Humpback whales: Motivational leapers
Photo by Bryant Austin by Carolyn Kraft If you have been feeling down or have lost touch with the fun side of life, then it’s time to purchase a ticket to see the famous motivational speakers, I mean the famous motivational leapers – the humpback whales. They are the ocean’s merriment masters, thrill seekers and acrobatic all-stars. Humpback whales or Megaptera novaeangliae are easy to spot with their flair for fun, their characteristic bright white coloring along the pectoral fins and flukes, offset by deep navy blue-black on their bodies and their extra-long flippers (aka pectoral fins). According to the Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals, the flippers average “one-third the length of the body” and inspired the first part of the humpback’s scientific name Megaptera, which is Greek for big wing. “With their ‘stovebolt’ bumps and record long pectoral fins, humpback whales are quite distinctive looking and are rarely confused with any other species of cetacean,” said Bernardo Alps, president of the American Cetacean Society’s Los Angeles Chapter (ACS/LA). “The coloration is also highly variable from all black to almost half white. Southern hemisphere populations tend to have more white…
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