Whale & Wildlife Report | April 21-27, 2024
PC: Olivia Miller
Highlights
Hundreds of melon-headed whales
Short-finned pilot whales
Pantropical spotted dolphins
Reef manta rays
Oceanic whitetip sharks
Hammerhead shark
Hawaiian spinner dolphins
Whale & Wildlife Report | April 21-27, 2024
Every day is Earth Day with Hawaiian Adventures! We spent time with some amazing species on our whale and wildlife trips this week. Spotting marine life on the water requires effort from everyone onboard (guests and crew included). The search begins at the dock, and once we’re out of the harbor, the possibilities are endless!
We found a few pods of Hawaiian spinner dolphins outside Honokohau as we were departing on and returning from our tours. We frequently see small pods near the green can, and although they are typically more active in the early morning, we had a few energetic mid-day encounters! Offshore we also found a massive pod of Pantropical spotted dolphins. They were super engaged with us and we were treated to lots of bow riding and wake surfing.
We hold the humpback season near and dear to our hearts, but our year-round wildlife tours are some of the most exciting! We had some spectacular encounters with melon-headed whales, and not just a few… a few hundred! Our team estimated the pod sizes to be at least 250, maybe even 300+ whales. To be surrounded by hundreds of whales is an unbeatable experience! We saw varied behavior from individuals resting to others riding our boat’s bow and wake. The pods also had oceanic whitetip sharks cruising with them which was cool to see. We spotted four oceanic whitetip sharks with one of the groups, and even a scalloped hammerhead shark swimming nearby!
The offshore excitement continued with short-finned pilot whales! We witnessed two pods splashing like crazy at the surface; pretty atypical as we usually see them logging. The pods were moving quickly and changing directions constantly which was wild! Our naturalists spotted a brand new calf in the mix doing its best to keep up, and we got a photo of the little friend (pictured below). South of Kealakekua Bay, we found another pod of pilot whales exhibiting more typical behavior, and we got some good looks and a few passes. Our fourth pod of pilot whales was a group of about 40 individuals. This was a fairly large group compared to the others, and the whales were cruising slowly up the coast with a few oceanic whitetip sharks trailing behind.
Springtime conditions are a welcome experience, especially for our night manta snorkel trips! We ventured north this week to Garden Eel Cove, and despite some cooler freshwater runoff, we had awesome manta action. Kona’s manta rays can get up close and personal when feeding on plankton, and our guests were wowed as the mantas swooped right beneath the light boards! We kindly refer to the Kona’s manta rays as gentle giants, and Kona is the only place in the world where we get the opportunity to snorkel with them at night. If a night manta tour isn’t already on your bucket list, it’s time to make an addition!
PC: Olivia Miller
PC: Olivia Miller
PC: Andrew Aggergaard
PC: Andrew Aggergaard
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