Winter whale watching

Winter whale watching on the Peninsula

Winter on the Mornington Peninsula is the time of year that large whales arrive off our beautiful coastline, giving locals and visitors alike the opportunity to observe these magnificent animals.

Humpback whales begin to appear in our region from late May, with increased sighting reliability through June and July. What we are witnessing during this time is the northerly migration of this species as they make their way from Antarctic waters to their calving grounds off Queensland, a journey of about 6000km one way, which is one of nature’s longest migrations. Humpbacks are identified by their contrasting grey and white colouration; large, elongated pectoral fins; raised ‘bumps’ (tubercles) on the head; and characteristic high arch when diving. They are often quite acrobatic.

While humpbacks are the most regularly sighted whale species along the Peninsula, they are not the only large whale to occur in this region during winter; the critically endangered southern right whale also appears along our coastline at this time. Southern right whale numbers are extremely low in our part of the world. It is thought that fewer than 500 animals remain in the southeast Australian subpopulation, so as you may imagine sightings of this species are considered very special.

Unlike the humpback, southern right whales have mostly reached their migratory destination when they arrive in Victorian waters. They visit our coast for calving and mating, which mostly occurs in the west of the state but could potentially happen anywhere. In fact, a newborn calf was sighted close to shore off Cape Schanck in 2020. The southern right whale is distinguished by its large, black and robust appearance; its lack of a dorsal fin; its square pectoral fins; and white/yellow patches (callosities) on its head.

Due to its easy accessibility and reliability for sightings, the Peninsula is fast becoming a mecca for land-based whale watchers. The best places for whale watching in winter are any high vantage points on the Peninsula back beaches.

In recent years we have learnt much about whale movements through interacting with keen whale watchers – citizen scientists – along our coastline. If you’d like to contribute to the conservation and understanding of these magnificent animals, there are two ways you can do so:

• Report sightings of whales and dolphins to the Dolphin Research Institute's Two Bays

Whale Project through PodWatch at www. dolphinresearch.org.au/research/report-sightings/; and,

• Obey the Victorian marine mammal regulations and do not deliberately approach whales closer than 200m in boats, 300m on personal watercraft such as jetskis, or 30m if you’re swimming.

To learn more about whales and dolphins in our region, visit the Dolphin Research Institute website at www.dolphinresearch.org.au DAVID DONNELLY, research officer, Dolphin Research Institute

A humpback whale off Quarantine Station, Portsea. Photo: Dolphin Research Institute, taken under permit