Perth Whale close encounters unfolded today as a surprise competition pod started up in the sighting grounds as two males pursued a female and her young calf. This morning started off with big blue skies and a light breeze as we made our way out to see who was waiting in the sighting grounds. A big blow caught our eye so we got a little closer to that area and found a mother and calf but they weren’t alone with two other mums and calves close by. As we sat and watched a big blow come up right between us and the mother, it was a bachelor male trying to decide which mum and calf to approach. After a bit of zig zagging he finally picked one and headed straight for her, with no one in sight he must have thought he was a shoe in as he approached very thoughtfully and didn’t rush towards her. Unfortunately for this male another bachelor male out of nowhere popped up nearby as he too moved in towards the female. The two boys started to chase and follow mum left, right and centre until after a while she seemed to decide the original bachelor male who approached her was going to be the winner.
The challenger moved away shortly after this interaction but to our surprise the winning male pursued him and left the female behind briefly. A short time later he returned with the challenger male right alongside using his body to push the other male out of the way with white water going everywhere. It was a dramatic change of events and very interesting to see why this male after winning and in a strange way encouraged the challenger to return and resume competing. Throughout this time baby was staying nice and close to mum with mother whale making sure her calf was always on the other side of her from the pushy males. The boys settled and you could see their beautiful big white bellies glow through the water as they travelled with mum and calf. Wishing them well we wondered how that pod would unfold in the next hour or so and who would eventually be the winner.
Departing for our midday tour the first interaction enjoyed was with a resting mother and calf who could be seen moving through the turquoise waters beautifully. There dark shadows stood out from the sand below them and it is always lovely watching the whales move through the shallows. All was peaceful before a commotion of white water a few hundred meters away caught our attention, what was the fuss unfolding just ahead? To our surprise and excitement we could identify the same mum, calf and bachelor males with one extra male now having joined with them all. The boys were still competing as mother whale calmly led them on yet another chase through the resting grounds. The energy started off intense but did start to settle into a more relaxed rhythm as the males all jostled for position closet to the female. It certainly was a big day for them all and plenty of important lessons for the young calf to learn in these situations. Mother whale still seemed to have the original chosen escort closest to her so as we wished them well our bet was he would be the one to escort her and calf safely from the resting grounds.
