Tag: Blue Whale Expeditions

The Perth Canyon was shining once again on yet another magnificent day and Australasian Gannets escorted us towards the continental shelf where our search began for the hazy distant blow of the Blue. Searching carefully we could see the occasional tiny Wilsons Storm Petrel looking for a morsel on the surface and a Gannet scanning carefully above us. Straight ahead and just like a rocket the powerful seven meter blow of a Blue Whale raced skyward and could be easily seen, off we went! A very relaxed and young Blue greeted us on our arrival in the area and seemed to be resting in-between downtimes with little movement from the original sighting area. Everyone jumped when she resurfaced a short distance behind us and she almost seemed pleased to have caught us all unaware as the turquoise blue shine showed a perfect example of how they coined their name.

The bird activity started to increase slightly as we moved further along the Perth Canyon and a resting Albatross was observing the fifty or so Gannets in the area that were diving on schools of baitfish. Generally where there are fish and birds we can almost always guarantee the Dolphins won’t be too far away and sure enough the porpoising sturdy bodies of Offshore Bottlenose Dolphins raced towards us. The whole pod eventually surrounded our vessel with approximately 100 individuals seeming to enjoy a bit of social time right next to and in front of us. Amongst the Offshore Bottlenose there were also a few beautifully marked Common Dolphins with their big yellow tinged bellies who had also joined the afternoon feed of fish.

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The Blue Whale is the largest mammal to have ever graced this planet, yet so little is known about their day to day lives. The many years of extensive whaling reduced a healthy worldwide population of 300,000 Blue Whales down to as little as 2,000 individuals. The Blue whale has been protected since 1966 and although recovery of population numbers is slow, there are promising signs ahead for the endangered Australian Blue Whales. The best way to protect these magnificent whales is to learn more about them, so lets begin with some Blue Whale Facts!

Largest Animal On Earth 

The Blue Whale is the largest animal to have ever existed on planet earth, how fortunate are we to have them still alive today! The reason behind why they are larger than any dinosaur is simply due to them living in a marine environment. Although dinosaurs reached similar lengths they were certainly not able to match the weight of a Blue Whale. The Blue Whale also has the benefit of having a lot of room to live in as water takes up 70% of the earths surface with most of this accounted for by the ocean. Plenty of space, less gravity and bountiful food sources allowed the gigantic Blue Whales to reach their full potential and become the largest animal ever known.

Blue Whales Really Are Blue

One of our favourite moments when watching Blue Whales is the turquoise blue that grows stronger and larger as the whales return to the surface to breath. The perfect example is below as you can see with one of our guests suitably dressed in the appropriate colours for their tour! The blue glow of these whales is how they coined their name and is one of the most beautiful sights on the planet. The big surprise is when they break the surface and their mottled grey skin appears. The large size of the Blue Whale and reflective light creates this unique iridescent turquoise blue demonstrating why these beautiful whales are called Blue Whales even though they are grey.

The Worlds Largest Grey Nomads

The Blue Whales of the world have no specific home that they live all year in, they spend their time constantly on the move towards their next feeding ground. These epic journeys take them many thousands of kilometres and from one ocean to another. The preferred feeding grounds are reached at different times of the year depending on when the krill densities are at their peak and no energy is ever wasted on unprofitable feeding grounds. Travel is a vital part of the life of a Blue Whale and during their lifetime they can travel to the moon and back again.

Biggest Babies Ever Known

The title of the worlds largest baby certainly belongs to the newborn Blue Whale calf. One of our favourite Blue Whale facts is that at birth a Blue Whale calf will be approximately eight meters long and five tonnes in weight. Gestation for a female Blue Whale is 11 to 12 months and the calf will be born tail first to avoid drowning. Newborn Blue Whales are also believed to be born in warmer waters where nursery grounds for these baby giants can be found as they are born with almost no blubber and would be easily affected by cold waters. Drinking the equivalent of 1,300 glasses of their mothers rich milk everyday (which is 40-50% fat) allows for the most incredible daily weight gain of 90 kilograms, that is around 4 kilograms per hour!

Whale Watching in Perth each year is very exciting as the Humpback Mother’s are returning with their calves from the North of the State. Many have come from Camden Sound, high up in the Kimberly’s where they have given birth to their new born calves. After many weeks of feeding and nurturing we start to see the calves getting taught by Mum the characteristics and behaviours they are going to need to survive and thrive in the Western Australian and Antarctica Oceans. These behaviours we call the ‘Language of the Whales’. When they are in the metropolitan waters all vessel operators must be aware of the rules to view these Dinosaurs of the Deep and pay the respect such wondrous creatures deserve. Please if you are on the water do not approach from 60 degrees tail or head of the Whales and not within 150 mtrs. Your driving should not exceed 5 knots however if the Whales approach you, take your vessel out of gear and enjoy the interaction, you will never forget the experience. Please do not make aggressive gear changes or chase or herd the Whale’s. Should they be tail slapping or breaching close to you it is a clear sign that you are too close and to back off, remember these are Mother’s with calves and they need to be respected.

Our Father has spent many years in the water as a pearl diver and the main thing he learn’t underwater was survival and how closely linked the efficiency of energy is related to that very survival. Please consider a Mother Humpback Whale has travelled approx 13,000 klm’s, given birth to her calf, nurtured them and fed them through half of that journey and then protected and taught them the behaviours they need to survive…. all of this generally without eating for 6 months! Should we as humans go into their environment and then harass or cause them to expel unnecessary energies, it can be the difference between survival or not for the calf or even the Mother. Whale Watching in Perth is a wonderful opportunity to ID new born’s and to see the maternal behaviours unfold before your very eyes but do please show the respect and report any unruly behaviour to DPAW (take the vessel’s number).

 

 

Above is a diagram to show where is suitable and where is no go zones if you see Whales in the water around you. Please do not approach closely at speed and try to create a gentle footprint whereby you actually at times will become part of the Pod. This can be determined if they carry on the behaviours when first sighted, they are oblivious to you and have no need to change their attitude, this is the true Whale Watch where you can watch them and they can watch you without hesitation. Whales are very inquisitive creatures and if you treat them correctly they will reward you 1,000 fold however when they are in Perth waters returning back to Antarctica with calves please be respectful.

Three Blue Whales alongside our vessel had everyone onboard stunned! A mother Blue kept her calf close to our vessel so she could block the approach of a larger Blue from getting too close. Adding to the moment was amazing bubble veils as she tried to hide her calf behind an underwater screen of bubbles and this behaviour has never before been sighted by Whale Watch Western Australia with Pygmy Blue Whales, but many times sighted with our interactions amongst Humpbacks. The intelligence of these magnificent mammals was on show as the female used our vessel to her advantage to block the approach of the much larger individual who was most likely a curious male, showing that she actually trusted us more than she trusted the other Blue Whale!

It is well noted that Pygmy Blue Whales rarely lift their flukes when diving and you can imagine why everyone onboard was stunned as the younger individual raised his enormous flukes clear of the water below and gracefully dived! Not only did this happen once but several times throughout the day which had us all mesmerized and very grateful to have seen such a beautiful moment of a Blue Whales life. The interaction between the three individuals was very interesting to watch as they showed a social pattern of movement and surface activity rather than all energy focused on feeding. We also sighted two other individuals who were much more focused on feeding close by which had all five Blue Whales sighted on Saturday enjoying perfect conditions in the Perth Canyon.

Bottlenose Dolphins, Australasian Gannets, Wilsons Storm Petrels, Flesh Footed Shearwaters and a beautiful Yellow Nosed Albatross completed an incredible day, but perhaps the most exciting discovery was of the young calf who is just about ready to leave mum and begin his own journey traversing the oceans along local and international coastlines. A new beginning for the little one and a new addition to the Blue Whale population is inspiring to see and we hope that the opportunity arises in the near future to see those beautiful familiar flukes once more

Another fantastic day of exploration and discovery in the magnificent Perth Canyon! We had the privilege of meeting another two hungry Blue Whales as they filled their bellies full of krill hidden hundreds of kilometres underneath us. Our first meeting was with a younger individual who kept a very fast paced tempo whilst feeding and had the most beautiful mottled pattern along his flanks. Shortly afterwards another magnificent Blue was sighted and this individual was substantially bigger.

Perhaps he was not as voraciously hungry as his younger neighbour or maybe he was enjoying a casual Saturday morning brunch, but this Blue decided to take a few moments in-between dives to venture over and slowly check us all out and wonder why we weren’t joining in with the krill extravaganza below! This allowed the perfect opportunity to see and hear the size of this incredible mammal as he passed by, the exhalation of air from his car sized lungs sounded like a rocket and the glow of his beautiful skin below the surface lit up the ocean with blue, a perfect example of how these wonderful whales got their name.

Fantastic interactions with a family pod of cow/calf Common Dolphins, a quick sighting of 8-10 juvenile Sunfish basking on the surface, interactive pod of 30+ Bottlenose Dolphins and many beautiful Seabirds added to our fantastic day out in the Perth Canyon. One lucky guest captured the fleeting moment a small Blue Shark leapt into the air and landed with a big splash after missing his intended target, a perfect example why always keeping a close lookout has its benefits!

The Saturday morning Perth Canyon cafe was busy today with nine Blue Whales feeding! That is nine of the largest animals to have ever graced our planet surrounding us and to say we were excited is a huge understatement. The first two sightings were younger individuals and while one disappeared into the depths below to have his morning snack the other would surface close by to replenish his oxygen levels. The efficiency and timing of their surfacing behaviour certainly looked like they were working together as a team to keep those krill from dispersing too much during their surface time.

Another giant six meter blow was sighted 100 meters away shortly followed by yet another… and another…and another! We had arrived where the krill were located this morning and all nine Blue Whales within the area were having a feast of thousandths of kilos of the finest krill to be found. One of the larger individuals sighted today also provided the opportunity for some further Blue Whale poo collecting which is a fantastic opportunity rarely seen during migration but a natural part of what happens in the feeding grounds.

Also sighted on our expedition today was a very enthusiastic pod of 10+ Common Dolphins, Wilsons Storm Petrels, Flesh Footed Shearwaters, Australasian Gannets, Mother and calf Bottlenose Dolphin, small Hammerhead Shark and a Green Sea Turtle. A massive bait ball had attracted the attention of 50-100 birds that were diving from great heights into the ocean to capture a meal of fresh baitfish resulting in some very impressive flying by some of the Australasian Gannets as they hit the waters surface at approximately 100kph.

Watching three Blue Whales feeding in the magnificent environment of the Perth Canyon on a picture perfect Saturday is what dreams are made of! Today was a special day for our guests onboard as we departed and made our way out towards the Perth Canyon for a day of exploration and we were certainly in for (three) very big surprises. Our first sighting was of a very friendly pod of 10-15 Bottlenose Dolphins including a few young calves who seemed very curious about towards onboard.

Further along our journey a large bait ball had caught the focused attention of some Flesh Footed Shearwaters who were diving into the water head first trying to capture a tiny silver morsal for breakfast. Another pod of Bottlenose Dolphins had also been attracted to the area and after saying a quick hello to us continued busily working to keep the bait ball close to the surface, much to the delight of the Shearwaters! Our arrival in the Perth Canyon had everyone onboard carefully scanning and patiently waiting for that unmistakable exhalation of the magnificent Pygmy Blue Whales.

Whoosh! Our very first sighting was of a 6 meter high blow that belonged to a large 18-20 meter individual who had just surfaced from a feeding dive. Absolutely gigantic in size we had a good comparison as he moved past a local fisherman in a small dinghy and made us all feel very small indeed. After replenishing his oxygen levels we then watched as he disappeared into the blue with a very calm sounding dive to return to a depth of about 200 meters and continue dining on Perth’s finest krill. Only moments later we sight another tall blow, this time from a smaller individual of around 10-14 meters… we had two blues! For the next two hours we watched as one would dive to continue feeding while the other would surface and replenish oxygen levels as we kept busy tracking downtimes and collecting photo identification. During the last 30 minutes another Blue Whale joined in on the feeding activity and we soon learnt being surrounded by three feeding Blue Whales makes you smile… a lot!

The larger Blue during one of his ascents had relieved himself and left behind to our amazement a large quantity of fantastically coloured whale poo! Due to their love of krill the resulting whale poo is a very bright orange colour thanks to the exoskeletons of the krill and fertilises the oceans that they live in and visit. A wonderful opportunity to collect a sample which we managed to successfully achieve and will be passing this onto our research team. A fantastic day with sightings of Bridled Terns, Wilsons Storm Petrels, Flesh Footed Shearwaters and Juvenile Australasian Gannets adding to the fun of our exploration of this beautiful and vitally important part of our West Australian coastline.

Hearing the name Pygmy Blue Whale often creates thoughts of a miniature whale that traverses the oceans without ever being seen… but only part of that sentence is true! The Pygmy Blue Whale grows up to 24 meters in length and can weigh 90 tonnes making it clear that they are not miniature whales by any standard and although they are large in size their migration patterns and movement through our oceans has allowed these mammals to be one of the most rarely sighted species of whales on the planet.

The Pygmy Blue Whale was discovered as a separate species of whale in 1966 and their history goes back to over 20,000 years ago when a small population was separated by enormous quantities of glacial ice. The situation most likely causing many Blue Whales to have migrated north with the remaining Blue Whales and smaller gene pool that was left behind creating a separate species over time. The Pygmy Blue Whale is a sub-species of the Blue Whale and because of this they share many characteristics and look very similar, however there are a few different physical traits that we can notice when looking carefully.

  • Overall body shape of a tadpole with larger head and smaller tapering tail/fluke
  • Broader baleen plates that are also shorter due to their larger head size
  • When compared to a Blue Whale of the same size a Pygmy Blue is heavier in weight
  • Appearance of an aquamarine submarine when surfacing due to their lighter shade of grey in comparison with Blue Whales

Pygmy Blues are baleen whales and their main source of food is krill which they will travel thousands of kilometres to reach suitable feeding grounds with high densities of this favoured food source. A large appetite and their enormous size means eating up to 150 tonnes of krill a day is completely normal for a Pygmy Blue Whale! One of only three known feeding grounds that produce enough quantities of krill to feed these mammoth mammals is located just past Rottnest Island on the West Australian coastline, the Perth Canyon. Over the year the canyon attracts hundreds of Blue Whales and many other species of wildlife who feast in the Perth Canyon.

The migratory pattern of the Pygmy Blue Whales of Australia are still being discovered and new information about their mysterious lives is coming to light thanks to the hard work and persistence of researchers all over Australia and the world. Feeding and refuelling in the Perth Canyon during March/April they will then leave the canyon and head north to the tropical waters of Indonesia where it is believed some females will give birth to calves and they will also resume feeding again. During November/December many of these Pygmy Blues can now be detected feeding in the Bonney Upwelling located in South Australia. A round trip of over 10,000 kilometres and an average movement of 25 to 100km per day is cruise control travel for the Blue.

The future is exciting for the Pygmy Blue Whale populations found in Australian waters and we are fortunate to have their most well known feeding ground located so close to the city of Perth, Western Australia. Population numbers of Pygmy Blue Whales are believed to be greater than those of Antarctic Blue Whales and both of these species have been known to share the same feeding grounds. What is truly remarkable is the DNA research that was taken from Blue Whales feeding off Antarctica produced results of six Blue Whales who had both Antarctic Blue Whale and Pygmy Blue Whale in their genetics… the two species had mated and created hybrid Blues!

This incredible discovery is just one of the many inspiring reasons why the Blue Whales of Australia continue to attract the attention of researchers from all over the world as we do all that we can to learn everything possible about these beautiful mammals. Stay tuned as our inaugural Blue Whale Perth Canyon Experience is set to start this weekend and our excitement levels are even bigger than the size of these wonderful Blues to share with you all that we see and learn!

The Blue Whale is the largest mammal to have ever graced this earth. Weighing in at up to 180 tonnes and with a body length of 25 to 30 meters, the size of these graceful creatures is hard to fathom! Before whaling the Blue Whale populations around the world were extraordinarily healthy with the largest population found in the isolated waters of Antarctica with an estimated 240,000 Blue Whales. The largest animal in the world feeds on one of the smallest creatures in the world, Euphausia superba which is also known as Antarctic Krill.

The oldest ever recorded Blue Whale was estimated at 110 years old and the average lifespan for a Blue is between 80-100 years old. A female Blue Whale will generally have only one calf every 2-3 years and her gestation period is 10-11 months. Migrating north to the warm waters found off Indonesia in the Banda Sea, a female Blue Whale will give birth to a calf that weighs in at 2,500 kilograms and seven meters long. A Blue Whale calf happily consumes 350 litres of milk every day and this large quantity of milk and its high fat content allows the calf to put on 90 kilograms every 24 hours…that is just over 3 kilograms every hour!

Calves will stay with their mothers for approximately 6-8 months and at this time they are around 16 meters long and ready to be weaned from their mothers. They will live a fairly solitary life once they have left their mothers and during those first eight months of life they have learnt everything they will need to live the life of an Antarctic Blue Whale. Depending on the individual they will generally reach sexual maturity around 5-10 years of age and when fully grown the female Blue Whale is larger than the male by a couple of meters.

Blue Whales will travel continuously throughout the year to reach feeding grounds that provide the quantities of krill they require. The Perth Canyon in Western Australia is one of only three known aggregation areas in Australian waters that Blue Whales are known to feed at. Once they have arrived at their feeding grounds they will focus all of their efforts into consuming as much krill as possible leading to extraordinary figures. When large quantities of krill are abundant a Blue Whale can easily consume up to four tonnes of krill every day which works out to around 3o million krill. A mouthful of water and krill weighs in at 50 tonnes before the water is filtered out and the krill get trapped in the baleen plates, sometimes a few unfortunate squid and small fish get caught up in the feeding bonanza resulting in a bit of extra protein for the Blue Whale!

An enormous lung capacity of 5,000 litres allows the Blue Whale to easily hold their breathe for up to 30 minutes or more if needed. When feeding they will dive to where the krill are located, usually around 100 meters, and feeding dives can be between 10 – 20 minutes long. Resurfacing after these feeding dives you can see an exhalation that ranges between 9 to 12 meters in height as the Blue Whale replenishes their oxygen levels before beginning their next dive. Migrating Blue Whales that are travelling to feeding or breeding grounds generally travel 13 meters below the surface to avoid unnecessary drag at speeds of 20kph. Male Blue Whales that are defending a female they are courting can reach speeds of up to 50kph in short bursts while chasing another male away. This incredible speed from such a large animal often results in a powerful breach of the head and upper body of the Blue Whale as they surface to breathe during these powerful chases.

Almost hunted to extinction over many years of whaling, the Blue Whale population found in Antarctica was estimated at only 360 individuals when whaling finally ceased in the 1970’s. Today we can see a very slow increase in Blue Whale numbers but still not at the same rate as other species, such as the Humpback Whale. Although they are the largest animal on earth there is very little known about the Blue Whales found in our oceans and their day to day life.

These magnificent creatures have certainly captured the imagination of people all over the world and much research is being done to learn everything we can about our Blue Whales and help them continue to grow their population back to much healthier levels. They are certainly survivors and adapt whenever they are faced with a problem, their mystery and elusiveness adds to their allure and meeting a Blue Whale is the greatest privilege and a highlight of ones life!

Perth Canyon Blue Whale Expedition

There is a place not far from the heart of Perth City in Western Australia that the largest mammals to have ever lived aggregate to feed on what is known as a biomass bonanza. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to witness the largest mammal species ever to grace our planet. Never before released to the public this new frontier eco hot spot off the Perth, Western Australian coastline is the feeding grounds for the largest aggregation of Blue Whales in the southern hemisphere. The biodiversity includes Sperm Whales, Orca’s (Killer Whales), Beaked Whales, Dolphins, Australian Sea lions, Sharks, Migratory Antarctic Sea Birds, Sunfish, Tuna and much more feed on this biomass bonanza which stands unrivalled on the Western Australian coastline as the marine production epicentre.

For the very first time ever you can join us as we discover The Perth Canyon, a little known pristine eco hot spot with gargantuan dimensions larger than the Grand Canyon with origins dating back to the entrance of the Swan River in Perth, Western Australia. Research teams have monitored Blue Whales and Sperm Whales along with many other cetaceans and mega fauna that come here to feed on krill created by the Leeuwin Undercurrent and the Perth Canyon topography. This interaction creates nutrient rich up welling waters where phytoplankton develops and an intense food chain for marine life prospers.

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Blue whales are the largest mammal ever to grace the planet, they can measure 31m in length and weigh 130 tons. Classified endangered there is an estimated only 12-20,000 remaining around the globe. The Perth Canyon is the summer feeding grounds of these Dinosaurs of the Deep™. This is your opportunity to be a part of a new frontier of research and development with Whale Watch Western Australia.

The Perth waters are very much an unknown as being the most isolated coastline in the world we are still discovering the many different species in this pristine environment. The area has also had sightings of the apex predator, the Orca or Killer Whale, which is known to frequent the area during the feeding and migration periods. The eco habitat from the nutrient rich up welling Leeuwin Undercurrent enables Perth Canyon to create a feeding biomass bonanza for the eco system from the smallest to the largest of ocean wonders and you can join the team as we Learn the Language of the Whales & Discover the Dinosaurs of the Deep™.

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