Oceans Alive! Whale Tails from the Bay of Fundy
Well folks, I am on the last leg of my field trip with conservationists and whale watch operators in North and South America. Right now I am on Grand Manan Island in the Bay of Fundy on the east coast of Canada, where I am working with Laurie Murison of Grand Manan Whale and Seabird Research Station (GMWSRS). Laurie conducts research on the highly endangered North Atlantic right whale while working as a guide aboard a local whale watching boat operated by Whales-n-Sails Adventures.
I recently had a conversation with Allan McDonald, naturalist and co-owner of Whales-n-Sails Adventures to find out more about what makes whale watching in the Bay of Fundy so special and why the bay has been nominated to be one of the 'New 7 Wonders of Nature'.
It's All About The Tides...
"The Bay of Fundy has more whales than other localities in this area. In particular we have two rather unique attractions, one being the highly endangered North Atlantic Right Whale and the other being the feeding behaviours of Finback Whales."
The Bay of Fundy has some of the most extreme tides on this planet. "Tide change here is measured in billions of tons and there is more water flowing in and out of the bay on a daily basis than flowing into the ocean from all the world's rivers put together!" This huge daily exchange means that the water remains very cold and has a high oxygen content. Warm, clear water equals not much life, whereas cold, murky, oxygen-rich water equals an abundance of plankton. And of course, this is the foundation upon which entire ecosystems depend.
A nutrient rich area will always draw a big crowd to the feast and the Bay of Fundy is no exception. As well as the fin and right whales, other residents and visitors to the banquet include Humpback Whales, Minke Whales, Sperm Whales, White-beaked Dolphins, Atlantic White-sided Dolphins and Harbour Porpoises, as well as Grey Seals, Harbour Seals and thousands of marine birds.
What The Fin Whales Get Up To...
Although Fin Whales (also known as Finback Whales) are the second largest of all whales, they are often overlooked by whale watchers hunting for other more well known species such as Blue Whales, (winners of the sheer-size competition), or Humpbacks, (winners of the majestic-tails competition). "In most parts of the world, Fin Whales are generally in small groups and only surface briefly before frustratingly diving, never to be seen again." This here-one-second-gone-the-next behaviour is not likely to win them any awards with whale watchers. "In just four known places in the world they behave very differently and appear in large groups; Alaska, Iceland, Antarctica
and the Bay of Fundy / Gulf of Maine."
In the Bay of Fundy, the Fin Whales' change of behaviour is due to the tides, the food and a very special geological feature. A series of underwater ledges run for five miles from close to Grand Manan towards Nova Scotia. These ledges create sudden, dramatic changes in water depth from 50 to 4/500 feet. This accelerates the already strong current and creates huge upwellings of nutrient rich waters; condensing plankton patches and forcing them closer to the surface.
In specific parts of the bay close to Grand Manan, Fin Whales dive and surface within a localised area, often in large numbers. They may feed underwater and come to the surface to breathe, travel and digest, or they may lunge feed at the surface itself. Their large group sizes allows for more social interaction. Fin Whales generally arrive in the bay during June and stay till the end of October, some even choose to reside all year round. A Fin Whale's outline is extremely sleek, with a perfectly curved back and dorsal fin, and its movements are both graceful and fast. A particularly appealing feature of the Fin Whale is the asymmetrical markings on the skin; the right side of a fin whale's head is a glorious, marbled white whereas the left side is devoid of this coloration.
One of Allan's favourite whale encounters is watching 15 or more Fin Whales surface together. "It is like fireworks going off with the sound of their blows! The whales surface on all sides of the boat, some at a distance where you hear the blows before spotting their majestic outline, and some so close that their inhalation as well as exhalation can be heard." In the Bay of Fundy, Fin Whales are indeed a thrill to behold.
North Atlantic Right Whales - Rarest of the Rare...
North Atlantic Right Whales are one of the rarest species on earth. It is currently estimated that 4-500 individuals exist. To witness such a highly endangered animal in the wild can be a whale watcher's ultimate dream. In the Bay of Fundy, where the Right Whales can generally be seen between August and late October, you could on some days be forgiven for believing them to be far from endangered. "Spotting 20-30 in a day can be quite normal, and on exceptional occasions we have sighted over 100 individuals on one trip alone!" Not surprisingly such a spectacle is also one of Allan's personal favourite whale watching encounters.
Right Whales are attracted to the bay because of another geological feature. There is an underwater basin near Grand Manan which creates a spiralling of water, "as if you flushed the toilet and water was swirling down it!" These spiralling currents concentrate huge amounts of copepods (a type of zoo plankton; the right whale's favourite food) into a certain area of the bay which draws in the ever-hungry whales. In Allan's words, "Right Whales have read the brochures, they know this is the best place to come!"
Don't Miss the Chance to go Whale Watching in the Bay of Fundy!
Whale watching companies in the bay follow a voluntary code of conduct. "We treat the whales in a manner which will not inconvenience them, cause them harm, or 
drive them away. We want our guests to be able to see whales tomorrow as well as today!"
Allan is proud to operate a whale watching company which gives its guests a unique opportunity to see such rare creatures and behaviours. Grand Manan is the "best whale watching location in the Bay of Fundy, with easy accessibility to the feeding areas of both Fin and Right whales". He enjoys helping people achieve their dreams and also "taking orders from my daughter Sarah who is captain on the boat!"
So if you ever find yourself on the east coast of Canada, Allan would love to welcome you onboard a Whales-n-Sails trip!
And don't forget to visit this site in a few weeks time to read my last article from Grand Manan featuring Laurie Murison's knowledge of the highly endangered North Atlantic Right Whale. These rare animals must surely be on every whale watcher's top-ten-whales-to-see list!
This article featured Whales-n-Sails Adventures and Grand Manan Whale and Seabird Research Station.
To read more of Amanda's accounts about conservationists in USA, Peru and Canada, visit: http://amandabanks.com/blog/
Copyright in all photographs belongs to Whales-n-Sails Adventures.
