Humpback whales gently gliding through the water with their tails splashing in the air and their big brown eyes have captured the attention and hearts of both visitors and locals alike every winter, consistently finding a way of enchanting people
Humpback whales gently gliding through the water with their tails splashing in the air and their big brown eyes have captured the attention and hearts of both visitors and locals alike every winter, consistently finding a way of enchanting people as they migrate through the Hawaiian Islands to breed.
The turnout Wednesday evening at Koloa Library to watch a rare video documenting the relationship of a mother whale with her baby was proof that people are longing to learn more about these graceful giants of the sea. In fact, individuals had to be turned away due to the library room’s legal limit of 53 occupants, according to David Thorp, manager of the Koloa Library.
“You’re here tonight because you probably heard the advertising that we’re going to show a film narrated by Meryl Streep on a mother and calf,” said Jean Souza, Kaua‘i programs coordinator for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary. “The film was primarily made in the South Pacific but since it was filmed in breeding areas a lot of behaviors and information that is reflected in the film applies to Hawai‘i, which is another breeding area.”
Much to the audience’s dismay, however, the 50-minute film most individuals were there to watch was not seen in its entirely due to the largely informative introduction given by Souza. The wealth of knowledge she provided prior to the video lent for only about 20 minutes of viewing time, visibly disappointing some attendees.
On the other hand, Souza was able to provide the audience with a glimpse into the mysterious lives of humpback whales and even took the time to update everyone on the latest findings of the female calf that washed ashore in Kekaha on Monday.
“It’s not unusual for us to see a dead calf or encounter a dead calf,” she said, adding that 20 percent of the approximate 1,000 calves born in Hawai‘i each year perish. “The cause of death happened out at sea and we still don’t know what happened.”
Souza noted there were no injuries sustained to the exterior portion of the whale’s body.
“Externally there weren’t any signs that would lead us to conclude what the cause was of death and even with the necropsy, it’s still not determined,” she said. “The thing that was of particular interest to us was that it was ‘freshly’ found, meaning that we could get more information from the body about what may have caused it’s death. There was quite a lot of interest in getting it to a safe area so that it could be studied.”
Dr. Mimi Olry, head of State and Federal Marine Mammal Stranding Network on Kaua‘i and Kaua‘i’s Hawaiian Monk Seal Coordinator, was also in attendance Wednesday night. After examining the whale on Tuesday, she agreed that no visible injuries were located externally.
“The whale had a really nice blubber layer on it and had indications that it was passing food, so it was feeding and well-nourished,” she said.
Olry also confirmed that there was no relation to the whale discovered in Kekaha and the one that washed ashore in Ni‘ihau the previous week.
“The Ni‘ihau animal was pretty decomposed and there was no relation,” she said.
Souza did note that some organs in the Kekaha whale were “not normal” and tissue samples have been “sent to the lab for further analysis.”
“All of the bones were removed and taken to Hawai‘i Pacific University, which has a contract with NOAA Fisheries for this kind of work,” said Souza. “The reason for getting down to the bone is to determine if there is any evidence of a ship strike.”
She said that ship strikes are not always known by simply looking at the animal’s external body.
Although the calf in Kekaha was reportedly not a newborn, newborns are said to weigh somewhere between one and a half to two tons, while adults can weigh 40 to 50 tons.
Wednesday night was a reflection of the National Marine Sanctuary’s hope to generate more public interest in humpback whales, an endangered species, as February marks Humpback Whale Awareness Month in Hawai‘i.
According to a proclamation by Gov. Linda Lingle and Lt. Gov. James “Duke” Aiona, the goal of the awareness month is to enhance the public’s awareness of Hawai‘i’s official state marine mammal and increase public involvement in ocean stewardship. A variety of special activities are offered across the state, including the presentation held Wednesday evening.
The proclamation also states that Hawai‘i is home to the only marine protected area in the nation that is entirely devoted to humpback whale protection.
Approximately 10,000 humpback whales migrate to Hawai‘i every year to breed between November and May, and their 3,000-mile journey from northern regions, such as Alaska, remain a mystery to scientists. It is believed, according to the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary, that the annual migration is based on the “humpbacks following cues of temperature, ocean currents and the earth’s magnetic field to navigate.”
Threats to their population include entanglement in marine debris, habitat pollution, vessel collisions and acoustic disturbances.
To find out more information about humpback whale activities for the month of February, visit www.hawaiihumpbackwhale.noaa.gov
• Coco Zickos, business writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 251) or czickos@kauaipubco.com
