Whale Watch

An amazing afternoon of watching whales off Provincetown.

We saw 25 humpback whales, 4 fin whales and 5 minke whales.

Feeding is a team activity.  One whale goes low and starts blowing bubbles through its blowhole.  The bubbles lift the plankton.  Other whales circle the rising plankton to keep it together in a "bubble nest."

When the whales are down below, stirring up their feed, birds gather in hopes of getting some of the fish that the whales' bubbles also drive to the surface.

 Instead of teeth, baleen whales like humpbacks have strainer-like baleen on the top.

Two whale mothers had calves with them.

Naturalists identify specific whales by the distinctive patterns on the underside of their tail fins.