Whale Migration

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The movement and speed of whales is adjusted to fit in with the needs of their seasonal cycle. They spend a lot of time wandering about, arriving in the tropics in time to give birth or mate and returning to the Antarctic after the ice has retracted. Mothers and their young are the first to move north and the last to return to the south allowing optimum time in the warmer waters.

During December, whales feed in the South Polar Region and begin to head north sometime in January. They travel a slow relatively straight path, reaching tropical waters around June. By the end of July and throughout August, Hervey Bay will start to see adult whales. In September adults and juveniles will appear, followed lastly by the mothers and calves in October/November, who will spend time in these waters before making their way back to the South Polar Region.

The young calves must stay in these warm tropical waters in order to grow a protective layer of blubber which will protect them from the cold polar waters of the Antarctic. The calves feed off their mother's milk, but the adult whales do not eat during the breeding season living off their blubber (fat) until they return south to feed on the Antarctic krill.

Why Hervey Bay?

Why do the whales use Hervey Bay as a stop over? Since 1990 there has been an annual 13.5% increase of whales to the area. The Humpback whales have 18 migratory routes worldwide and the reason they chose Hervey Bay as one of their migratory routes has never been fully explained.

Authorities do however have several theories. Perhaps because Fraser Island protects the waters of Hervey Bay, mothers and calves feel safe from predators such as killer whales or pack shark attacks. Perhaps the same calm waters allow the calves time to develop their much needed blubber. Perhaps the area is a restful haven for the whales stressed by the birthing and mating and several months without food. Perhaps they are trapped in the area by the reefs at Break Sea Spit until instinct or other whales lead them around the spit.

In 1992 the world's first sighting of a totally white (albino) whale, the White Whale, occurred in Hervey Bay. Revisiting in 1993, it was not seen in these waters again until 1998. From the information gathered, this whale is shy, approximately 10 years old and because he sings is a male.