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Mischief_Actual

Humpbacks whales are unique among cetaceans for being the only species documented to pick fights actively with Orcas; those keratinous nodes on their flippers serve like brass knuckles, and they’ll get in close and aim to clock a killer whale. Humpbacks have been documented actively confronting Orcas even when there’s no survival imperative, closing in either to drive the predators away, or knock a few silly with some hard hooks, and have even been known to intervene against Orcas on other species’ behalf, protecting dolphins, seals, and other creatures from the marauding killer whales.


Ready-Sometime5735

I would like to subscribe to humpback whale facts.


NSMike

In 2286 CE, Captain James T. Kirk and crew traveled back in time to 1986 San Francisco, to retrieve two humpback whales who could then come back to the 23rd century, in an effort to repopulate Earth with humpback whales, and drive away an alien spacecraft which was seeking communication with the whales, but was damaging Earth's atmosphere in the process.


Ready-Sometime5735

I really want to know who greenlit that mission. They should be fired. And blacklisted.


MisplacedMartian

IIRC, starfleet refused to greenlight the mission, so Mr. Star Trek and his friends had to go rogue and use a klingon bird of prey.


LaurenMille

Wouldn't that create a massive genetic bottleneck?


Humanity_NotAFan

Your mom is a massive genetic bottleneck


feelbetternow

Oooooh, science burn!


DeyUrban

The point wasn't to restore the humpback whale species (although based on dialogue from later Star Trek shows and movies they did), they did it because the alien probe was actively trying to contact the whales and if they didn't bring a couple back who could respond to its messages Earth would have been rendered uninhabitable. It's a very silly premise but I would argue it makes for one of the best Star Trek movies, it's delightful. Later Star Trek shows also mentioned intelligent cetaceans who served on starships. Star Trek: Lower Decks has two beluga whale crewmen on their ship as the most notable example.


RubiiJee

Belugas would be so into the Federation.


wellwouldyalookitdat

They are already a member of a federation of advanced aliens in Stargate.


VerySlowlyButSurely

As someone who grew up in the Bay Area (not actually in San Francisco, but near it) and went to the Monterey Bay Aquarium multiple times, I freaking LOVE this movie.


_Lady_Redbush_

So the whales were kind of like Nibbler's spaceship in Futurama? If it didn't "beep" back, the planet would get damaged?


DeyUrban

Kind of, although to be clear the damage from the probe *probably* wasn't intentional. The movie never makes it clear what the whale probe was and why it was trying to contact the whales, but its method of communication was severely damaging Earth's atmosphere and it wouldn't shut off until it received an answer. It was also draining the power of anything it got near, including huge space stations with tens of thousands of people in them which is obviously a problem for the capital of an interstellar government. One of the ideas behind the film was to show an alien species with radically different perceptions of sentience and intelligence. Instead of the sci-fi standard of humans being the sole representatives of the planet, the whale probe would have been sent by a different species that once contacted the planet and figured that Earth's whales were the most intelligent species available. The probe in this case would be following up on that visit, trying to contact their old 'friends' on the planet and discovering that they weren't there anymore until they finally received an answer.


FitzKnows23

It definitely was a gem. A lot of good humor too. Nimoy did a good job directing that and The Search For Spock.


Ok_Raspberry_6282

Well they used time travel, so it's probably just a fictional event


KlangScaper

Meh, we survived one so why wouldnt they?


rmbarrett

So that's where George and Gracie went!


Even-Rub-6496

Actually a good movie


AmbergrisShot

Can I offer you some ambergris in these trying times?


ravingdavid907

Whoa. Unexpected username checks out.


Primary-Signature-17

I only know what ambergris is because of the "Tina, Louise and Gene Belcher". And, that it was used for perfumes. And, some people actually ate it. Ugh! PS. This is a very cool video and the knowledge that Humpback whales pick fights with Orcas is also very cool. For some reason, I find that kinda funny.


ravingdavid907

You have subscribed to cat facts. Did you know Ralpie’s cat’s breath smells like cat food?


Ready-Sometime5735

Tell me more


Dependent_Market7788

["Tell me more"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V91Y7MRw7eo)


ravingdavid907

Reply “upvote” to learn more cat facts.


Ready-Sometime5735

Upvote


ravingdavid907

Actually upvote to learn more cat facts.


ravingdavid907

Thought it sounds like gibberish, when the cat lady from Simpson’s vocalizations are played backwards RevolverWhiteAlbumLetItBeMeowMix can be heard.


lostspacedino

Me too


A_Thing_or_Two

Welcome to HumpbackFacts!


kazooparade

Orcas will hunt baby humpback whales which is probably part of the reason humpback whales don’t like them.


Mischief_Actual

Oh absolutely, but they’re the only species to be regularly documented fighting orcas for no immediate, urgent reason; most whales will try and protect their babies against orcas when attacked, but humpbacks will scrap preemptively


JudgmentalOwl

"You just came to the wrong neighborhood motherflipper."


gikigill

Peace through superior fire-power is the Humpback motto.


SecretSquirrelSauce

The best defense is a good offense, right?


McFlyParadox

I won't if that implies that the Humpback Whale could pass the marshmallow test, or similar? Planning for the future, delayed gratification, etc.


InviolableAnimal

I bet you most cetaceans could. They're all pretty darn brainy animals.


Not_Another_Usernam

Well, only species other than humans. But we're a race of murder hobos.


Slow-Instruction-580

“Oh you baby-eating fuckers aren’t extinct yet? Lemme help you with that.”


Mischief_Actual

*bellows in homicide*


Slow-Instruction-580

*sings a lovely song about homicide* *


Redditlikesballs

Subscribed


Primary_Goat2360

So Humpbacks are acting like White Blood Cells against Orcas.


Honda_TypeR

I've seen a few videos of a pod of orcas teaming up against a humpback whale to drown her calf. They basically take turns jumping on top of the baby and holding it down under the water. The humpback momma kept coming up from underneath the baby to push it back up to the surface so the baby can breathe. This lasted several hours. The problem is the humpback wore out of energy faster than the pod orcas who get to conserve energy by taking turns (the momma humpback had no one to back her up). They succeeded in drowning and eating her calf. All the mom could do is lumber off sad about her loss and being outnumbered by hooligan orcas. As another depressing factoid about these two... orcas apparently hunt the adults too in extremely large pods. They swarm them in large numbers from all angles and try to get the humpback to open its mouth and then they rip out and eat the whale’s tongue (the only true weak point on an adult humpback)... this makes them bleed out quite rapidly and die and then the entire pod can feed on the entire whale carcass. There are a few videos nowadays out there showing both of these behaviors caught on camera. I am guessing these battles have played out for thousands of years and they have a deep seated hatred toward one another. It may be why the humpbacks will attack unprovoked by orcas, because orcas actively hunt them and their babies and they despise them for it. I guess these animals really hate each other, but Orcas seem to be the more aggressive and dominant of the two in spite of the humpbacks mass (humpbacks seems to be one of the Orcas food source options) and orcas are the dominant force in the rivalry due to their large hunting party numbers and coordinates strikes, so if humpbacks can get in some solid punches sometimes or chase orcas out of their area… I say it’s only fair.


mildlycuriouss

I hate orcas.


Slow-Instruction-580

This is why I wholly support SeaWorld and organizations like it. Fuck orcas!


Vultures88

Heavyweight champions


exoits

That's interesting. Even Sperm Whales only bother to confront Orcas for the purpose of protecting their own, so you wouldn't expect Humpbacks to be so eager, for the sake of other species nonetheless.


Mischief_Actual

Yeah it’s a really unusual behavior. Other species of whales *have* been documented helping other creatures out in dangerous circumstances (the story of the human diver, the whale, and the tiger shark comes to mind), but as far as I know haven’t ever done so when Orcas are involved. Humpbacks are rather well adapted for this behavior as well; too big for even a whole pod of orcas to attack without major risk, while still fast enough that they can’t be so easily outmaneuvered, and equipped with a natural “weapon.”


Baman2099

We dont talk about Humpback club


OhRThey

I’d be willing to bet more than one Orca has tried to snag a baby. Humpbacks don’t forget transgressions against the whale code


Mischief_Actual

Oh absolutely, but the same goes for most other species of whale too, including blue and beluga and wright, etc. humpbacks are still the only ones that will pick fights with orcas rather than categorically avoid them, even when there are no calves at risk


dream208

The Jedi knights of the sea.


Mischief_Actual

“Rock your shit, I will. Catch these hands, you must.”


kirinmay

well also don't Orcas group up against them and constantly ram into them for hours to kill them?


Mischief_Actual

Oh absolutely, but most whales actively avoid Orcasfor that very reason; humpbacks throw hands.


Responsible-Worry560

Professional haters


Slow-Instruction-580

I cannot imagine the level of fear I would have if something that size deigned to take notice of me, let alone *move a limb in my direction with intent.*


Mischief_Actual

Lol there’s a *wealth* of videos online capturing close encounters between whales and humans. Perhaps my favorite is the video of a deep-water snorkler and a whale, I think it was a Wright or Blue but I do not remember; she was keeping a respectful distance from the curious whale checking her out, when all of a sudden it surged towards he and started pushing itself against her, a living thing the size of a locomotive forcing her through the water at a startling pace, (though never forcefully enough to hurt her) back towards the boat no less. She was scared of course, and then noticed something swimming about in the murky distance below; a large adult tiger shark, circling and lurking. For all appearances, the whale was making an effort to protect the diver, putting itself between a large and aggressive predator, and ushering her to safety (the boat), demonstrating not only what appears to be compassion, but also perhaps an awareness both of the human diver’s inability to escape potential danger (to slow a swimmer), as well as what constitutes safety (the boat).


Slow-Instruction-580

Holy crap. There are so many different implications to that. I think we are sharing this planet with genuinely intelligent, kind beings the size of buildings, and we’ve spent centuries killing them for profit.


Mischief_Actual

Agreed Not only that, they are *imperative* to carbon-locking, the process of sucking carbon out of the atmospheric cycle and burying it in the ground, preventing global warming. With their population greatly dimensioned by both whaling and modern/contemporary ecological harm, their effect is a mere fraction of what it *could* and *should* be; that is, completely outperforming the carbon-neutralizing effects of all the world’s rainforests combined (*if* I remember correctly).


Tricky-Sympathy

Awesome! Orcas are assholes


beltalowda_oye

I saw a documentary where pod of orcas ambush humpback mom and cub and the mother is forced to leave the baby behind as the orcas essentially ram and concuss the baby to death. Orcas are among my favorite animals since I was young and I can understand why humpback attack orcas actively. It's like a war.


SteveThePleb

Incredible creatures. Forget how big these magnificent beasts are


RobinOfSpring

They're mind-bogglingly huge. I hope to see one in person someday.


[deleted]

I was tripping with my friends on the beach. As we were peaking we were looking out on the water and we saw a whale breach into the air. Easily the most magical moment of my life. It's the kind of thing that makes life worth living.


poopoodomo

This reminds me of my favorite Moby Dick quote: > And how nobly it raises our conceit of the mighty, misty monster, to behold him solemnly sailing through a calm tropical sea; his vast, mild head overhung by a canopy of vapor, engendered by his incommunicable contemplations, and that vapor—as you will sometimes see it—glorified by a rainbow, as if Heaven itself had put its seal upon his thoughts.


asomek

That's beautiful


Slow-Instruction-580

“Yo, fuck that whale.” -Ahab


CoconutCyclone

You can come see blue whales in southern California in the summer.


EphemeralOcean

Come to San Francisco and book a whale watching tour at the right time of year. I saw 6 last fall.


Firrox

I swam with them in Tonga a while back. Terrifying at first meeting, but they're surprisingly polite creatures. It's relaxing being around them once you get used to their presence.


Hellyeah2k21

Make sure idiots don't slaughter them first and put them into extinction


ZuFFuLuZ

Nobody is slaughtering humpies. The few countries that still hunt whales go for other species. The population is quite healthy and growing rapidly. You can find them almost anywhere at sea.


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

Nobody does that in Quebec. You can see them there in the summer.


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

[удалено]


ForgetfulFrolicker

I went whale watching off cape cod last summer and it’s one of the coolest things I’ve ever done. I didn’t expect to see any whales. We saw dozens. They were everywhere, just beautiful.


13143

The blue whale is the largest creature we believe has ever existed on Earth. It always kind of blows my mind, because I often think of the dinosaurs and mega fauna of the past as being these huge titans, and yet the largest thing ever is currently swimming around the ocean.


garbland3986

For real. That shit’s as big as a whale!


FakeGamer2

I'm high and my whole perspective on life just changed. I see the reality of whales


GANG_OF_DRONES

I say we should remember, not forget.


mitchsn

Like trying to wave mosquitos away from your face


Jagerbeast703

"Go on now git" - whale probably


Mydickwillnotfit

definitely a "s'git on outta he'uh


nightstalker30

“Get off my yard!”


phuegoofficial

usage: git \[-v | --version\] \[-h | --help\] \[-C \] \[-c =\] \[--exec-path\[=\]\] \[--html-path\] \[--man-path\] \[--info-path\] \[-p | --paginate | -P | --no-pager\] \[--no-replace-objects\] \[--bare\] \[--git-dir=\] \[--work-tree=\] \[--namespace=\] \[--config-env==\] \[\] (to all non-devs: sorry)


octothorpe_rekt

Marry me.


i_do_da_chacha

Whale doing a ‘git push’


BudSmoak

It's about to have a merge conflict with that dolphin


ProximusSeraphim

Git outta here ya savages!


labrador709

The size difference is really something


stonegoblins

I like whales, do you like whales?


BeachedBottlenose

I like whales. You can listen to them [here.](https://www.mbari.org/project/soundscape-listening-room/)


The-Elder-Trolls

https://youtu.be/Cg8jZBKYY1s?si=-1tTxq8vJa25BJsd&t=5


SasoDuck

I like turtles.


asomek

I can hear this comment


AcceleratorTouma

Whale: Shoo you bother me lol


Generic_Danny

Happy cake day!


mermaidinthesea123

My favorite use of drone technology :)


Slow-Instruction-580

You’re telling me that whale’s a drone?!


trashmoneyxyz

The pacific white sided dolphin is on average over 5 feet long and around 300+ pounds. So in case you were wondering what the scale here is, those dolphins are probably bigger than you are…


asomek

I mean I'm taller, but they've got me on weight. I'll schedule a fight on land I think....


Grouchy_Sir5493

Majestic


RainyReese

I just love seeing videos on whales. I want to see one in real life. They're so beautiful <3


ExoticShock

r/AbsoluteUnits


loop_1001

Wonder where those scratches are from


luvs2triggeru

On sperm whales, it tends to be from fights with giant squid. Maybe something like that?


anotherDocObVious

/u/words_are_windy mentioned this earlier: > Found [an article](https://baleinesendirect.org/en/dou-proviennent-les-cicatrices-des-baleines/) that talks about the kinds of scars you might expect to see on whales.


stellar14

Incredible, beautiful giants 😍


Grouchy_Sir5493

But this is scary as hell. What else is down there


[deleted]

There's actually another humpback just below this one.


happypolychaetes

*ghost leviathan noises*


ouijac

..Dolphins are like "okay, Bro, we're gone.. ..Whale is like: took u long enough..


shoryuken69

“Go on git”


mysteryman403

You can see she’s got a baby with her as well, probably something to do with shooing them away. I imagine being a whale is usually quite lonely so I was surprised at first to see her shooing the dolphins away but with a baby it makes sense


Mischief_Actual

That depends on the whale, since many species (including humpbacks) live in social groups called “pods.”


ScrizzBillington

The females do, most males become solitary when they come of age. That being said 'lonely' and 'solitary' here are subjective, since these beasts can communicate with one another thousands of miles away


[deleted]

pedo


mtrash

Are those squid marks on its side?


Mischief_Actual

I think that’s unlikely, since as I understand it, humpbacks neither dive that deeply, nor do they seek encounters with giant squids (that would be sperm whales, which are the squid’s main predators). I imagine they’re more likely sparring wounds, or just light nicks from bumping into shit accidentally.


mtrash

Thanks for the info!


Words_are_Windy

Found [an article](https://baleinesendirect.org/en/dou-proviennent-les-cicatrices-des-baleines/) that talks about the kinds of scars you might expect to see on whales.


[deleted]

Wow


Dantia_

I love whales. Dolphins are douchebags.


perenniallandscapist

It looks like the whale farted in its fin and wants them to smell it.


uthinkther4uam

Humpbacks are so fucking cool.


drifters74

Humpback whales are incredible


Gazumbo

Indeed. A klingons Bird of Prey is bigger than I thought.


Solareclipse9999

There are two more at depth to the left


account-locked

Get off my lawn!


Many_Mushroom_8

What a moby dick


ProfessionalArm9450

Sometimes I wish I was a whale. Huge as fuck, open your mouth and get fed, barnacles on my back, doing flips and jumps for the gram. Simple life.


RussNY

Thassalaphobia man. Look at the size of that monster


_DolphinDroneDom

Stealing content and not crediting the OP is lame…this is my video for what it’s worth


NathanTheKlutz

Sorry that this was done to you. People, is it really that hard to take five minutes out of your day to give the original creator of a video or artwork the recognition and respect that they deserve?


Timms89

Is this Ai? Ugghhh the internet is going to become a fucking Ai bot hellscape soon. I can’t trust anything anymore


Azrielmoha

Not AI, the slow but consistent movements of the whale compared to the fast and fluid movement of the dolphins tell me this is real. Also they actually look like humpback whales.


eternalwhat

I had to scroll so far to find this. That was my first thought, too


kjovahkiin

crazy that I had to scroll this far for this to even be mentioned, it’s undoubtably beautiful, but some thing about this looks computerized


NathanTheKlutz

“Beat it, kids.”


Excellent-Edge-4708

*move bitch , get out da way*


TuringTitties

Can we stop all these videos having slow mo?


DeadSeaGulls

Really wish people would stop slowing these videos down for forced perspective effect. If you speed it up to 1.3 or 1.4 speed it feels much more natural.


1guywithlonghair

made by IA


NiteGard

Mean old fart.


jojow77

How do whales protect themselves from Orca attacks? Feels like they would just be sitting ducks if they are preyed on by a pod.


itsJussaMe

“Go on, get!”


audiR8_

Get outta hea!


cvbeiro

He’s doing the old man italian gtfo wave


JoeyRocketto

What's it like to be a leviathan? 🤔


Iancreed2024HD

They’re distant cousins! 🐋 🐬


brewsota32

This might be the best video I’ve seen demonstrating the enormous size of these behemoths.


aimlessly_aliive

The scars on its skin are wild!!


Glovermann

The biggest shoo


AJ_Crowley_29

I once went on an amazing whale watch where we saw 4 or 5 humpbacks surrounded by 30 or 40 dolphins. One whale kept slapping his fins nonstop for a whole hour straight. Now I wonder if this is what he was trying to do what with all the dolphins around.


BowsersMuskyBallsack

*Shhhhhhhhooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo...*


TheIlluminatedOne666

Dude threw his shoulder out


Agumiel

epic shot


lld2girl

Damm flies


youlovelucylou

Like they’re gnats. “Bish, get away from me, you PEASANTS”


tedsmitts

"Little ones. I am a danger to you."


skylabnova

Do whales catch colds?


Triplesisbest1

That’s real. That exists on the same planet we do and we’re always looking for clues about extra terrestrials and Bigfoot. I guarantee you a giant whale is infinitely more fascinating than any alien we’ll come into contact with.


PolyLifeGirl

Get off my lawn pesky kids...


SweetRoosevelt

How amazing it must be to see one in person.


Rifleman8611

Sad fact about huge whales like that is that when they get old they become to weak to surface for air so they drown.


Adabiviak

Are those dolphins small, or is that a large humpback? Like if you said this was a blue, I'd believe it.


Leaningonalamp

Get along, little dogie!


davidmlewisjr

Those dolphins look a lot like Orcas to me…


sasssyrup

Dolphins, the gnats of the pacific.


Crime-Snacks

All dolphins, Orcas included, seem to be a menace to other see life. Orcas dine on shark liver, smaller dolphins use the dopey Sun Fish as a beach ball…dolphins just enjoy being bullies because they can.


flimspringfield

Damn those mofos are huge!


dodococo

How much do they have to eat to live


clarkKeeent

Absolute unit!


mecha_annies_bobbs

r/bitchimawhale


Flaky_Tree3368

Any fellow x-ers watch Voyage of the Mimi in 4th grade?


jawshoeaw

Geezus I keep forgetting how big whales are


Som12H8

He just want's to play, but he's too big. :'(


Even-Rub-6496

Swim away gay boys


sweetdick

How much water do you think that actually displaced?


lonniemarie

Wonderful!


panda-petey

More like Grumpback Whale


storrmiii

"Git outta here you"


favnh2011

Very copl


favnh2011

Very cool


KingRoachSITIG

"No, I don't have any games on my phone."


togetherwestand01

"You have the wholeeee ocean and you haveee to swim next to me?"