Humpback whale activities can be defined as all of what humpback whales do in a year cycle to fulfill their social and physiological needs.
Humpback whales live most of their lives underwater so most of what we document are glimpses of their activities at the ocean´s surface. Therefore, we tend to extrapolate data to build the big picture of the humpback whale activities on a year cycle.
Where the Humpback Whales Live
Humpback whales live mostly over the continental shelf which extends from coastal to open water environments. It is a habitat in constant change with varied environmental features that provide the conditions whales need to fulfill their biological needs. Mostly, humpback whale activities are performed over areas between the shore line and 1500 feet depths.
It is important to consider that the continental shelf is an environment which water quality and sea bed are also influenced by land process. Rivers bring fresh water and nutrients, making the shelf very productive ecologically, while river-borne material settles on the seabed as sediment. The continental shelf has a huge diversity of marine life and habitats. And it is also the area of the sea where most marine human activities develop and that suffer most from pollution.
Migratory Cycle of Humpback Whales
Humpback Whales are a migratory species adapted to move between the high latitudes and the tropical latitudes of the North Pacific Ocean. Doing so they inhabit areas between the Gulf of Alaska and the waters of Mexico and Hawaii over a year cycle.
Purpose of Migrations: to Shelter, to Feed and to Reproduce.
The importance of any migration is the purpose that it serves.
The Different Areas Dictate the Different Activities
The different areas provide different conditions suitable to satisfy different biological needs, moving between them allows humpback whales to survive. Survive as an individual, as a population and ultimately as a species.
Migrating between the waters of Alaska and the waters of Mexico and Hawaii allows humpbacks to get the best of both worlds. They perform feeding activities to build reserves during the summer in northern waters from California to the Gulf of Alaska. And they use those reserves to migrate and perform reproductive activities during winter in the tropical waters of Mexico and Hawaii.
Humpback Whale Migrations – Overlapping Migrations
The humpback whale migration is performed in dynamic social patterns, and are also known as overlapping migrations. Where some number of whales in a pod separate from it and reach others forming a new grouping. They group forming pods, then partially separate and regroup with others along the migratory route in an overlapping fashion. And so forth, during the migration the pods of whales overlap over each other as they move on to their destination.
Humpback Whale Migration from the feeding grounds to the breeding grounds of the North Pacific Ocean (adapted from National Geographic maps).
Social Structure of Humpback Whales
The social structure of the Humpback Whales has a fission – fusion structure. Meaning, they come together for some activities (fission) and then they split apart (fusion) to later join others for other activities. Humpback whales cooperate and teamwork among them constantly to be more efficient performing different activities, such as when they feed. They cooperate to find their prey and teamwork to accomplish an efficient catch to guaranty everyone in the pod gets enough food. An example of this cooperative behavior is the bubble net feeding strategy observed widely in the Gulf of Alaska.
Social Groups and Roles of Different Genders
The social groups of Humpback Whales are formed to fulfill roles within the community such as during migration, during feeding or during breeding and calving activities. In the tropical waters the humpback whale activities are mostly to serve the purpose of breeding and calving.
Males and females play different roles in order to fulfill the needs and purposes of these activities. For example, when a female humpback is raising its calf it is common to find a male escorting them keeping the watch.
Other social groups such as the Courting groups are formed by reproductive males competing to mate with a fertile female. During this competition the female will test the abilities of the surrounding males to select the skillful ones to mate with. The skillful males carry the strongest genepool and they tend to teamwork in pairs to have better chances to mate. They will physically fight other competitive males for days and while the weaker males give up the dominant ones will prevail.
What do Humpback Whales do on a Day – Night Cycle?
Humpback whales don’t follow traditional circadian biology. Meaning that the rhythms which control the timing of internal bodily functions, including sleep, as well as the interactions with the external world over a 24 hour cycle are not fully ruled by day and night time. Their physical, mental and behavior changes also depend on the season, the tides, the weather and the ocean conditions which change constantly.
Basically whales respond to changes in the ocean environment and they adapt by changing their activities, their distribution and diving patterns. They also change the way the use their habitat to overcome these changes and take advantage of the environmental conditions and survive. And as a gregarious species socializing, communicating and cooperating among them is very important to accomplish this.
Effect of Tides on Humpback Whales Activities
Tides are the only predictable Oceanographical phenomenon and studying tides provides valuable insights regarding changes in the humpback whales activities. These changes also vary depending on which season and location they are within their yearly migration cycle. Meaning it also depends if the whales are in the feeding season, migrating or in its breeding and calving season.
Migratory Group in motion during Spring Tide – Click here to see video
In general terms, whales tend to move more when more water moves and this happens when the tides are more extreme. When the tides are minimal the ocean currents are so mild that whales can perform other activities achieving neutral buoyancy control. Resting, sleeping, singing or mating activities are easier to be performed when whales achieve neutral buoyancy control for long periods.
Tides, a Predictable Phenomenon
Tides are caused by the gravitational attraction of the celestial bodies of the solar system over the bodies of water of the Earth. Mostly by the Sun due to its size and the Moon due its proximity to the Earth. This gravitational pull depends mostly on the relative position between the Sun and the Moon on a given moment and their proximity to Earth. Therefore there is a contrasting different effect over the tides during the different moon phases and seasons along the year.
Spring Tides vs Neap Tides
There is a greater gravitational pull during full moon and new moon phases, which creates what is called “spring tide”. The result is the most extreme vertical movement of the column of water between the high and the low tides.
The opposite happens during the first and third quarter moon phases, when the Sun and the Moon are 90o from each other. The result is a counteraction of their gravity pull and the tides have the minimal movement between the higher and the lower. This is what is called “neap tide”.
Geographical Influence on Tides
The shape, the depth and the size of the ocean basins also influence the resulting tidal patterns on different locations. As a result, some places have semidiurnal tides (two tide cycles per day) and others have diurnal tides (one tide cycle per day). Some other locations have semidiurnal tides on certain seasons of the year and diurnal tides on other seasons.
This phenomenon has been historically recorded, statistically analyzed and mathematically modelled allowing it to be predictable over time for numerous locations.
Whale´s Abilities to Mix the Ocean´s Column of Water
Whales stir the column of water every time they dive and every time they resurface to breathe. When they dive repeatedly, they mix the column of the ocean efficiently, especially when they do this in large groups.
This mixing brings nutrients to the surface which become available for microalgae to bloom with the right light conditions. These conditions aligning stimulates photosynthesis and enhances the energy flowing through the food chain which benefits all marine species.
When the blooms of microalgae are massive, they absorb Carbon from the atmosphere and release oxygen in turn. This oxygen is not all dissolved in the column of water, it is also expelled to the atmosphere. This process replenishes large amounts of oxygen worldwide and cleans the atmosphere by the absorption of carbon.
In other words, whales are able to modify the environment for the common good and for their benefit as well.
Socializing is inherent to humpback whale activities.
Mixing the column of water also modifies the salinity and temperature which affects water density and this can benefit whale´s buoyancy control. Whales must develop neutral buoyancy control to be able to stay underwater effortlessly and mixing the column of water helps them to accomplish that.
Noise Pollution
Whales are acoustical animals and the main concern for their conservation is noise pollution. Noise pollution blurs their ability to hear and find each other which affects their communication and how they relate to the environment. With minimal noise pollution whales can communicate more efficiently and easily hear and find each other, which in turn allows them to stir the column of water more extensively.
The Role of the Whales Within The Big Picture of This Planet
The role of the whales within the big picture of this planet is to fertilize the oceans, mostly by mixing the column of water. Additionally, the release of their feces brings nutrients back into the ocean and fertilizes the areas where they feed.
Humpback Whales activities induce large blooms of micro algae which helps to drive the food chain, replenishes the oxygen worldwide and cleans the atmosphere simultaneously.
This is the main reason why we must protect the whales!
Whale Activities Contribution to the Intricate Web of Life Support
The activities of humpback whales demonstrate their incredible adaptability and their critical role within the marine ecosystem. Their migrations, social behaviors, and interactions with the environment not only supports their survival but also have profound impacts on ocean health and global atmospheric balance. By stirring ocean waters and fertilizing marine ecosystems, humpback whales contribute to nutrient cycling, food chain dynamics, and even the planet’s oxygen supply. Protecting these magnificent creatures is not just about preserving a single species—it is about safeguarding the intricate web of life they sustain and the invaluable benefits they provide to the Earth as a whole.
To learn hands-on about the Humpback Whale Activities you can join specialized responsible whale watching trips with Ocean Friendly Tours. Where safety, education and technology blend to provide a unique approach to understand the world of the humpback whales. And to prepare for this activity we suggest to read our article What to Wear for Whale Watching.
FAQ
What do humpback whales do for fun?
What humpback whales do for fun is unknown. As human observers we tend to anthropomorphize our observations, meaning we interpret what we see through a human perspective. However, baby whales do seem to have fun while learning from their mother how to breach and other acrobatic displays. Also, young whales seem to have fun and enjoy when they socialize among them as well as when they socialize with dolphins.
What time are humpback whales most active?
The time when humpback whales are most active on the surface happens usually during spring tides. Humpback whale activities that happen underwater and at times when they are not documented are uncertain to discern when they reach a peak.
What do humpback whales do at night?
What humpback whales do at night depend on where they are, the ocean conditions, the weather, the tides, etcetera. Humpback whales activities at night vary in feeding grounds, in the breeding grounds and when they are on migration. They do not follow a traditional circadian biology.
Mother Humpback Whale teaching its calf to slap its tail. An important task to learn to relate to other whales in social activities and relate to the environment acoustically.
