Marine Research, Education and Conservation
Spring 2025:
We have kicked off our 2025 research season. The number of whales in January seemed greater than usual, so we started our scan sample data collection early, and we are extending it further into the season to better sample whale numbers in our changing world. We also deployed the soundtrap ST600 in early December 2024, to capture the early portion of the singing season. Finally, our newly donated "SeaLegs" vessel continues to take us out to collect fluke photographs and boat-based recordings.
Summer 2024:
Just before Labor Day, an article appeared in Nature describing Chris Gabriele's career with HMMC and the National Park Service. It is a wonderful read. We are proud of Chris and happy to share the article with you. July has been a surprisingly eventful month for "non-whale" season. We just learned that our recent paper on Kawaihae bay humpback numbers was one of the 10 most cited papers in the scientific journal Marine Mammal Science. Then, a spearfisherman reported and photographed a humpback whale off O'ahu . A similar unusual sighting was made in July 2023, off of Kona. A fluke photograph of that whale was sumitted to happywhale , but no match has been found. In June we successfully recovered the SoundTrap acoustic recorder. It was filled with data of the soundscape of Kawaihae Bay. This effort was part of the National Marine Sanctuary's underwater sound monitoring program.
Spring 2024:
We have completed our 23rd research season, and what a season it was! The whales arrived a bit early and numbers remained high through late March. In our shore-based scans, we documented the highest whale counts since 2010, with one record high count of 48 whales in 30 minutes. There were also very high numbers of mothers and calves.
Our new research vessel allowed us to get out on the water in conditions that would have kept our older boat on the trailer. Thanks again to our generous benefactor. We were able to get good fluke identification photos of over 200 individuals and documented about 30 different mother calf pairs. All very encouraging news. These numbers would be even higher if not for the sustained gusty trade winds in February and March. Another highlight was our two-week field stint in March with Annie Lewandowski and Katy Payne from Cornell University and Michelle Fournet from the University of New Hampshire. Their work recording humpback whale song was funded by the Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability. Alia Payne, Katy's granddaughter, hopes to make a film about Katy featuring some of the fieldwork we did this winter. Happy spring everyone, stay tuned for more results in our forthcoming newsletter.
All of the HMMC people and equipment are safe after the recent wildfires in Hawai'i. The fire burned to the edge of the neighborhood where Chris and Adam live. It was a scary time but we are all safe. The fire swept over our shore station, burning all the grasses, but the kiawe tree at the top appears to have survived.
Donations to support our friends and neighbors on Maui can be made at Maui Strong, among other organizations
Our 2023 Newsletter is now available
HMMC has published an article describing 19 years of shore counts in Marine Mammal Science. It describes the rise in local humpback numbers over time and the sudden drop in 2016. The paper discusses how warmer waters in Alaska leads to lower humpback whales numbers in Hawai'i.
HMMC's own Yin, aka Suzanne Yin, has been named to the inaugural class of Society for Marine Mammalogy Fellows for her consistent collection of high quality cetacean abundance and behavior data. We are so proud of her!
News and Publications
Education and Outreach
Presentations to Students
Local Public Talks
Professional Presentations
Pu‘ukoholā Sharks
Mike Hoffhines was part of the University of Hawai‘i Whale Research Project in the 1990's. While he was a Computer Engineer by trade, he remained interested in marine mammals and frequently returned to help HMMC in the field collecting data. He was always a shining light and a talented scientist. Sadly, we lost Mike to cancer in 2013. We all miss him, his humor, and his love for the ocean and its inhabitants
Hawai'i Marine Mammal Consortium
P.O. Box 6107
Kamuela, HI 96743
info@hmmc.org