Haleigh | M/V Sea Lion | May 23, 2022 | 12:30 pm
Humpback Whales are the largest whales regularly seen in the Salish Sea. Their migratory path leads them to Hawaiian waters for the winter months where many females will breed with males or give birth to full-grown fetuses. After a few months in those breed grounds, they begin their migration towards feed grounds along the coastlines of Washington, British Columbia, and Alaska.
Having whales migrate to the Salish Sea is not something we take for granted. Throughout the 1900’s and before, Humpback Whales were hunted out of these waters due to the commercial demand of their blubber for oil. The Marine Mammal Protection Act is one of the major benchmarks for the protection of whales in US waters, but didn’t lead to an immediate comeback. Gradually, Humpback Whale populations increased throughout the world. In 1997, the first reported return of a Humpback Whale in the Salish Sea was reported. This singular whale returned year after year and in 2003, brought her calf back with her to these feeding grounds. Almost 20 years later, that same Humpback Whale, who we can now identify as Big Mama, returned with her seventh reported calf! We marveled at the playfulness of this newborn. This baby rolled around on the surface, coming up to breathe much more often than mom would. A sudden increase in energy led to some breaches by this calf! After about an hour of viewing and many, many breaches later, it was time for us to part ways with this wonderful mom and her healthy, happy baby.
These instances of activity are fairly common for the young animals. However, we aren’t always lucky enough to witness this repeatedly. Big Mama’s return to the islands has led to over 500 humpbacks recognizing these waters and solid feeding grounds despite the tragic history of the area. We are so thrilled to see Big Mama again and hope to spend many more days on the water with this pair!