Humpback whales in Hurghada - An unusual encounter
calendar_monthSeptember 23, 2011
On the 12th of September around 10am we received an excited phone call from one of our members: two humpback whales were spotted close to Magawish Island! “Humpback whales? Are you sure they are no humpback dolphins? Humpback dolphins are spotted in Hurghada every once in a while but humpback whales?! In Hurghada?! This would be new.” “No, they are whales, 100%! There is a larger one about 8m and a smaller one. Probably mother and calf.” Wow! Humpback whales in Hurghada! Until that day only two sightings of humpback whales in the Egyptian Red Sea have been documented to our knowledge: a young individual off Dahab in 1992 and an adult in October 2006 off Sharm El Sheikh. Now, in September 2011 also Hurghada has been blessed with this incredible sighting. Unfortunately when we arrived in the spot where they were last seen we could not sight them any more, so we extemporized a couple of transects heading about 6 kms offshore and back inshore with four pairs of eyes scanning the sea surface. But: no blow, no luck. However, many dive centers were lucky enough to throw a glance at the two whales earlier and take pictures to share this rare event with the rest of the world. The incident also drew quite a bit of attention to the media, reporting about the two whales that visited Hurghada for a day. Reports saying that the Red Sea is not safe anymore because of the sightings of these two whales are simply wrong. They are neither a threat to fishermen, nor to tourists nor the local environment. Humpback whales feed on the tiniest prey: krill and small fish. Sightings in the Egyptian Red Sea occurred rarely, either because, due to their ecology, they are expected to spend more time in offshore waters (making them unlikely to be spotted) or because the Red Sea is a too poor environment for them compared to oceanic rich waters. Our coastal areas can be considered not suitable for the species, unless they are searching for calmer waters for the calf, as it was hypothesized in this occasion. Now that we know that the impossible can happen, try to get ready for the next impossible. Joy and excitement should not blind us completely: approaches and interactions with whales, especially with mother and calf pairs, must be handled with respect and delicacy, often the more we stay quiet, the more we can enjoy them. Have a quick look at these guidelines issued by the Australian Government and keep them in mind next time you run into a cetacean! (Picture by Sandra Caramelle)
