What is a Humpback Whale?
The humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae is a large baleen whale noted for its mysterious song. Humpbacks are found in most of Earth’s oceans and seas, and are occasionally objects of legends or worship. There are believed to be about 75,000 humpback whales alive, but populations have never fully recovered from large-scale whaling industries of the 17th-20th centuries. Humpbacks are distinguishable by their characteristic long dorsal fin that forms the hump on their back for which they are named. They are mostly black, but may have white patterns on their underside, fins and tail fluke. The distinctive patterns of color and ridges on their flukes are used for identification photographs, as no two humpback tails are exactly alike.
