FIRST WHALES OF THE SEASON HAVE BEEN SIGHTED IN THE WHITSUNDAYS WHALE PROTECTION AREA

The first humpback whales of the season were sighted on Friday, breaching between Penitecost Island and Suprise Rock, just south of Whitsunday and Hamilton Islands

It’s exciting and we are privileged to have them visit our waters to court, mate, give birth and rear their calves.  This is why the Whitsundays are a Whale Heritage Area.

The whales have to rely on their energy reserves until they return to their feeding ground in the Antarctic. Mothers will already loose a third of their body weight producing milk, feeding and protecting their calf.  If they loose too much weight by not resting enough, both the health of the mother and calf can be compromised.
It’s important to their continued survival that their ‘nurseries’ are free from any harassment.

Everyone using the waters of the Marine Park, have a responsibility to help protect whales and dolphins and to keep safe distances from them.

Interactions are on the whales terms and it’s possible to have amazing experiences still following the regulations.

Anywhere in the GREAT BARRIER REEF MARINE PARK
🐋Prohibited vessels (i.e. jetskis, parasails, hovercraft, hydrofoils, wing-in-ground effect craft and motorised diving aids such as underwater scooters) must not approach closer than ‘300 metres’ to a whale or dolphin.
🐋No vessels can approach within 300 metres of a calf.
🐋Whales and dolphins must not be approached within 30 degrees in front or behind.

When in the WHITSUNDAY WHALE PROTECTION AREA there are some additional rules in relation to whales.

The boundary of the WHALE PROTECTION AREA is the dashed line, which has been highlighted in yellow on the zoning map, or the darker blue area on the other map.

🐋A vessel must not approach closer than ‘300 metres’ to a whale.
🐋Negligible wake within ‘500 metres’ to a whale.
🐋A helicopter must not approach below 2000 feet or within 1000 metres of a whale.

If you are unsure of the Whale Protection Area boundary, please pick up a zoning map from a Marina office.

If you see anyone doing the wrong thing please take photos of the vessel and registration, and report all Marine Park regulation offences to 1800 380 048
or via the Reef Authority website by completing an incident report form:
https://www2.gbrmpa.gov.au/help/report-an-incident

To find out more about special whale events and information on whales in the Whitsundays, join the WHALES OF THE WHITSUNDAYS Facebook page; or go to https://www.whitsundaymarine.org/projects

Contributed by Kellie Leonard, Master Reef Guide/Whales of the Whitsundays

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