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Herring in Hawaii!
The bluestripe herring is an introduced fish, although this author could not find the time line as to when, but apparently this was an accident. This herring is seen in many areas; (widespread) Indo-W ...
Bottlenose vs. Spinner Dolphins ~ Can You Tell?
We are often asked about porpoise and dolphins when we are out on the water during one of our marine safaris. First, we do not have porpoise in Hawaiian waters. Porpoise have very blunt rostrums, shor ...
One With Nature ~ Reconnection Is Possible
How many times have we heard the saying "stop and smell the flowers"? Often times we get so caught up in our daily lives, routines, emails, textings, and phone calls that we forget to take t ...
Ahead Of The Rest ~ Competing Male Humpback Whales
Although it is the end of the season, there are still many humpback whales around the Hawaiian islands looking to mate. This very large male escort traveling next to a lovely female appeared to be ver ...
Aloha Humpback Whales
What does ALOHA mean to you? For most mainland people, aloha means goodbye, or hello. For the people of Hawaii it could mean those words, but one may add love and caring. Many years ago the word's mea ...
False Killer Whales Of Hawaii
According to Dr. Robin Baird of Cascadia Research, both insular and offshore populations of Hawaiian false killer whales could be in trouble. These cetaceans are a beautiful animal in the dolphin fami ...
Darling Baby Humpbacks
In the animal kingdom, the little ones, no matter what species, are always adorable to animal lovers. Humpback calves are certainly no exception. For any observer, the clumsy little ones touch hearts ...
Look At Me! Male Humpback Hogs Camera
Many have them. Not all want them. Some are ignored. Some are allowed to hang around. This is the world of humpback male escorts attempting to find a female who will give them time, and if they're rea ...
Whale Of A Show
It was so unexpected. As we left the harbor today, 26 unsure passengers in rain gear, borrowed ponchos, and even large trash bags with cut out holes for heads and arms huddled out on the bow looking a ...
Humpback Momma's Watchful Eyes
While momma watched closely baby humpback whale worked out on the surface about 20 feet away, easily within reach of mom's long pectoral fins. Researchers tell us that when babies are new, they are no ...
Size Matters~Humpbacks Seek To Impress
Size matters. At least with humpback whales it does. Researchers tell us that the big females choose the biggest males to mate with and the males seek out the biggest females to do battles over. They ...
Humpbacks Touch Visitor's Hearts
They appeared in front of us as we journeyed slowly down the south coast of Maui. We were cruising about 12 knots when their blows about 500 yards away caused our captain to slow us to 5 knots. The tr ...
Bouncing Baby Humpback
Not only did this little guy (there is a way to tell) work out right next to the boat during yesterday's whale watch, mother patiently stayed nearby and even allowed her calf to nurse close enough for ...
Leapin' Whales And Dolphins!
Sometimes it just isn't exciting enough to be on the water during humpback breeding season and watch the cute newborn calves with their mothers, the big males fighting and body slamming to earn the ri ...
Humpback 'Friendlies'
Researchers call them 'friendlies'. When humpback whales approach you within 100 yards it is also called a 'mugging'. Today we had both. This sub-adult was about 30 feet in length and appeared to be a ...
Leapin' Whales And Dolphins!
Sometimes it just isn't exciting enough to be on the water during humpback breeding season and watch the cute newborn calves with their mothers, the big males fighting and body slamming to earn the ri ...
High Five For Humpbacks
This season has been outstanding for whale lovers. Not only has the number of animals in Hawaii greatly increased, but the good news from research shows the increase could be as high as 10% instead of ...
Helping Hawaiian Humpbacks
A few days ago the captain of Prince Kuhio, a local whale watching vessel, reported coming across a mom/calf group that appeared to be acting strangely. He reported them logging on the surface, barel ...
Humpback Calves ~ Practice Makes Perfect
Big mothers can have enormous calves, small mothers have much smaller ones. I always smile seeing the faces of visitors show great surprise as we explain that small is a relative term. A small mother ...
Humbling Humpbacks
If we ever doubt that animals can teach us, all one needs to do is go on a marine safari. Today we had over 45 minutes of close encounters with two very large animals. They dove next to us, paused by ...
Spinner Dolphins Thrill & Delight
Today's whale watch had an amazing and rare surprise in store for all aboard. Spinner dolphins! In all the many years I've been working on the water, spinners are a very rare occurrence. Usually seen ...
"Come Hither" ~ Humpback Whale Style
Both males and females are seen holding pectoral fins skyward and slapping the surface, belly up, hoping to attract a mate. Pec slapping, as it is called, is commonly seen in the breeding grounds of H ...
Bottlenose Mugging
Today's whale watch was amazingly eventful. We were barely out of the harbor when a pod of seven bottlenose came over to investigate and people watch. We call this a mugging and it was delightful! The ...
Battles Of Humpback Males
He was a beautiful male! Look at that pectoral fin. It is brilliant white on the underside, but what was amazing was the fin was nearly equally white on the upper side. The turquoise glow below the fi ...
Mugged By A Female ~ Humpback Whale!
We must have looked really comical to anyone else watching a group of passengers on a vessel running wildly from side to side, peering into the water, taking pictures, shouts of exuberance and running ...
Whale Mugging
WOW! Who watches whom? This was a massive female with a male companion. The two of them circled our vessel for over 20 minutes the first time, and another 15 minutes the next. After their first visit ...
Whale Of A Shark
Upon a return trip from snorkeling at Molokini, a tuff cone in Maui County waters, tired passengers and crew came across an amazing surprise: a 17 feet long female whale shark! The captain brought the ...
The WWE Of Whale Watching
Today's whale watch was breathtaking! We were only two miles out when we found a very beautiful female humpback whale surrounded by several males battling to get close to her in hopes of being selecte ...
Whales in Hawaii
The ‘thumbprint’ of each individual is in the pattern of the flukes. No two are alike although they can have similarities. The job of a fluke researcher is very labor intensive. To date, ...
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