Saba's recent whale sightings and what it might mean |
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It’s the winter season on Saba--when we hear what seafarers once named ‘the sirens of the sea’. Long before man had the ability to explore inner space, he was beguiled by the sounds that reverberated through the hulls of ships.
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Images courtesy John Magor, Tom Greenway and Ann and Kevin Wilson |
The months of January through April are when you have a chance of hearing and maybe seeing humpback whales while diving the Saba Marine Park. Saba is on the migratory route with known calving grounds found off the shores of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and as far south as The Grenadines. Of the 81 species of cetaceans, only Humpbacks sing and only males are crooners. As our island is surrounded by deeper waters, the whales we encounter are thought to be the stragglers-- males not in the running for mating but hanging out down south for the winter: learning, waiting, and hoping. Once considered on the brink of extinction, Humpback whales are now considered a positive environmental story with numbers still far from pre-hunting levels but increasing 10-fold in 50 years since protection was put in place.
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Humpbacks have territories on both sides of the equator but are not known to cross it. Our Northern Atlantic Humpbacks spend summers gorging themselves in rich feeding grounds from Maine to Newfoundland to Norway. Not all North Atlantic humpbacks migrate but those that do, travel to the Caribbean for the winter months to give birth and/or mate. Dedicated females are drawn to the warmer, shallower Caribbean waters where the trade-off of less food also means fewer predators and less energy used to teach her 14-foot newborn how to be a whale: breaching, tail lobs, fin slapping, spy hopping and buoyancy control (you didn’t think we were the only mammals that had to learn buoyancy control, did you?). The Silver Bank, 80 miles north of the Dominican Republic, is the most prolific calving ground to observe this phenomenon**.
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In February and March 2013, sightings off Saba, St. Maarten and St. Barths of multiple whales, mothers with calves and orcas (a main predator of newborn Humpbacks) has sparked enthusiasm and more questions. With increased populations will Humpbacks reclaim abandoned calving grounds? Some believe that the Saba Bank once served as a calving ground for Humpbacks. Is this increase in sightings a sign of their return, and can we expect to see even more Humpbacks around Saba in the future? Monitor this site for updates and visit Sea & Learn on Saba for more on naturalist Tom Conlin’s participation in this year’s event. For now, get out on the water and hope to have your own encounter. |
**John and Lynn took this bucket-list trip in early March 2013. Our advice: be sure to choose the correct operator. We chose Explorer Ventures—not just because we have an established relationship with their sister boat that frequents Saba waters but because it’s the vessel chartered by Tom Conlin and his team of Aquatic Adventures. Tom is simply the man for humpbacks—recognized by scientists and whale protection agencies…he wrote the guidelines for whale watching and interaction on the Silver Bank. Tom shares his 22+ years of knowledge and passion with guests to understand how to ‘be one’ with humpbacks. He also has customized tenders outfitted specifically for the whale charters. Explorer Ventures runs a comfortable, professional vessel with accommodating crew who work together to complement the team of naturalists. |
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