Currently, the Humpback whales of Western Australia are migrating through Flinders Bay en route to the warm waters of the Kimberley for calving. As a result, we are being visited by numerous escort pods, each consisting of one male and one female for breeding purposes. This morning, we observed several males traveling together in bachelor pods. Shortly after departing from the Augusta Boat Harbour, we found ourselves surrounded by four pods of Humpback Whales. These eight whales briefly gathered to compete for the female, but her primary escort male quickly asserted dominance, exhibiting several tail slaps on the surface that deterred the other males.
The excitement continued when a pod of dolphins joined the bachelor pod, playing in the waves, capped off by an impressive spy hop from one of the male Humpbacks just before we returned to the harbour.
The afternoon proved to be just as thrilling, with plenty of activity right outside the Augusta Boat Harbour. Another escort pod was present, but the female appeared dissatisfied with her current escort male. She began pec slapping and breaching to attract the attention of nearby bachelor pods. Before long, a heat run ensued, with five males suddenly pursuing the female. The competition showcased several breaches from her and strategic behaviour from the males, who cleverly utilised our vessel to separate themselves from the competition behind them! All this commotion once again intrigued our Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphins, who swam over to catch a glimpse of the action. It truly was a unique and exhilarating competition this afternoon.
Both the morning and afternoon tours provided remarkable examples of humpback whale behaviours during this time of year. The whales were plentiful, seen resting, playing, and courting throughout the day.
