First Humpback calf sighted for season 2020 this morning as a precious calf surfaced alongside mum while the afternoon was a mixture of relaxed whales with a bit of surface activity thrown in for good measure. Our morning had a very big surprise for us all wrapped up in a very small frame. A female surfaced and as we all readied our cameras a tiny movement darted alongside her… it was a baby! Her precious little calf was squeaky clean and brand new, no more than 7-15 days old and swimming strongly alongside mum. We spent a very short time with them, just long enough to check all was well and capture a few identification images. Mum was relaxed but cautious, she had a few others pods close by and was planning on keeping a low profile so we let them be and what a special moment to see the first Humpback calf sighted for season 2020.
A small competition pod of four had started up close to the islands and we watched as the young female had the males following her every move. Eventually, one male remained and they began to court each other with much flirty behaviour as each would turn to show off their bellies to one another. It was a beautiful afternoon that greeted us and we made our way towards a number of different escort pods relaxing in the lovely afternoon weather. A few curious looks in our direction from these relaxed pods as they continued on with their restful siestas. The energy did change as a very large, mature female began to head lunge, breach and pec slap. Approaching the area we could see she was looking for a companion, but with all the boys already busy travelling with their girls she kept on searching as she calmly swam alongside us. A final escort pod finished our relaxed afternoon with a couple of breaches further ahead, flexing those muscles briefly in the afternoon sunshine as we cruised back towards the Augusta Boat Harbour.
