Tour groups report whales have returned

The whales are back, some tour groups are reporting.

There was a little alarm, or at least curiosity, when some experts noted the season seemed to be starting later this year.

Capt. Bob Dorigo of Body Glove Cruises, noted the tardy start. He commands the business’ 149-passenger catamaran and said humpback whales can be found, but groups are having to go farther out to find them.

“They’re here, just not as many as usual,” Dorigo said.

Capt. Colin Cornforth of Captain Zodiac said he’s been seeing plenty of whales, but they are out near the 3-mile limit imposed by the U.S. Coast Guard. That company uses small rubber rafts capable of taking 16 passengers.

“There’s no way to see what we see from the shore,” he said.

Cornforth said it seems the same number of whales are moving through the region, but are staying farther out.

Others say the season, the peak of which typically lasts from January through March, has returned to normal.

“We’re back on track. It seems every day there is more and more,” said Ed Lyman, resource protection manager for the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary.

There did appear to be an initial lag, he said, but it seems things are improving statewide.

There also is somewhat of a “patchy distribution,” Lyman said, with groups of whales scattered around.

Normally around this time, tours can pick and choose humpback groups, said Body Glove naturalist Denver Leaman, gesturing to the waters outside Kailua Bay. On Monday, they initially spotted only two whales. At other times, there would be so many whales steering a boat between their breaching that it’s like trying to navigate through a parking garage loaded with speed bumps.

Leaman said his team has to spend extra time finding and getting to the whales, which has reduced the amount of time they can spend watching them

It also means the whales have less of a chance to get used to the boat’s presence. As they become more comfortable, sometimes the humpbacks will come over to “people watch,” Leaman said.

“I’ve seen boats being ticketed for getting too close to whales, but never a whale get ticketed for getting too close to a boat,” he said.

Dorigo said the numbers he is seeing now are comparable to what he and his groups typically see in November.

That might be true, said Lyman, but scientists haven’t had large studies to confirm or deny that.

There have been a number of theories as to why the whales are late, if they’re late at all.

After a story last month about their seemingly late arrival, officials tasked with monitoring the animals said people shouldn’t read much into their tardiness because they’re not tardy at all.

“This year’s arrivals appear to be in keeping with long-term historic observations. Recent years have had whales arriving early, making a ‘normal’ arrival appear to be late,” wrote Malia Chow, the superintendent of the marine sanctuary, in a press release.

For people who want to take a boat out to see the whales themselves, the Humpback Whale National Sanctuary asked everyone to keep a sharp lookout to avoid collisions, while staying at speeds of 10 knots or less.

Getting closer than 100 yards is illegal under federal law.

If a whale approaches, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration advises idling the engine and waiting until it leaves.

Lyman said it seemed there were comparatively few animals until the end of December. Then, they began “pouring in.”

“El Nino’s messed everything up,” he said, referring to rare sightings, such as ahi found in Catalina, sea snakes washed ashore in California and whales still visible off Anchorage, Alaska.

He’s concerned the later start to the season will not show a later end. It’s possible they’ll pour through and be done at their normal time, he said.

But he’s unsure of what will happen.

“How do you get into the mind of a whale and know what it’s doing?” he said.

Email Graham Milldrum at gmilldrum@westhawaiitoday.com.