Humpback whales are social opportunists
The humpback whale is different from many whales in the sense that it is more curious, less afraid of people and boats. Photo/Óskar Andri Víðisson
Humpback whales have been unafraid to hang out at Iceland's ports. There are now about ten humpback whales at the harbor in Borgarfjörður East, and a whale expert says they are sociable creatures that are not afraid of people, but there is one thing in particular that draws them so close to land.
"This is nothing unusual, but this is the only large whale species, here in this part of the world we can say, or at least around Iceland, that tends to come into shallow water if there is some tasty food to be had."
This is what Edda Elísabet Magnúsdóttir, assistant professor of biology at the University of Iceland and whale expert, says in an interview with mbl.is, when asked what she thinks is the reason that a large group of humpback whales have made themselves known at the harbor of Borgarfjörður East in the last few days.
The humpback can reach 15 m in length and weigh 40 tons. However, it can still swim to shallow waters if there is a lot of food to be had. Photo/Eyrún Lýdía Sævarsdóttir
There must be plenty of food to attract them
Magnúsdóttir has not yet learned what it was that attracted the humpback whales to the harbor at Borgarfjörður East, but she would not be surprised if it was a herring.
"Usually it's some food, in large enough quantities, that brings them together in such numbers. As when they have been coming into Hafnarfjörður port, there has been quite a lot of fish in the port," she adds.
She says that whales are more habitual when it comes to food selection and its location. The humpback, on the other hand, is more opportunistic in that respect and can move more between locations and food types. This means that it can appear in places that are considered rather unusual, such as, for example, right up on land.
"It kind of reflects this opportunistic lifestyle when they show up in these more unusual places," she adds.
Group animals that hunt together
Magnúsdóttir says that it is very normal for humpbacks to stay in large groups, especially if they find a good food spot. They are also known for working together when hunting.
"Being group animals, which work together when hunting and can go to great depths, this is not surprising. But it doesn't happen often," she says and adds that it may not be often that there are good food spots right up on land, although it can happen.
Can weigh 40 tons and are curious
Humpbacks are special in this regard, she says. They are large whales that can reach up to 40 tons in weight and 15 meters in length. Other large whales usually stay further away from all human traffic and generally further from land.
Photo/Óskar Andri Víðisson
The minke whale can stay close to land, but Magnúsdóttir says that it is more active than the humpback and more careful, while the humpback is a bit more relaxed, like around boats. they are curious and often come very close to boats and people by themselves.
Being thirteen to fifteen meters long, nothing seems to faze them, and Magnúsdóttir says they are agile and seek shallow water if food can be found there. They do not come if there are only a few fish, but there must be a certain amount of food.
Humpbacks reflect changes in the ocean
"Humpbacks are interesting in terms of character traits, sociability and curiosity," Magnúsdóttir says.
"If there is something unusual going on in the sea, like a change in the distribution of fish for example, we can expect humpback whales to appear." They somewhat reflect changes in the ocean and changes in fish distribution patterns, and that's what we're seeing a lot," she says.
Between 11,000 and 15,000 humpback whales stick to Iceland's shores and extend to Greenland and the Faroe Islands. It seems that the population is stabilizing, she concludes.
