Newfoundland Hunting

There is nothing like coming face to face with a humpback whale and you never get a better chance to meet that Newfoundland and Labrador. In fact, you can get up close and personal with not less than twenty-two species of mammals ocean in this region of Canada only. Muchmore Canada Magazine explores this beautiful place and details what you can expect to see on a travel.

Many of us have visited marine parks and whales and dolphins up close, such as orcas at Sea World, but there is no substitute for seeing these magnificent creatures in their natural habitat. We guess the whales feel much the same way too!

So what can you expect to see during the visit to Newfoundland and Labrador? Well, a lot depends on when you visit the course such as whales and other mammals are not residents in the year. Whales are usually seen between the months of May and September, if you're just in time to book this trip.

If you're one of those who has no sea legs and think that it's not worth going as you "will not go into that boat" think again. Whales are so common here and many that they can be tracked not only vessels at sea, but land as well. In fact you can even get into a kayak and paddle with them if you dare.

What species do I see?

As mentioned earlier, there are twenty-two species of mammals off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador. There are two types of whales, baleen and toothed. Baleen whales have baleen bristles like plates instead of teeth. Baleen is made of keratin, the same substance found in hair, nails and horns and whales are used to filter water and catch food. Toothed whales have a set of teeth they use to catch and eat food.

Humpback whale: The most common whale here is the humpback whale (pictured on our title page) and Newfoundland and Labrador has the largest population of humpback whales feeding in the world. Humpback whales spend the winter in the Caribbean and migrated to northern Newfoundland and Labrador coast in April and remain until October.

Humpbacks are baleen whales and adults can weigh 36,000 kg and measuring 12-15 meters long. Women tend to weigh more than men and are longer. Adults can eat two tons of fish and planktonic crustaceans every day. They feed during the summer, living off reserves in the winter months.

This species is known to fish using a bubble net feeding technique. This is a number of humpback whales encircle a school of fish while blowing bubbles. The circle grows ever tighter forcing the fish in a small area where the whales swim up suddenly in the catching thousands of fish in one bite.

Females give birth every two or three years and have a gestation period of 12 months. The calf weighs about a ton at birth and be 3-5 meters in length. They feed on their mother for the first year.

Humpback whales are known for their acrobatic skills and can be seen leaping out of water - known as knickers - and fell, hitting the water. They are also the star of more than one photo when they dive underwater increasing their flukes in the air, as shown on the side.

Individual whales can be distinguished by their flukes that each is unique. It is rare for whales make one of the most studied species.

Minke whales: These whales are characterized by a narrow, triangular shaped head and are one of the smallest baleen whales. They are very fast in the water reaching speeds 1.