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Written by Andrew Stevenson
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The photo above right Jooke Robbins and Judie Clee both identified as Sweep, NAHWC#0599
 
 
I haven't counted the exact number of indivisual humpback whale fluke IDs we have obtained this season but it is well over 150. That is about the same as our previous record two years ago when we obtained 158 individual fluke IDs. The total days on the water so far this season is 19. Yesterday was the first day we didn't find whales. That brings the total of Bermuda fluke IDs in the past five seasons to well over 500 individual animals. We have matched about 50 of this season's IDs to the Center for Coastal Studies catalogue or Allied Whale's North Atlantic Humpback Whale Catalogue with some additonal matches to the Newfoundland catalogue in St. Pierre-et-Miquelon. About 20% of this season's fluke IDs are resightings to whale fluke IDs obtained here in Bermuda the last five years. Two whales we have seen here for a period of eight days. One whale, presumably a female, was with the same escort for the eight-day period. We have some others that were spotted over a six-day period. We have one whale that we have photographed five times in the last six years. And once again, there are remarkable similarities in the timing of the whales' arrival in Bermuda from year to year. Interesting stuff I'd say...
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