Observations on the migrations of North Pacific humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae)

Abstract

Migratory destinations of northeast Pacific humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) were determined by repeat sightings of photographically identified individuals, using the black and white pigment patterns on the ventral side of the flukes. Individuals identified between 1975 and 1982 included 1056 in Hawaii, 420 in southeast Alaska, 54 in Prince William Sound, Alaska, 8 in British Columbia, and 12 in the Revillagigedo Islands, Mexico. Of these, 51 were found in Hawaii and southeast Alaska, 8 in Hawaii and Prince William Sound, 1 in Hawaii and British Columbia, and 1 in Mexico and Hawaii. Some travelled for four, five, and six successive seasons between Hawaii and southeast Alaska. One whale was found in British Columbia one summer and in southeast Alaska the next; the same individuals were commonly found off both Kona, Hawaii, and West Maui in winter. The study suggests that separate summer feeding areas may exist in the northeast Pacific where individuals prefer to feed. Migratory connections suggest that all humpbacks in the eastern North Pacific are of the same stock.