Whales annual visitors to the island

A humpback whale sighted off Pyramid Rock on 6th June 2023, was spotted again in June this year off Cape Woolamai.

It is commonly believed that humpback whales follow a similar migratory route and timing on an annual basis. Supporting this theory, we have found that individual whales sighted off Phillip Island can be spotted around the same location and same time of the year! This particular adult whale, catalogued as HW-MN1106699 on happywhale.com, was sighted two years apart between Pyramid Rock and Cape Woolamai. Both sightings were recorded off our Whale Cruises.

Resightings can only be confirmed by photographing their flukes which act as an individual fingerprint. Wildlife Coast Cruises has actively been recording and collating fluke data over the years, to help build a picture of the humpback whale population that visit our shores off Bass Coast and Wilsons Promontory.

Humpback whales travel along our shores on their way north to warmer waters, for breeding and mating. The fact that they follow this route most years shows that these thoroughfares play a very important role in ensuring a safe journey year after year.

Whales seem to use the seafloor contours as well as prominent landmarks to help them navigate their way for thousands of kilometres. It is not a surprise that many whales we sight locally come in within one km from headlands such as Pyramid Rock and Cape Woolamai.

Jump on a whale cruise this winter to witness this incredible animal migration – don’t forget to bring your camera!

Thanks to Citizen Science Photographer Andrew Young for the fluke image.