Humpback whales are named after the distinctive back hump
A Humpback whale's tail can be as wide as 5.5 meters which is almost 18 feet & more.
Humpback whales are found in every ocean worldwide. It has a distinctive body shape, with long pectoral fins and tubercles on its head. Known for breaching & other surface behaviours, humpback whales are popular with whale watchers.
Hence, they are considered the stars of the show in the whale-watching world because they love to breach and propel themselves powerfully out of the water while twisting in mid-air and coming down with a colossal splash.
Humpback whales are gentle and non-aggressive animals, it is unlikely for them to harm a human.
Humpback whales do not prefer travelling in a pack, they love travelling solo or forming transient groups.
Sperm Whale Vs Blue Whale Vs Humpback Whale
There are 90 breeds of whales around the world which includes, blue whale, sperm whale, Fin whale, bowhead etc. These whales come from the same family but carry totally different features that give them their own identity.
Today we are talking about humpback whales and below is the comparison of it with the famous blue whale.
Blue whales are longer and heavier in comparison to humpback whales. If you inspect them closely, the blue whale is much heavier and longer than humpback whales.
While the recorded humpback whales can grow up to 60 feet long and weigh 40-100 tons, the blue whale can get up to 100 feet long and weigh 100-160 tons.
For those of you wondering if humpback whales and blue whales are the same thing, no they aren't. Both of them are whales but are different at night and day.
Despite having various different features, they have one thing in common. Both blue and humpback whales are baleen. This means they have fibrous plates in their mouths instead of teeth, which help them filter and consume huge quantities of fish and anthropods.
Interestingly, humpback whales and sperm whales are very alike. These creatures share numerous features such as-
Both of them are carnivores, and they both dwell in very similar habitats. Hence, if you are not an expert, it is quite impossible for people to differentiate between these gigantic creatures.
Thus, below is the list of major differences between a humpback whale and a sperm whale.
Size- Sperm whales can grow up to 59ft and weigh 45 tons, which means humpbacks are relatively larger than sperm whales.
Diet- Humpbacks feed on small fish and krill while sperm whale munches on octopuses, colossal squids and etc.
Colour- Sperm whales and humpbacks look alike. Both of them are usually dark grey or black in colour.
As mentioned earlier, these lovely giants grow some long pectoral fins, aka, flippers making them the longest flippers of any baleen whale.
The looks of the "big wing of New England" also known as the humpback whales may be deceptive. It looks rather small in a video or still image. However, if you watch the giant from up close, they are humongous.
A fully grown adult humpback whale is often compared to a school bus. The main reason for this comparison is their similarity in length and size.
If you measure their length, the humpback whales are 38-42 feet in length whereas, their females are slightly larger, measuring 40-45 feet. On the other hand, a school bus is about 45 feet long.
So the conclusion is that a school bus and humpback whales are somewhat similar in length.
What Is the Humpback Whale Song About?
Not only for their humps and migration, but humpbacks are also famous for their songs. Their magical sounds travel a great distance through the world's oceans and are actually caused by a sequence of moans, howls, cries, and other noises that are quite complex and often continue for hours on end.
Although great scientists of the world have spent years trying to decipher their meaning, it is more likely that the giants sing to establish communication and to attract their possible mates.
The loud, complex series of sounds made by the whales are repeated over and over again exclusively during the breeding season, especially by their males.
Even their calves are known to "whisper" to their mothers.
Humpback Whale Migration In Hawaii
For marine animals, humpbacks have one of the longest migrations of any mammals. They spend most of the summer season feeding in cold nutrient-rich waters at high latitudes and winters in warmer tropical waters.
If you are wondering if these giant sea creatures ever take a break from their long migration, the answer is they do. Per satellite tracking studies conducted on their pods, it is known that humpback whales sometimes break their long migrations at giant underwater mountains, called seamounts.
To be precise, they take a few days' halt at La Pérouse seamount between the Indian Ocean islands of Réunion and Madagascar, and in the Pacific, off New Caledonia.
Interestingly, they hang around seamounts for weeks before continuing their journey. Using the huge geographical features as meeting points, it is possible that the whale pod may congregate at seamounts to mate.
