Why do whales go to maui

At birth, humpback whales are feet long and weigh about a ton. Full-grown adults weight about one ton per foot, which means that a foot humpback will weigh about 90, lbs! Although they can sprint up to about 20 mph, on average humpback whales travel at a steady rate of mph. Mornings are often best for whale-watching because the water is calmer and the whales are easier to spot. Should the whales decide to approach the boat it is out of your hands. You need to wait until the whale loses interest.

Sometimes the light refracts off this puff of air and water creating a rainbow above the whales blowhole! Smaller, quicker vessels, like ours, are able to maneuver better and the proximity to the water makes them ideal for spotting whales!

The best months for whale watching in Maui are the winter months, from December through April. The first month of whale season there are fewer whales, but the whales that migrate first tend to be juvenile humpback whales, which means they are curious and we often have close encounters with them as they approach our vessels to learn about us! We think we are whale watching, but really they are people watching! Whale watching in December gets much busier as the holidays approach.

Many island visitors want a tropical Christmas just like our humpback friends who are being spotted on every whale watching trip and demonstrating fun surface behaviors! Photo Credit: Slater Moore Photography.

It is estimated 12, whales migrate to Hawaii and by the winter season we are beginning to see more of these numbers arriving on Maui. By February, everywhere you look you see whales! The majority of the whales that migrate will all be here during this month, making it one of the best months for whale watching in Maui.

You may see whales around the other Hawaiian Islands but they do not congregate in any other area like they do here in Maui. The time frame for whale season December 15th- April 15th was chosen as a time to enforce certain protections, for the humpback whales because that time frame is when most are in Maui. Some of these seasonal protections include ceases the use of jet skis as well as parasailing tours, to prevent any collisions with swimming whales.

Scientific Name:. Most researchers agree their populations are plentiful. They are one of four species known to inhabit Hawaiian waters that belong to the subord Found both in coastal and pelagic regions in all oceans of the world, the hammerhead shark is by far one of the most unique and distinct sharks in our oceans today.

The scalloped species has four lobe The Hawaiian spotted eagle ray is also known as the bonnet ray, duck bill ray, or spotted duck billed ray, but perhaps no other name than hihimanu describes them so perfectly. This Hawaiian name means Orca aka killer whales are the top predators for humpback whales, although sick or weak whales have also been targeted by sharks. Under this protection, whales cannot be owned by anyone, and it is illegal to harass, corral, injure, kill, or trade them between countries.

For more information about humpback whales, or how to see them during your trip to Maui, please visit Maui Whale Watching.

Mahalo for reading, and happy humpback whale month!