Humpback Whales

It is an acrobatic whale. It can breach, spyhop, and smash its flipper on the surface of the water. It can also splash its tail on the water. That is called lobtailing. When it sleeps, it lies very still on the top of the water. That is called logging.

A humpback whale has white flippers its whole life. They have black patterns on their flippers, too. Humpbacks have powerful flukes. The white patterns on a humpback fluke help scientists tell humpback whales apart. All whales can be named after the patterns on their flukes.

Humpbacks have lumps called stovebolts on the tops of their head. Their ears are completely inside their heads. You can hardly see them.

Humpbacks are mammals. They give birth to live young. Babies are born tail first. When the baby is born, it needs to go right up to the surface. The auntie and mom push the baby up. Humpback babies feed on their mothers milk. The mothers milk is very rich. When a baby humpback is born, it can be about 14 feet and it weighs as much as a large station wagon. By one year, it grows to approx. 30 feet. A full grown humpback is about 52 feet and weighs about 53 tons.

Humpback whales live in all parts of the sea. Humpback whales live in shallow water, except when migrating. Humpbacks swim south when its cold. A humpback can swim up to 4,000 miles when it migrates. Humpbacks migrate to colder waters in the north in the spring to feed. Humpbacks and other baleen whales eat krill. They use bubble nets to get their food. To blow a bubble net, a whale blows air bubbles out of its blowhole. The whale swims in a circle when doing this. The bubbles rise up and capture the fish and krill in the middle of the bubble net. The whale and others swim up into the middle of the net to eat the krill and fish.

Humpbacks are gulpers. All the gulper whales are called rorquals. Humpback whales throats have many grooves or pleats. The pleats allow the throats to get bigger when the whales eat.

Scientists thinks humpbacks communicate. They can communicate through sounds and body language. Male humpbacks sing. No one knows what the songs mean, but the songs can last up to 12 hours. Whales also may communicate through body movements. They flap their flippers, breach, and use their tails. Male may use body language to attract females.

Humpbacks can live up to forty years. They could dies from whaling boats or from beaching themselves. Some humpbacks could die from encountering troubles on their long migration journeys. For example, one might get caught in a fishing net. Orca pods or sharks could also attack and kill a humpback.

People must continue to protect whales so humpbacks are safe in the sea.

by Nick, Powell, Zak