Right Whales Sighted

A right whale was spotted July 11 to the south of Grand Manan by the crew of the whale watching vessel, Day's Catch (Sea Watch Tours) from Grand Manan.  This is the first sighting in Grand Manan waters this year.  Another right whale may have been seen on the Nova Scotia side of the Bay today, July 13.

We have been spending our time with fin and humpback whales, with fingers crossed that we will also see some right whales.  Today was so calm and warm that we were in shirt sleeves, a rare occurrence even in the summer in the Bay of Fundy.  Our senses were inundated by beautiful visual images, the sound of whales breathing in all directions and the intense smell of whale defecation.

Humpback Whale name Lace

Fin Whale head just as it breaks the surface and the whale begins to exhale

Humpback Whale in the foreground and a Fin Whale in the background

Couple that with grey seals and dancing Wilson's storm petrels and the day was magnificent.

Wilson's Storm Petrel

Surfacing Grey Seal

No Right Whale Sightings in the Bay of Fundy Yet

We are patiently waiting for the first right whale sighting of the season in the Bay of Fundy.  There were 22 right whale calves born so we expect to see some of those in the Bay with their mothers.  So far, however,  none have been reported, although there are many other whale species - fin, humpback and minke whales.  Also Atlantic white-sided dolphins and harbour porpoises. And, unfortunately, also a dead Atlantic white-sided dolphin and a pilot whale.

Atlantic white-sided dolphin porpoising in front of fin whales.

Most of the aerial surveys in the Gulf of Maine still had many right whale sightings and the auto-detection buoy system is picking up right whale calls at one of the buoys along the shipping lanes into the port of Boston, http://www.listenforwhales.org/Page.aspx?pid=430

For more on listening to whale calls, read the article on the Woods Hole website: http://www.whoi.edu/oceanus/viewArticle.do?id=57146