First Competition Pod of 2020

First competition pod of 2020 enthralled our guests today as five enormous, healthy Humpbacks surged under our bow and the afternoon sky lit up with the surface activity of the Language of the Whales. A warm easterly breeze and sunshine made for an enjoyable journey into Flinders Bay and within moments whales had been sighted and soon many others were added to the tally. Everywhere we looked the tall exhalations of Humpback Whales could be seen and it was a true joy to see 40+ whales happily going about their morning. Bottlenose Dolphins feeding on pilchards came over to say hello and a breach up ahead seemed to start a spark amongst them. Our first competition pod of 2020 was building and we were surrounded by five mature adults jostling to be closest to the female. Deliberately using our vessel as a distraction, the males would challenge each other and try to push one another In towards the Steep Point before racing back to the female.

The afternoon was a replica of our morning tour with whales surrounding us and no end in sight of when the tall exhalations would stop filling Flinders Bay. The sub-adults were moving around and we could see that their confidence is still building as they tried to decide the best areas of the bay to move towards with so many other whales approaching them. One juvenile was not afraid to make some noise though and began to breach just as we were approached and our bow surrounded by friendly Common Dolphins. Then the largest two Humpbacks of our day exploded into action with perfect, synchronised breaching, head lunging, inverted fluke slapping, pec slapping and tail lobs. Simply sensational to witness and the sound echoed out around the bay as two other pods returned with surface activity of their own. The spectacular end to a remarkable display was an enormous breach meters from our bow with full body weight airborne taking our breath away.

A cheeky Antarctic Minke Whale made a quick appearance this morning much to our delight, the distinctive dorsal fin in the morning sunshine a special moment to add to season 2020.





















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