Discount Sunshine Coast Holiday Accommodation

The Humpback Whale 

(Megaptera novaeangliae) by Stephen Somers

Also know as Baleine à Bosse, Ballena Jorobada, Humped Whale, Hunchbacked Whale, Mégaptère, Rorcual Jorobado, Rorqual à Bosse.

The Humpback Whale is one of the larger  Cetaceans and is a Baleen whale meaning is has specialised hair like bristles in it's mouth that it used to sieve massive amounts of food (krill, small fish, squid) from the water. 

The Humpback Whale lives in both the Northern and Southern hemispheres and both populations migrate from the high latitudes of their summer feeding grounds to the tropical waters for winter calving and mating. 

An Adult Humpback Whale grows to over 13.5 meters in length (largest ever over 18m) and weigh 30-40 tonnes, with the female whales growing larger than males on average. The Female Humpback Whale reaches sexual maturity at around 5 years old and will calve about every 3 years, after a gestation period of about 11.5 months she gives birth to a calf  that is 2-3m in length and weighs over 300kg.  The mother produces over 500 litres of a thick nutritious milk per day that helps the calf gain 40-70 kg/day until weening during the next years migration. The main reason for the whale migration is that the claves are born without the protective layer of blubber needed to keep them warm in the near freezing waters of the Artic & Antarctic summer feeding grounds.

There is several distinct populations each migrating to a different area. Southern Africa, America, Tonga & Pacific Islands, East and West Coasts of Australia. The Southern Humpback is the group that visits our area of operation so I will concentrate on them. On the East Coast of Australia the Humpbacks start their Northern migration around the start of Winter (June~July) they have been reported as far North as Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands but more commonly they stay within the protective confines of the Great Barrier Reef. Whales remain in the Southern Great Barrier Reef until the start of Summer (November). 

One of the best places to see the migrating Humpback is Hervey Bay in South-East Queensland. Sheltered behind Fraser Island its warm shallow waters are ideal for mothers and calves to rest and play until they start the long slow journey South to the Antarctic.

The Humpback whale produces a number of sounds including the famous whale song, these sounds can be heard for many kilometres underwater  and also above the water (some people believe that whales can communicate across entire oceans). The whale song changes depending the area the whale is from but all males sing the same song in that area, Click Here to Listen to Whale Song {Windows media player 210kb}.

Humpback whales were regularly hunted on the East Coast of Australia until the late 1960's from bases at Eden, Byron Bay and Tangalooma on Morton Island. At the end of whaling it is estimated as few as 400 individuals remained. The population is rebuilding steadily with an estimated population from 2500-5000 now migrating to the Great Barrier Reef annually.

...more info coming soon.

Come on our Full Day Whale Watch Tour & Cruise (July ~November) to experience the majestic Humpback Whale up close.

Bookings Ph: 07 5473 9488