Fluke
Aloha,
Remember the two Humpbacks we saw on Tuesday’s Signature Whale Watch Cruise? Well, based on those recognizable fluke patterns, they were still together and still hanging around the same area, because we spent some time with them on Wednesday’s Signature Whale Watch Cruise too!
On Tuesday, they were just kind of cruising, but on Wednesday, we saw them tail lobbing a bit at each other. The only other whale we saw was all the way down the coast in Puako, but we didn’t want to leave our two frisky whales to check this lone whale out.
When we dropped the hydrophone into the water, we could hear some singing, but the sounds were from quite a distance away.
Mahalo,
Claire
Ocean Sports Whale Fact of the Day: In 1918, in effort to stockpile more beef, mutton and pork to send to the American troops fighting the 1st World War, the US government sponsored a luncheon at the American Museum of National History in New York featuring Humpback Whale meat. Several dignitaries were invited (including Admiral Peary) to feast on the menu created by the Head Chef of Delmonico’s, and were quoted saying the meat tasted like pot roast or venison. During the luncheon, the museum’s “reliable sources” reported that if all of the 7 operational whaling stations on the Pacific Coast began processing whale for food (instead of for fertilizer), more than 20 million pounds of whale meat could be distributed to the American public during the summer months alone at a cost of 12.5 cents/pound (about $2.13/pound in today’s dollars). The idea never really caught on with the American public though.