An unusual, if not majestic, sight appeared in the water eight miles off the coast of Newport Beach shortly after noon Sunday.
A multi-ton humpback whale breaks through the water and leaps into the sky like a Pacific Life Insurance ad, scattering nearby seabirds while opening its maw to eat anchovies near the surface.
Wildlife photographer Mark Girardeau captured the moment via drone, a practice that has become increasingly common over the past few weeks.
Over the past two months, Orange County waters have become a gathering place for Southern California humpback whales.
“I’ve been working in this area for 10 years and I’ve never seen humpback whales this crazy,” Giraldo said. “But here they are, and it’s unbelievable.”
Girardeau also served as deckhand Newport Coast Adventureoffering marine tours and sightseeing excursions.
In a normal year, Giraldo would point out dolphins, fin whales and minke whales to tourists looking for marine life.
Humpback whales have recently begun to appear, following large numbers of anchovies (a typical food source).
While it’s normal to see humpback whales in Monterey Bay or Hawaii, Southern California is more of a stopover for the whales on their way to Mexico or even Costa Rica, Giraldo said.
A humpback whale feeds on anchovies off the coast of Newport in late November.
(Mark Giraldo)
“You know how we go to Cabo and Puerto Vallarta for vacation,” Giraldo said. “Well, they do the same thing, except as part of a breeding pattern.”
Newport Coast has a sighting log tracking the first sighting of humpback whales from September 25th. More than 16 humpback whales were spotted on November 26th, and more than 16 humpback whales were spotted on November 17th.
A dozen were spotted between 10 a.m. and 1:45 p.m. Wednesday.
Giraldo said the hundreds of dolphins that share space with the whales push the anchovies from shallow water to the surface, where they also eat the creatures.
This stimulates humpback whales to lunge into the air to catch small fish, creating the iconic image.
Giraldo said he’s not sure what’s causing the increase in anchovies in the area, but global warming or changes in ocean currents could be a factor.
“We’ve been observing these amazing creatures almost all day over the past few weeks,” Giraldo said.
The normal whale watching season is expected to resume with the return of gray whales, which migrate between Alaska and Mexico from January to May.
