Some Humpback Whales Migrate 5,000 Miles

Humpback whales are among the great travelers of the animal world. NOAA Fisheries states that they have one of the longest migrations of any mammal on the planet, and that some populations swim 5,000 miles from tropical breeding grounds to colder, more productive feeding grounds. They can be quick about it. In the North Pacific, some humpbacks migrate from Alaska to Hawaii, and NOAA Fisheries says they can complete the 3,000 mile trip in as few as 28 days. At the feeding grounds, some groups hunt together using what is called bubble net feeding, in which curtains of air bubbles are used to condense prey before the whales lunge upward through the net. The name humpback comes from the distinctive hump on the whale’s back.