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Whale Watching with the Virginia Marine Science Museum

© Beverly Eschberger

When you think about whale-watching trips, you probably think about traveling to such locations as Alaska, the Caribbean, or even Hawaii. Virginia Beach, Virginia probably does not come to mind as one of the great whale-watching destinations. Whales migrate, however, and as they travel during the winter to their breeding waters of the Caribbean, whales may be observed off the coast of Virginia.

The Virginia Marine Science Museum in Virginia Beach, Virginia offers extremely affordable ($15 for adults and $13 for children for a two-hour trip) whale-watching trips by boat during the months of December through March each year. The actual dates that whale-watching trips are scheduled vary from year to year, depending on when whales are actually migrating through the area. Boat trips may also be cancelled due to inclement weather, so you'll want to plan your activities around the weather. Although reservations are not required, they are highly recommended, or you may discover that there are no vacancies left during your preferred times. Just call 757-437-BOAT (2628) for information, directions, and reservations.

There are three main species of whale that you might be fortunate enough to see during a whale-watching trip: Humpback, Fin, and Northern Right Whales. The Humpback and Fin whales are more likely to be seen. All three are species of baleen whale; baleen whales feed by filtering plankton, small fish, and shrimp from the water using closely spaced, fibrous plates of baleen that hang from the whale's upper jaw. Be sure to read my article "Marine Mammals I: The Cetaceans" for more information about whales.

Humpback whales can reach lengths of 35 to 50 feet (11.5 to 17 m) and weights of 25 to 30 tons. They are known as being one of the most energetic species of the large whales, and may breach and show other dramatic behaviours several times in a row. They are wide-ranging, and are distributed in all oceans, from the poles to the tropics; although they tend to stay fairly close to continental shores and islands, Humpbacks will migrate across open waters. Humpback whales spend their summers in high-latitude, cold-water feeding grounds, and migrate thousands of miles to low-latitude, warm-water breeding grounds in the winter. Humpbacks tend to be inquisitive, and may approach boats with little fear, which, coupled with being slow swimmers, has allowed many to be killed by whalers. Humpback populations are recovering, and their numbers are estimated to be somewhere between 18,000 and 20,000 worldwide, but this is just a fraction of their previous population size.