PROJECT PAGE 100:

C: Organizing information
Name of animal
Size of animal

Habitat

Lifespan (Length of Life)

Geographic Range

Distance Traveled

Time of Migration
Reason for Migration

Description of the Migration

Other interesting Points

Humpback Whale
One of the larger rorqual species, adults
range in length from 1216 metres (39
52 ft) and weigh approximately 36,000
kilograms (79,000 lb).
North Pacific, Atlantic, and Southern
Ocean.
Humpback whales live at the surface of
the ocean, both in the open ocean and
shallow coastline waters. When not
migrating, they prefer shallow waters.
They migrate from warm tropical waters
where they breed and calve to arctic
waters where they eat.
Ranges from 45100 years.
There are 3 separate populations of
humpbacks, those living in the North
Pacific Ocean, those in the North Atlantic
Ocean, and those roving the oceans of
the Southern Hemisphere.
Humpbacks migrate at 3-9 mph (4.8-14
kph). They have incredible powers of
endurance, traveling over 3,100 miles
(5000 km) during each seasonal
migration with almost no rest along the
way. During migrations, they cover over
1,000 miles per month.
More than 4 months
They mate and calve in tropical waters
during the winter and then travel to cold
polar waters during the summer to feed.
During the summer in the warm waters,
adults do not eat, but live off their layer
of blubber (fat); the young calves feed
on rich mother's milk.
Humpback whales migrate from
Antarctica to the sub-tropical coastal
waters of western and eastern Australia
and Fiji to give birth and mate during
winter and spring.
A lone female humpback whale travelled

more than 9,800 kilometres from

breeding areas in Brazil to those in
Madagascar, setting a record for the
longest mammal migration ever
documented.
Humpback whales are known to have
some of the longest migration distances
of all mammals.