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Whale news from around the world on Whales Without Borders.

Rare Melon Headed Whales off Maui

Melon Headed whales are small members of the dolphin group and can reach a length of 9 feet, and weigh up to 460 pounds.

The NOAA reports that the whales often occur in groups of over 1,000 animals and are often found on the edge of, or behind, schools of Fraser???s dolphins.

NOAA reports that population estimates are around 2,950 in Hawaii and that the species is primarily found in deep waters where they feed on squid, fish and crustaceans.

For more info:
https://mauinow.com/2016/08/22/rare-look-at-melon-headed-whales-off-maui/

How Do Barnacles Attach to Whales

How Do Barnacles Attach to Whales?
It???s hard out there for a symbiotic barnacle, but somehow they find a way...
Barnacles Attach to Whales
Barnacles regularly colonize the skin of filter-feeding whales, and they often do so in huge numbers ??? one humpback whale, for instance, can host almost 1,000 pounds of barnacles. (That may sound burdensome, but relative to a humpback???s nearly 80,000-pound body, it???s about as much extra weight as summer clothing on a human being.)
Whale-bound barnacles aren???t just regular barnacles with wanderlust; they???re different species, most of them unique to the brand of whale they piggyback on.
For a hungry barnacle, the rim of a baleen whale???s nostril isn???t a terrible place to be. When the whale swims through a cloud of plankton for a meal, the barnacle ??? which also feeds on the tiny, floating organisms ??? gets free table service. All it has to do is extend its feathery, filtering arm and wait.
So how does a barnacle get onto a whale in the first place? Like other stationary marine invertebrates, barnacles begin their lives as larvae ??? tiny, shell-less swimmers that find a place to settle and develop into the sturdy barnacles we know. Easy enough when all you want to stick to is an immobile rock, but a whale?
How Do Barnacles Attach to Whales? The uniqueness of whale barnacle species means that whaling and whale habitat loss put not only the whales at risk, but also their hitchhiking Barnacle companions
https://scienceline.org/2010/03/how-do-barnacles-attach-to-whales/ https://Facebook.com/whaleswithoutborders
Barnacles Attach to Whales

Mystery absence of humpback whales in Hawaii

Mystery absence of humpback whales

Mystery absence of humpback whales in Hawaii

More than 10,000 humpback whales make the winter journey from Alaska to the warm waters off Hawaii, traveling in groups of three or four, to mate and give birth among larger pods. The season for humpbacks usually runs from November through May, as whales swim along the archipelago. The first whale of the season was spotted on 29 September by a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration vessel.
Humpback whales have been slow to return to Hawaii as December usually marks the start of the season, experts say. ???This isn???t a concern, but it???s of interest. One theory was that something like this happened as whales increased. It???s a product of their success,??? said Ed Lyman, a Maui-based marine biologist and response coordinator for the sanctuary. ???What I???m seeing out there right now I would have expected a month ago,??? said Lyman, who was surprised by how few of the animals he saw while responding to a call about a distressed calf on Christmas Eve. ???We???ve just seen a handful of whales.??? It will be a while before officials have hard numbers because the annual whale counts don???t take place until the last Saturday of January, February and March, according to former sanctuary co-manager Jeff Walters. ???They don???t necessarily show up in the same place at the same time every year,??? Walters said. The plankton-eating animals are protected as an endangered species, and federal law prohibits approaching within 100 yards of them by boat. Fewer than 10% of humpbacks??? original population remains, according to the California-based Marine Mammal Center.
Article Reference

More Info: Mystery absence of humpback whales in Hawaii has experts scratching heads

https://Facebook.com/whaleswithoutborders
Article Category - Whale News; Tags - Whale Migration
Meta Description - Mystery absence of humpback whales. Giant whales, spend from November through May in the area, are a well-known part of winter but have been slow to return.
Mystery absence of humpback whales

Whale Vomit Used in Expensive Perfume

Whale Vomit a rare faecal-smelling commodity is used in perfumes

“Whale Vomit” from sperm whale is a faecal-smelling commodity used in perfumes.

Muscat: Two Omanis found 13kg Ambergris, a prized perfume ingredient from the guts of a dead sperm whale that washed up on the Fooshi shores of Sadah province in southern Oman last week.

The ingredient, Ambergris (also called “Whale Vomit’) is a wax-like soft substance that originates as a secretion in the intestines of the sperm whale, often found floating in tropical seas and used in perfume manufacture.

Ambergris is used for making high-end perfumes costing up to thousands of dollars. The word ???ambergris??? comes from the Arabic word ???anbar???. It initially produces a faecal odour, but when aged, its odour becomes sweet and earthy.

Amouage, one of international luxury perfume brands from Oman, uses ambergris to make its perfumes, which are some of the most expensive in the world.

The Omanis said that a trader offered them over $17,000 for it, but they refused.
Read more at… Whale Vomit Used in Expensive Perfume

Whales Without Borders on The Big Alaska Show Radio Program.

We chat about ?????Whales are the Canaries of the Ocean??? and Interview Photographer Glenn J. Barr about his way photographing whales underwater.

Eye of The Whale

Swimming within arms length of whale Glenn J. Barr understands how to interact.

Listen Segments of Whales Without Borders on The Big Alaska Show Radio Program

Whales Without Borders News

Whales Without Borders News

Listen Entire Whales Without Borders on The Big Alaska Show Radio Program

Dreadnaught by Glenn J. Barr

Glenn J. Barr understands how to interact with whales

Humpback Whale by Glenn J. Barr

Glenn J. Barr understands how to swim with whales

Important Links: Big Alaska Show

Whales stealing fish off fishermen’s Long Lines: Whales Without Borders Radio Interview on The Big Alaska Show

Listen to my recent Whales Without Borders radio interview on The Big Alaska Show.

Listen to my recent Whales Without Borders radio interview on The Big Alaska Show.

Whales Without Borders radio interview on The Big Alaska Show.


Listen to my recent Whales Without Borders radio interview on The Big Alaska Show. We chat about the whales stealing fish off fishermen’s Long Lines.

Massive White Humpback Whale has been sited.

A White Humpback Whale has been spotted off the coast of Baltimore

White Humpback Whale has been spotted
White Humpback Whale spotted off Baltimore, West Cork, Ireland
The recent, very rare sighting of a 40ft white humpback whale around 14 miles off Baltimore, West Cork, Ireland by skipper Pat Collins and crewman Gerard Minihane has caused a flurry of excitement. They reported seeing "low bushy blows from a snow-white humpback whale" surfacing close to their fishing vessel.
Albino characteristics (Albinism) have been documented in around 20 species of cetaceans including sperm whales, bottlenose dolphins, southern right whales, killer whales and of course humpback whales.
White whales, like all albinos or leucistic animals, face many challenges. In spite of being otherwise healthy, such animals are likely to suffer skin problems, possibly even skin cancer due to the lack of protective melanin pigment in the skin. These animals may stand out more giving greater visibility to predators, especially when young. Their colouration may also create issues of social integration within their own species and subsequent ability to attract a mate.
Read More...White Humpback Whale has been spotted

Whale News Events Currently on our Sonar 11

Whale News on Whales Without Borders SONAR 11

Scientists seek to ban proposal to kill whales for research

Hundreds of scientists have rallied against a new Japanese proposal to kill whales in the name of research - a plan one New Zealand marine biologist calls whaling in disguise. Last year, the International Court of Justice ordered Japan to close its "scientific" whaling programme in Antarctica, but Japan submitted a 12 year plan to kill 333 minke whales/year. "... it's whaling in the disguise as science". More... Scientists seek to ban proposal to kill whales for research

Whales Without Borders News: Scientists seek to ban proposal to kill whales for research

Open wide and say ???ah': Secret of whale mouths revealed

When the fin whale gets ready to eat, Earth???s second-largest animal opens its mouth so wide that it can gulp an amount of water larger than the volume of its own body as it filters out meals of tiny fish and shrimp-like krill. When feeding, this whale increases its swimming speed, opens its mouth and lunges in the ocean. The force of water rushing into the mouth during ???lunge feeding??? turns the tongue upside down and expands the bottom of the oral cavity into a huge pouch between the body wall and the overlying skin and blubber. As it closes its mouth, the whale filters out seawater through plates in the mouth while eating huge quantities of small prey. More interesting info here... Open wide and say "AH": Secret of whale mouths revealed

Whales Without Borders News: Open wide and say

Whales can be told apart by their voices – study

US researchers say that they can distinguish individual whales based on the sound of the animals' voices. Suction-cap sensors were attached to the backs of 13 right whales and used to record their vocalisations, over a period of more than a decade. They concentrated on "upcalls", one of the most common noises made by this species. These are fairly low-pitched vocalisations that rise over about one or two seconds. More...Whales can be told apart by their voices - study

Whales Without Borders News: Whales can be told apart by their voices - study

Sea Shepherd Sues Japanese Whalers

A US-based marine conservation organization Sea Shepherd Conservation Society has filed claims against Japan???s Institute for Cetacean Research. Sea Shepherd also claims that ICR is guilty of piracy for illegally killing and taking whales from the sea for commercial profit, and for engaging in violent actions against Sea Shepherd volunteers. More... Sea Shepherd Sues Japanese Whalers

Whales Without Borders News: Sea Shepherd Sues Japanese Whalers

Not just whale food

Researchers unveil bizarre and beautiful tiny organisms that form ocean plankton. Plankton include microscopic plants and animals, fish larvae, bacteria, viruses and other microorganisms that drift in the oceans. Scientists have unveiled the most comprehensive analysis ever undertaken of the world???s ocean plankton, the tiny organisms that serve as food for marine creatures such as the blue whale, but also provide half the oxygen we breathe. More... Not just whale food

Not just whale food

Fins to legs to fins: Walking whales and other creatures that went back to the sea, part 1 & 2

Whales, dolphins, seals and sea turtles are examples of marine tetrapods, an exceptional group of animals that moved from the sea to the land and back again. Each time, they made radical changes to their lifestyle, body shape, physiology and sensory systems. Changes so radical, in fact, that whales and dolphins are referred to as tetrapods???or animals with four legs???and there was such a thing as ???walking whales???. The reverse migration of land animals back to the ocean began 250 million years ago. Fins to legs to fins: Walking whales and other creatures that went back to the sea, part 1
Fins to legs to fins: What do land animals returning to sea tell us about evolution? Part 2

Whales Without Borders News: Fins to legs to fins

Whale News Events for Whale Watchers

from around the world including News about whales and Whale Watching. Send any news about whales you think is important for the rest of us to know. You can comment and add your whale photos or your YouTube, Vimeo, etc. videos to let the rest of us see your whale experiences and adventures.

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Interview with Dr. Meagan Jones from the Whale Trust Maui

Whale Trust Maui Interview

Whale Trust Maui Interview with Dr. Meagan Jones discussing whale projects, research and education programs.

The first part is from the radio program Big Alaska Show on Alaska???s KQFD.
Whale Trust Interview pt 1

The second part of the Interview picks up with more of our discussion on whale conservation and education programs involving the Whale Trust. We also mention the IMAX whale movie that is showing around the country. Links to the schedule are below.
Whale Trust Interview pt 2

Side Note
I met Meagan at the Whale Trust a few years ago. We discussed some of the Whale Trust projects and directions. We also talked about Whales Without Borders website ideas and future developments. Some of those ideas are woven into Whales Without Borders.

Then the following week, I was on a whale watch trip and noticed a whale research vessel studying whale behaviors.

Turns out, Meagan was the researcher aboard as divers studied Mom - Baby actions. They hailed us and needed to borrow some batteries for an instrument that had pooped out. I had some in my camera bag that fit. They were back to observing and taking data without much delay. These photos are from that day.

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Whale Trust Research Boat

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WhaleEscort_3355

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MeaganBoat_3358

MeaganBatteryBoatB_3357

IMAX movie is actually referred to as: MacGillivray Freeman???s Humpback Whales
The IMAX film link is here:
Humpback Whales Film
List of theaters showing the film
The trailer for Humpback Whales Film

Capt. Terry Campbell

Capt Terry Campbell

Whales Without Borders lost one of our first and strongest supporters.

Terry Campbell had always loved whales. When it came to our Whales Without Borders projects, Terry was always ready to help and give encouragement to our fledgling ideas.

It???s amazing how much progress we made getting Whales Without Borders off the ground. Just look at our Facebook.com/whaleswithoutborders page. Whales Without Borders lost a lot of energy over the last months.

He loved helping the world learn more about whales. I loved having him help. We are going to miss him in many, many ways.
Aloha and Mahalo Capt.Terry Campbell.

Terry and I were on the news for the Whale Count in Hawaii Jan 2014. It’s on the WhalesWithoutBorders Facebook page.