Whale & Wildlife Report | September 22-28, 2024
PC: Olivia Miller
Highlights
Short-finned Pilot Whales
Pantropical Spotted Dolphins
Rough-toothed Dolphins
Hawaiian Spinner Dolphins
Green Sea Turtles
Oceanic White-Tip Sharks
Whale & Wildlife Report | September 22-28, 2024
With the volcano settled back down, we were back to our beautiful blue skies this week… a welcomed sight! It was so clear that on several occasions we were able to see the summits of four out of our five volcanoes that make up the Big Island! We also had a nice view of Maui across the channel. The skies were matched with beautiful ocean conditions throughout the entire week allowing us to explore and look for wildlife in glass calm waters.
Dolphins definitely stole the show this week on our tours! We spent time with three different species. Our mornings began with great encounters with Hawaiian Spinner Dolphins outside the harbor. The pod we viewed had a handful of newborn calves sporting pronounced fetal folds! It is such a treat to welcome new dolphins to our waters and we are looking forward to watching them grow!
PC: Olivia Miller
For our most energetic species this week, our crew found a massive pod of Pantropical spotted dolphins offshore and they were in a particularly aerial mood! We truly couldn’t keep track of all the unreal leaps happening all around us. Naturalist Olivia was able to snap a photo of a particularly high jump from one individual, check it out above! Our third dolphin species of the week was also found a ways offshore in the pelagic zone. We located a pod of Rough-toothed dolphins at one of the offshore FADs vigorously hunting some fish.
In addition to our wonderful dolphin encounters, we spent time with pilot whales on every trip this week. We even observed some uncommon behavior from a juvenile pilot whale, repetitive breaching! Unlike some of their close cousins who spend more time airborne, this behavior is very rare to see here in Hawaii from our pilot whales. We were so excited as we’ve never seen this before from this species! This week also felt particularly sharky as we were able to view oceanic white-tip sharks at several offshore FADs, as well as following the pilot whale pods.
PC: Olivia Miller
Tours resume on October 25th! Our crew is taking a much-deserved vacation and will be off-island until October 24th. Offshore whale watch tours and manta ray night snorkels resume on Friday, October 25th.
Interested in experiencing these tours?
Hawaiian Adventure’s tours provide the best opportunity to explore Kona’s coast and the wildlife beneath the waves. Our top-notch vessels, experienced crew, and oceanic expertise will make your Big Island adventure unforgettable.
If you’ve been on other tours, you’ll appreciate the Hawaiian Adventures difference.
