At Sea
Here MS Endeavour cruises the Atlantic Ocean, on a sea that holds so much diversity and excitement. It seems everyday of this trip contains one incredible experience after another. Today was no different. We awoke at 7:15 to the gentle announcement proclaiming spinner dolphins on our bow. What a way to wake up to come out on deck with a cup of coffee in your hand, and watch these incredible marine mammals play on the water. Many of us looked whimsically down on the water, thinking if only we could move with such tireless ease, keeping pace with the ship as she cruises at 13 knots.
But the dolphins were only the beginning. Many were just finishing breakfast when the alert came: “We have a blow about a mile ahead of the ship.” Binoculars were grabbed, eggs left on plates, and guests streamed out on deck. It did not take long for our naturalists to identify the blows as a pod of whales, sperm whales to be exact.
Sperm whales are the largest of the toothed whales. The male sperm whale has been known to reach a length of 62 feet. The females are much smaller than the males, usually only reaching 36 feet in length. Sperm whales are easy to identify, due to their distinctive body shape, and individual blow. The blow comes from a small blowhole located far along the enormous head, and a little to the left. This causes the blow to come out at an angle, which can prove useful in identifying them from long distances. Sperm whales have an enormous head, slightly squarish in shape. There is a small rounded hump on the back. This morning we came upon a pod of about 10 individuals, but they have been known to be in herds of 15 – 20 individuals, swimming in the tropical to temperate waters between 60 degrees N and 70 degrees S. The group this morning was “logging” on the surface. This is common practice amongst this type of whale. Sperm whales dive very deep, on average about 350 meters, and can stay down for an hour at a time looking for the squid, which makes up the bulk of their diets. When the whale comes back up to the surface, it has quite a bit of carbon dioxide and lactic acid built up in its system. It needs time to take in new oxygen, to replace these other toxic substances. The whales often lie on the surface for ten minutes.
During whaling times, this was a huge advantage for the whalers, because they could often come right up to the whales and harvest them without a struggle. After harvesting the whales, they used the spermaceti that the whales produced for fuel and lubricants of various applications. At present, although most countries have banned whaling, some cosmetics still contain sperm whale by-products.
It is a rare experience to come up on so many sperm whales logging on the surface, and for many of us, myself included, it is a entirely new encounter, one that none is soon to forget.
Here MS Endeavour cruises the Atlantic Ocean, on a sea that holds so much diversity and excitement. It seems everyday of this trip contains one incredible experience after another. Today was no different. We awoke at 7:15 to the gentle announcement proclaiming spinner dolphins on our bow. What a way to wake up to come out on deck with a cup of coffee in your hand, and watch these incredible marine mammals play on the water. Many of us looked whimsically down on the water, thinking if only we could move with such tireless ease, keeping pace with the ship as she cruises at 13 knots.
But the dolphins were only the beginning. Many were just finishing breakfast when the alert came: “We have a blow about a mile ahead of the ship.” Binoculars were grabbed, eggs left on plates, and guests streamed out on deck. It did not take long for our naturalists to identify the blows as a pod of whales, sperm whales to be exact.
Sperm whales are the largest of the toothed whales. The male sperm whale has been known to reach a length of 62 feet. The females are much smaller than the males, usually only reaching 36 feet in length. Sperm whales are easy to identify, due to their distinctive body shape, and individual blow. The blow comes from a small blowhole located far along the enormous head, and a little to the left. This causes the blow to come out at an angle, which can prove useful in identifying them from long distances. Sperm whales have an enormous head, slightly squarish in shape. There is a small rounded hump on the back. This morning we came upon a pod of about 10 individuals, but they have been known to be in herds of 15 – 20 individuals, swimming in the tropical to temperate waters between 60 degrees N and 70 degrees S. The group this morning was “logging” on the surface. This is common practice amongst this type of whale. Sperm whales dive very deep, on average about 350 meters, and can stay down for an hour at a time looking for the squid, which makes up the bulk of their diets. When the whale comes back up to the surface, it has quite a bit of carbon dioxide and lactic acid built up in its system. It needs time to take in new oxygen, to replace these other toxic substances. The whales often lie on the surface for ten minutes.
During whaling times, this was a huge advantage for the whalers, because they could often come right up to the whales and harvest them without a struggle. After harvesting the whales, they used the spermaceti that the whales produced for fuel and lubricants of various applications. At present, although most countries have banned whaling, some cosmetics still contain sperm whale by-products.
It is a rare experience to come up on so many sperm whales logging on the surface, and for many of us, myself included, it is a entirely new encounter, one that none is soon to forget.
