind, with a splendid reward. We arrived at the Southwest Corner of Stellwagen Bank and could not look anywhere without seeing a whale! Three calves, belonging to Cajun, Ravine, and Lollipop, kept a steady flow of breaching activity, Cajun’s calf certainly taking the gold medal. This calf breached all around the boat, even directly in our jet wash, so close I thought it was trying to come aboard! While these behaviors are incredible to witness, especially so close, it’s important to note that Captain Dave had us stationary, with the youngster choosing to approach us. In fact, Whale Sense often leads to advantageous whale watches, as several of the adults, including Pele, Eruption, Jabiru, Cajun, and Milkweed, swam close to and even under the vessel! I truly cannot say I’ve had a similar trip to this evenings’, and it was an ideal way to spend a Sunday.
Flukes up!
Ashlyn and Antonia
07-03-23
10am Balina Gözlemleri
İyi günler!
We boarded the Asteria for the 10am whale watch and headed for the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank. After a while of foggy air, we arrived at our destination, to clearer visibility and several whales! A large group of humpbacks, consisting of familiar flukes such as Cajun, her 2023 calf, Venom, Ravine and calf, Lollipop and calf, Spell, and Sprinkles! The calves took turns carefully doing some head breaches, and practicing their fluking dives. The adults fed beneath the surface, emerging rapidly and loudly. We enjoyed some spectacular sights, some passengers even spotting a small Kemp’s Ridley turtle just off our starboard side! As we were making our way back to Boston, we noticed another blow close to Minot’s Light. This turned out to be Mostaza! She was lazing about at the surface, taking a snooze and moving slowly. We watched as she fluked and resumed our journey home.
Flukes up!
Ashlyn, Eman, and Anjali
12pm Balina Gözlemleri
Herkese merhaba,
Today aboard the Aurora, the 12pm whale watch made its way out towards the southwest corner of Stellwagen Bank in search of whales and other marine life. Once we approached the area, we noticed a flurry of blows from many groups of humpback whales. We started on a group of 4 humpbacks consisting of Lollipop, Lollipop 23 Calf, Ravine, and Ravine 23 Calf. The group swam right by the boat! After this group dove, another group of 4 popped up right next to the boat! Then shortly after, a trio consisting of Jabiru, Pele, and Eruption swam right by us! We were in whale soup! We also got a brief look at Cajun, Cajun 23 Calf, Milkweed, 3.14, Chairlift, and Bristle. We then moved on to another group of 4 consisting of Nile, Venom, Woodwind, and Spell. This group was spending a lot of time at the surface which allowed us to get some tremendous looks at them. After a series of beautiful fluking dives, we started to head back to Boston. Before we left the area, Lollipop, Ravine, and their respective calves popped up not far from us, so we were able to get some awesome bonus looks! It was a fantastic day out on Stellwagen Bank!
Bir dahaki sefere kadar,
Colin, Antonia, and Kaitlyn
Sabah 9 ve Öğleden Sonra 2:30 Balina Gözlemleri
İyi günler Balina Meraklıları!
The 9am whale watch headed out towards Stellwagen bank aboard the Sanctuary in search of whales. Despite encountering fog, we were able to locate many humpback whales! We estimated 20-25 humpbacks in the area. These whales were moving quickly at the surface, changing up social associations and direction abruptly. We were able to identify Jabiru, Pele, Lollipop, Lollipop 23 Calf, Eruption, Nile, Venom, Woodwind, Ravine, and Ravine 23 Calf. One of these calves also breached several times in the distance! We got some fantastic looks before we had to head home to Boston, excited to return in the afternoon.
The 2:30 pm trip prepared to head back to the Sanctuary, and we were delighted to find the fog had entirely lifted! We returned to where we had visited in the morning and were excited to see that we still had about 20-25 whales in the area. We started with a trio of humpbacks that included Pele, Jabiru and Eruption. These whales closely approached the boat and travelled along our port side, allowing us to see their entire bodies, and fresh scuff marks from feeding on sandlance on Jabirus face! Bristle and Chairlift then began quickly travelling towards us allowing for fantastic looks on all sides! We saw that several groups of whales had begun to converge around us, and we also spent some time with Nile, Woodwind, Venom and Spell. We were treated to some incredible last looks of Chunk, Mend, Sprinkles, and Bolide, who surfaced off of one of our pulpits and again showed off their impressive size as they travelled parallel to us. We reluctantly made our way home to Boston, enjoying the beautiful ocean views.
Genel olarak balina izlemek için harika bir gün!
Sydney ve Reilly
07-04-23
9am and 1:30pm Whale Watch Sightings
İyi akşamlar,
The 9am trip boarded the Sanctuary eager to see whales. Our goal was to make it to Stellwagen Bank, but our trek was cut short as we spotted two Humpback whale blows! These whales turned out to be Dross and her 2023 calf. Both of the whales dove shortly after we spotted them. As we moved closer to the area, the calf erupted in a breach! The calf continued to keep us quite entertained as it surfaced around the boat, blowing bubbles, and tossing its head around in what looked like half-lunges. During this time, Dross was busy blowing bubble nets and lunging through them all around us. As we were watching Dross and her calf, we noticed another whale in the area. This whale was much bigger, and we quickly realized it was the second largest animal on the planet. We watched this fin whale take a few breaths before it slipped below the surface and disappeared. With one final look at our humpback whale mother-calf pair, the Sanctuary made its way back to Boston.
The Sanctuary headed out into the foggy Atlantic for our second trip at 1:30pm. This time around, we made it all the way to Stellwagen Bank! When we arrived, we were greeted with the blows of 12-15 humpback whales in the area! In the area we found Chairlift, Nile, Sprinkles, Spell, Flock, Cajun and her 2023 calf, 3.14, and several other whales. These whales were in distinct groups that contained 2-4 whales each. Each group was moving rapidly around our boat, taking dives and consistently surfacing every few minutes. It appeared that these whales were subsurface feeding! There were two calves in the mix – one belonging to Cajun and one belonging to another female in the area. The calves were taking shorter dives and surfacing more frequently than the adults, which was a fantastic treat for us as we watched! Before we knew it, our time with the whales was over and we slowly headed back to Boston.
Bir dahaki sefere kadar,
Eman and Emily
10am ve 14:30pm Balina Gözlemleri
Mutlu 4 Temmuzlar!
The 10:00 whale watch cruised over smooth seas in increasing fog to watch Dross and her calf north of Stellwagen Bank. The dark skies made for a dramatic backdrop for the pair, who remained under water for only a few minutes at a time. Each surfacing was fairly predictable which helps when you have novice whale watchers trying to snap photos, until the calf showed a great force of energy with one large, sudden breach.
By the afternoon, Dross and her calf had shifted away from where they had been so we continued on to the southwest corner of the bank. Several groups milled about the area, including Mend with Flock, the Pele-Jabiru-Eruption trio, and a group comprised of Mostaza, Chunk, Ravine, and Ravine’s calf. The rain started to pick up which wasn’t dampening the spirits of the passengers, but just in case anyone was feeling down, the next few minutes surely changed some minds. The calf started out by breaching just a handful of yards off the starboard pulpit and continued to splash, roll, and breach throughout the rest of our sightings time. Two adults even joined with a double breach and Chunk had some wiggles of her own, twisting her tail stock while among two individuals outside of her association. The breaches became predictable enough that passengers got some great photos and video and we headed back to the city, happy and grateful!
Laura L., Antonia, and Reilly
11:00 Balina Gözlemleri
İyi akşamlar,
On the Aurora, The 11am whale watch started off with a “bang” – as we were able to watch the USS Constitution conduct its annual cruise around the harbor and 21-gun salute. After witnessing this awesome event, we headed out towards Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. We were pleasantly surprised when we spotted a bout of surface activity 9 miles west of the bank. To our delight, we spent our trip with the pair of Dross and her 2023 calf. As we approached the area, we were able to witness this little calf launch into a full body breach! It then transitioned to a series of adorable chin breaches. As the calf launched its body out of the water, Dross busily fed in the distance. At one point, the fog rolled in, and Dross disappeared – leaving the calf behind. This calf hung around the vessel, continuously approaching us and “checking us out.” Dross’s calf seemed just as curious of us as we were of it, and we got some amazing looks as it rolled around the vessel and popped up on either side. Eventually, Dross returned, and we got a look at some beautiful fluking dives before returning back to Boston.
Kate, Sydney, and Kaitlyn
3:30pm Balina Gözlemleri
İyi akşamlar balina meraklıları!
This afternoon the 3:30 pm whale watch headed out towards the southwest corner of Stellwagen bank aboard the Aurora. We braved the rain and fog and were delighted to find over 20 humpback whales! We were able to ID Chunk, Bolide, Milkweed, 3.14, Dusky, Venom, Sprinkles, Pele, Eruption, Jabiru, Cajun, Cajun 23 Calf, and Ravine 23 Calf. Ravines calf definitely captured passengers attention as it breached repeatedly off our bow. As we sat out of gear this young whale even breached right in between our pulpits! The surface activity continued with lobtailing, tail breaching, flipper slapping, chin breaching, and even more full body breaches! Cajuns calf also joined in on some of the surface activity as did several adults in the surrounding area. We watched on in awe as these whales launched themselves out of the water all around us. We reluctantly made our way home to Boston, wet from the rain but satisfied with our FIN-tastic sightings.
A wonderful day for whale watching!
Sydney, Kate and Kaitlyn
Boston Whale Watching: Naturalist Notes – 06/28/23 to 07/04/23