Open Mouth Feeding

[Baywing]

Coral, my adopted humpback whale, delighted over 100 people aboard a whale watch boat this past weekend by surfacing just 50 feet from the boat with a mouth full of sea water and fish. (Fish soup??) The baleen can be seen hanging down from the upper jaw (sticking almost straight up). The lower jaw, with pleats similar to a pelican, expands to hold almost 500 gallons! In other words, that lower jaw is about the size of a hot tub, but I wouldn't care to get in....

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[Flew]

Cool shot Bay. It had to be a total rush to see him feeding so close to your boat. 8)

I am disappointed that you didn't dive in with him though. :lol:

 

[Baywing]

Some moron actually did just that years ago, from a private boat. He slipped into the water and thought it would be cool to climb on the back of a humpback calf. While the calf didn't seem to know what to think, Mom had different thoughts on the matter. While usually good natured, to the point of helping humans like dolphins do, this act crossed a line. Mom proceeded to flip that guy thru the air like a badmitton birdie using only her tail. The volley lasted a while, and when done, his friends helped him into their boat and took off. Whatever monetary fines that were levied couldn't come close to the thrashing that guy took. Nope, that tail has lots of power, it only takes 2 pumps to propel the entire body out of the water so I have alot of respect for those creatures.....

 

[Flew]

Well, you know what the last thing that a moron says before he dies, right; "Hey, watch this!!". :roll:

 

[Greg]

very nice shot. Haven't seen them on the TN river yet. Will keep looking as Gar aren't very photogenic.

 

[saturnine]

That is an amazing capture! Great story to go with it too

 

[Baywing]

Frank: A definate contender for the Darwin Award!
Greg: You might be surprized to know that this area they are feeding in is only 60-80' deep! But, since they don't like fresh water, you'll not likely see them on your river.
Saturnine and all: Thanks for the kind words! It's my pleasure!

 

[Gale]

fANTASTIC bAY,

tHANKS....lOVE IT.

 

[drueter]

Fascinating shot, Baywing!

 

[bfjr]

How exciting that must be to be able to shot this creatures
and thank you for sharing it.

 

[Steve S]

Great catch Baywing

Enjoyed this, and all of your whale shots, and also the education I'm getting about them!

 

[Baywing]

Thanks. Part of wildlife photography is learning about your subject. The more you learn, the better you get at showing the subject in it's true form. Fear in humans is based mostly on not understanding other life forms and to some extent, ignorance of their ways. Granted I have a passion for the humpbacks, but in general, I think the photos mean more when there is some sort of explaination of what is going on is with them.
I would like everyone who can to go on a whale watch and experience them first hand, there is no way you can feel the size, strength and power of these creatures thru photos or videos. For those of you who have read the text with the various photos, if you do go, you'll be a step ahead, as you will already have some basic knowledge of their behavior.
Photography is about more than just making a pretty picture, it is a form of communication. I'd like to see some of the other folks here who know their subjects well add some info to the photo posts. Even if you just descride what the animal is doing or was doing just before and after the photo, it would help us more appreciate the the animal's existance.