(BIVN) – The final coordinated whale count of the 2024 season was held this weekend, observing a grand total of 855 humpbacks across the main Hawaiian islands.  

Volunteers who participated in the Sanctuary Ocean Count and Great Whale Count observed koholā – or humpback whales – from Kaua‘i, O‘ahu, Molokaʻi, Hawai‘i, Lānaʻi and Maui. 

From a NOAA Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary news release:

424 volunteers gathered data from the shores of Kaua‘i, O‘ahu, Molokaʻi and Hawai‘i islands during the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary Ocean Count and from Maui and Lānaʻi during the Great Whale Count by Pacific Whale Foundation, the last of three coordinated whale counts between the two organizations in 2024.

This is the sixth year that both counts are coordinated on the same days, ensuring the data from all the main Hawaiian Islands are collected simultaneously.

Whale count in Hawaiian Paradise Park in Puna, photo by George Correa via NOAA

Volunteers collected data from 46 sites across all the main Hawaiian Islands on March 30. A total of 143 whales were observed during the 8:30 – 8:45 am time period, the most of any time period throughout the day’s count.

On the islands of Kaua‘i, O‘ahu, Molokaʻi and Hawai‘i, Ocean Count volunteers collected data from 34 sites; a total of 76 whales were observed during the 8:30 – 8:45 am time period, the most of any time period throughout the day’s count.

On Maui and Lānaʻi, Great Whale Count volunteers collected data from 12 sites during 15-minute intervals between 8:30 am and 11:50 am. A total of 72 whales were observed during the 11:30 – 11:45 am time period, the most of any time period throughout the day’s count.

Whale count at Keauhou Lookout in Kona, photo by Fern Gavelek via NOAA

On Kaua‘i, the total number of whales observed during the day’s count was 74, on O‘ahu, the total was 282, on Molokaʻi, the total was 28 and Hawai‘i 84. The total number for the Great Whale Count on Maui was 367, and on Lānaʻi was 20, for a grand total of 855 throughout the state. This number may represent duplicate sightings of the same whale by different observers or at different time periods or different locations throughout the day.

Data collected during the Sanctuary Ocean Count and Great Whale Count combined with other research efforts can help reveal trends in humpback whale occurrence within and amongst whale seasons.

Across the main Hawaiian Islands, weather conditions varied by island with either mostly sunny or cloudy conditions. Several sites did experience rain, small to medium swells and windy conditions which were not ideal for observing koholā. A few sites on Kauaʻi had to cancel or end the count early due to poor visibility and weather conditions. A variety of other species were also spotted during the count including honu (green sea turtles), ʻilioholoikauaua (Hawaiian monk seals), naiʻa (spinner dolphins), and multiple bird species such as ʻiwa (great frigatebird), mōlī (Laysan albatross), ʻuaʻu kani (wedge-tailed shearwater), manu-o-kū (white tern), ʻā (brown booby) and more.

Whale count at Onekahakaha Beach Park in the Keaukaha area of Hilo, photo by Cindy Among-Serrao, NOAA

Participants reported weather conditions “were not ideal for viewing whales with poor visibility across many sites due to rain, high surf and windy conditions,” the NOAA news release added. 

NOAA says:

Ocean Count promotes public awareness about humpback whales, Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary, and shore-based whale watching opportunities. Site leaders tally humpback whale sightings and document the animals’ surface behavior during the survey, which provides a snapshot of humpback whales’ activity from the shorelines of Kaua‘i, Oʻahu, Molokaʻi and Hawai‘i islands. Ocean Count is supported by the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation.

The Great Whale Count by Pacific Whale Foundation had site leaders count whales from shore as part of a long-term survey of humpback whales in Hawaiʻi, with 12 survey sites along the shoreline of Maui and a new site on the shoreline of Lānaʻi. This event provides a snapshot of trends in relative abundance of whales and is one of the world’s longest-running community science projects.

Both counts take place three times during peak whale season annually on the last Saturday in January, February, and March.