Close up of a humpback whale

Whales are one of the most widely distributed marine mammals and are found from seas in the polar regions to the temperate and tropical zones. In total, there are around 40 different species of whales identified, which include the blue whale, the sei whale, the fin whale, the humpback whale, the bowhead whale, and many more! One species of whale commonly found in Antarctic regions of the sea is the humpback whale.

The humpback whale is not known to be slender or graceful, like many other whales. Rather, it is heavily built and is a much slower swimmer than related species of whales.

Humpback whales usually swim at speeds 3–9 miles per hour (4.8–14 kilometers per hour). The long pectoral fins and the tail are distinct features of the humpback whale. The tail is divided into two parts, called flukes. The pectoral fins and tail help the humpback swim through the seas.

A large number of warts and bumps cover the skin of humpback whales. Also, there is a great diversity of barnacles covering the skin of these whales. Barnacles are tiny animals related to crabs, lobsters, and shrimps that often live on rocky shores, wooden docks, or as parasites on the skin of marine animals. Whales also use a special hole on the top of their heads, called a blowhole, for breathing. Although most whales have one blowhole, the humpback whale has two blowholes: the bushy blowhole and the vertical blowhole.

The humpback whale has the longest migration amongst the mammals on Earth. Every year, this species migrates around 5,000 miles (8,000 kilometers) from warmer regions of the sea where they mate to colder waters in search of food. The route of migration spans from the Antarctic Peninsula below Cape Horn, the southernmost tip of South America, up past the equator.

In the seas of the Antarctic region, this species feeds on krill (similar to shrimp), small fish, and plankton. Large quantities of krill, fish, or plankton are needed in order to feed a large fifty-foot-long humpback whale. The effort humpback whales make to move and find food needs to be cost effective. However, not much is known about how this species moves around in the oceans! Currently, scientists are trying to learn more about humpback whale feeding and migration by tagging them with electronic tags.

Watch this recent video of a humpback whale swimming through the Antarctic seas, taken up close!