This whalewatch season in Hervey Bay, Australia marks an exciting continuation of Pacific Whale Foundation’s mission to protect our oceans and study the humpback whales in the East Australian population. These whales stop over in Platypus Bay every winter on their migration back to their feeding grounds in Antarctica. Pacific Whale Foundation (PWF) began its long relationship with Australia’s whalewatching capital in the 1980s when our Founder and Executive Director, Greg Kaufman, discovered the beauty of the humpback whales in Platypus Bay, off of Fraser Island, and pioneered the area’s first whalewatch on a borrowed fishing boat. Since then, Greg and the PWF researchers have been important figures in Hervey Bay, conducting photo-identification studies on these amazing animals each winter.
Humpback whale flukes are uniquely patterned and can provide valuable information for scientists in a way that is similar to our human fingerprints. Using photo-ID, our researchers have created a catalog that allows us to better study and understand the habitats and life history traits of these marine mammals without using more invasive methods such as tagging. PWF currently has a Southern Hemisphere catalog of over 6,000 whales. As we are better able to study these animals, our researchers can identify better means of protecting them.
This year, we invite the public to come on board with us on our new state of the art vessel, Ocean Defender, as we embark on daily Ultimate Whalewatches from the Great Sandy Straits Marina that are unlike anything many have experienced. Not only will we have a Researcher On Board collecting photo-ID data, we also have a university educated certified Marine Naturalist interpreting the whale behavior in order to allow passengers to appreciate these animals and have a life-changing encounter. By coming out with us, our passengers are the backbone of what we do at Pacific Whale Foundation, with all of the proceeds supporting the research and education taking place in Australia.
Join us as we continue to pursue research, education, and conservation, and become a part of what we are doing at Pacific Whale Foundation. Visit PacificWhale.com.au for more information on our Hervey Bay Ultimate Whalewatches. We look forward to showing you the majestic humpback whales that have inspired so many of us to dedicate our lives to helping them.