Know Before You Go
Humpback Whale | Haida Gwaii Wildlife Guide
Broad and massive, the humpback averages about 50 feet in length with a maximum of 62 feet and weighs about 34–35 tons with a maximum of 53 tons.
The body characteristics and its behavior make this the easiest great whale to identify. It is black or dark grey with a white throat area. The ventral surface of the tail is also white, as well as most of the flippers (which are nearly one-third the total length of the body). The humpback whale’s broad bushy blow is distinctive, as is its dorsal fin which is small but mounted on a fleshy hump. Its head and jaws are covered with fleshy tuberosities, and barnacles are often attached to the body.
Humpbacks often leap completely out of the water to land on their backs with a tremendous splash. Besides breaching, the humpback whale waves and slaps its enormous flippers on the surface of the water to make a loud sound rather like a gunshot, and almost always exposes its tail flukes when it dives. This species is amazingly acrobatic and energetic and never fails to create excitement among visitors lucky enough to encounter one.
