Tho humpbacks competing for a female
The babies sometimes practise breaching 15 to 20 times in a row
Whale baby practising breaching
Very rare behavior in the breading grounds: mom showing her baleen plates
Blowhole up close
Two boys trying to impress a girl...
A full breach in front of Lahaina
Dorsal fin up close
The flippers also differs from whale to whale
Humpback diving into the deep
The humpback is lying on it's side, waving with it's flipper- Humpback whales are identified by their flukes
Flipper
The underside of the fluke is as distinctive as a human fingerprint
The fluke can get about 14 feet wide
The underside of the fluke is always unique
Mom performing a 'full breach'; nearly 30 tons completely out of the water
This is the fin of a hammerhead shark
Mom performing a so called 'head lunge'
Head slap
The characteristic 'hump'
Mom and baby both on their side 'waving' with their pec fins
There are knobs along the leading edges of the flipper
The flipper is exceptionally long
Tail and nearly half of it's body is thrown out of the water
'Peduncle slap' in front of Lanai
Breach - photo courtesy of dolphinmana.com
Full breach - photo courtesy of dolphinmana.com
Head lunge - photo courtesy of dolphinmana.com
This behavior is called a 'spy hop'
They use the 'spy hop' to explore the area above the surface
Fluke in front of West Maui
On it's back waving with both pec fins
Humpback mom with her newborn
Breach in front of the West Maui Mountains
Humpback before diving beneath our boat
A newborn coming up for breathing
4 whales at once - whalewatching par excellence
Baby, mom and escort diving down in the evening sun
Thanks to Monica Sweet, Michael Nolan and Kent Noonan we could share spectacular underwater photos
Mother And Calf - photo courtesy of Michael Nolan www.wildlifeimages.net
Blue Dream - photo courtesy of Monica Sweet www.gallerysweet.com
Breath Of Life - photo courtesy of Monica Sweet www.gallerysweet.com
Gentle Giant - photo courtesy of Monica Sweet www.gallerysweet.com
Mother And Calf - photo courtesy of Monica Sweet www.gallerysweet.com
My way - photo courtesy of Monica Sweet www.gallerysweet.com
Ocean Dive - photo courtesy of Monica Sweet www.gallerysweet.com
Ocean Queen - photo courtesy of Monica Sweet www.gallerysweet.com
Wonder Of The Ocean - photo courtesy of Monica Sweet www.gallerysweet.com
Mom watching - photo courtesy of Kent Noonan
Humpback Mom - photo courtesy of Kent Noonan
Leviathon Grace - photo courtesy of Kent Noonan
Mom and baby in a distance - photo courtesy of Kent Noonan
Whale Down Below - photo courtesy of Kent Noonan
