Pro Dive Cairns says hello to an Inquisitive Whale

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Thu, 20 Jul 2017 07:11:48 +0000
Pro Dive Cairns

Amazing, unbelievable and just awesome were just some of the words from our liveaboard Dive Boat Scubapro. A full size lone male humpback, about 12-13 metres was spotted, at 9am on Wednesday the 9th of July (2017) having a whale of a time to the delight of 30 passengers and crew on Pro Dive Cairns’ 3 days / 2 nights trip. Heading out for the start of their 3 day dive and snorkel adventure, the whale was spotted heading in a northerly direction between Green and Fitzroy islands. With engines stopped the inquisitive whale approached the vessel and spent 20 minutes swimming around, a few tail flicks and diving below the surface before slowing swimming away to explore more of the Great Barrier Reef. Pro Dive Cairns passengers remarked “what a incredible way to start our 3 days on the Reef”. Humpbacks are generally seen on the Great Barrier Reef between the months of June to September with regular sightings at the Outer Reefs, bringing an added bonus for passengers at this time. Humpback whales regularly migrate from Antarctic waters along the east coast of Australia every winter to the warmer waters of the Great Barrier Reef to breed and calve. They are easily identified by having extremely large pectoral fins (their scientific name is Megaptera, which literally means giant wing), and scalloped flukes. They grow up to approximately 16 metres in length, weighing in at 30-50 tonnes. Male humpbacks produce “songs”, which are believed to attract females at mating times. Vision credit: Pro Dive Cairns Skipper, Chris Vadas https://youtu.be/0EO2i-76OWM