2010 09-01 SB Channel

Humpback Whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) and Blue Whales (Balaenoptera musculus) on a foggy day. If some of these photos seem a bit "foggy," well that's the kind of day we had. What the photos do not tell is the story of all the sounds of the spouting there were all around us and magnified by the silence of the fog. Thrilling.

Millions of krill (Thysanoessa spinifera) are seen jumping out of the water to escape the on-coming open mouth of a surface lunge feeding Humpback Whale. Image 1 of 3.
Megaptera novaeangliae feeding massive krill popping 2010 Channel 023
Millions of krill (Thysanoessa spinifera) are seen jumping out of the water to escape the on-coming open mouth of a surface lunge feeding Humpback Whale. The upper jaw with its baleen can clearly be seen. Image 2 of 3.
Megaptera novaeangliae feeding massive krill popping 2010 Channel 024
Millions of krill (Thysanoessa spinifera) are seen jumping out of the water to escape the on-coming open mouth of a surface lunge feeding Humpback Whale. Here we see the lower jaw coming up to scoop thousands of gallons of water filled with krill. Image 3 of 3.
Megaptera novaeangliae feeding massive krill popping 2010 Channel 025
Image 1 of 2: A Blue Whale feeds on krill on the surface. The lower jaw is seen, as are hundreds of krill and their splashes in front of the whales' mouth.
Balaenoptera musculus feeding krill popping 2010 Channel 051
Image 2 of 2: A Blue Whale feeds on krill on the surface. The lower jaw is seen, as are hundreds of krill and their splashes in front of the whales' mouth.
Balaenoptera musculus feeding krill popping 2010 Channel 053
A body surfing Common Dolphin (Delphnus capensis).
Delphinus capensis 2010 Channel 165
The whalers on board the Condor Express get a chance to shoot a friendly Humpback Whale.
Megaptera novaeangliae passengers 2010 Channel 033
Humpback Whale feeding on its side...we are looking at the underside of the head where the ventral grooves are expanded. The left pectoral fin can be seen out of the water.
Megaptera novaeangliae feeding 2010 Channel 019
Image 1 of 3: A Humpback Whale feeds on krill at the surface using a sideways lunge. The long pectoral fin can be seen under the water glowing blue-green.
Megaptera novaeangliae feeding baleen krill popping 2010 Channel 037
Image 2 of 3: A Humpback Whale feeds on krill at the surface using a sideways lunge. The long pectoral fin can be seen under the water.
Megaptera novaeangliae feeding baleen krill popping 2010 Channel 039
Image 3 of 3: A Humpback Whale feeds on krill at the surface using a sideways lunge. In the terminal stages of the feeding lunge the water is ejected from the gular pouch as the ventral groove blubber contracts and reduces the volume of the pouch.
Megaptera novaeangliae feeding baleen krill popping 2010 Channel 042
A.Humpback Whale sends out a massive spray of water from its blowhole.
Megaptera novaeangliae spout 2010 Channel 009
Image 1 of 6: A Humpback Whale feeds on a big patch of krill. In this image the whale has exhaled underwater leaving a mass of bubbles on the surface, the krill are popping out of the water by the thousands as the sense the onslaught, and a California Sea Lion (Zalophus californianus) is seen leaping in the background.
Thysanoessa spinifera Megaptera novaeangliae Zalophus californianus 2010 Channel 001
Image 2 of 6: A Humpback Whale feeds on a big patch of krill. The tip of the upper jaw with its baleen starts to break the surface.
Thysanoessa spinifera Megaptera novaeangliae Zalophus californianus 2010 Channel 002
Image 3 of 6: A Humpback Whale feeds on a big patch of krill. Now the lower jaw can be seen as the whale closes its huge mouth around the entire mass of crustaceans.
Thysanoessa spinifera Megaptera novaeangliae 2010 Channel 003
Image 4 of 6: A Humpback Whale feeds on a big patch of krill.
Thysanoessa spinifera Megaptera novaeangliae 2010 Channel 005
Image 5 of 6: A Humpback Whale feeds on a big patch of krill.
Thysanoessa spinifera Megaptera novaeangliae 2010 Channel 008
Image 6 of 6: A Humpback Whale feeds on a big patch of krill. The whales eyeball is open and can be seen looking at the camera under the letter "h" in the watermark. [Watermarks do not appear in prints ordered from this website].
Thysanoessa spinifera Megaptera novaeangliae EYEBALL 2010 Channel 010
A Common Dolphin (Delphinus capensis).
Delphinus capensis 2010 Channel 058
A Red-necked Phalarope (Phalaropus lobatus) feeding on the same krill as the whales, but one at a time.
Phalaropus lobatus water 2010 Channel 043
Humpback Whale head.
Megaptera novaeangliae 2010 Channel 033
A very young Common Dolphin breaks the surface for air as it rides close to mom (just beneath the water). Some lucky whalers on board the Condor Express witness the whole thing.
Delphinus capensis calf passengeras 2010 Channel 122
A Humpback Whale tail fluke waterfall.
Megaptera novaeangliae tail fluke waterfall 2010 Channel 036
Humpback Whale tail.
Megaptera novaeangliae tail fluke 2010 Channel 014

© Robert Perry

Mr.Zalophus@gmail.com Please click on the sea lion head logo above to go to my MarineBioPhotography website.

2010 09-01 SB Channel