A recently released video taken by a scientific research drone off the coast of Maui, Hawaii caught a humpback whale in an unusual position: swimming vertically with its tail above the water. The whale “headstand” was captured in February by an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), or drone, operated by researchers with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Collaborative Center for Unmanned Technologies. The video was released by the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary in Maui on Wednesday. The short clip shows the NOAA UAS approaching a female humpback whale swimming with her calf. As the young mammal darts around its mother, the older whale remains situated with her body facing downward in the water with her tail floating above the ocean’s surface. A sanctuary release regarding the video explained that while right whales are known to tail-sail, the practice has “rarely been observed or documented” in humpback whale populations. “We’re not entirely sure why the whales do this,” said Ed Lyman, a whale specialist with the sanctuary. “But we think this could be another way for them to rest, nurse, or just try to stay cool. More observations will be needed to confirm this theory.” The […]
