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Headline: British Wildlife Photographer Captures Spectacle Of Whale Bubble-Net Feeding

Caption: A British wildlife photographer captured the amazing spectacle of whale bubble net feeding this month (July). Paul Goldstein shot a large pod of Humpback whales circling a school of fish in Alaska while spending an astonishing continual 14 hours observing them. The Wimbledon-based guide for Exodus Travels (www.exodus.co.uk) explains: “'Bubble net feeding is a defining sight in maritime nature, something I have only witnessed very briefly, this was something completely out of the ordinary. “As the group circles a school of small fish such as salmon, krill, or herring they use a team effort to disorient and corral the fish into a net of bubbles. “These 30 ton pelagics can breach out of the ocean with just three flicks of their not inconsiderable tails, no-one really knows why they do it, it could be just because they can. Bubble-netting however requires teamwork to finesse a bait-ball of herring to the surface before rising as one to run the silvery quarry through their sieve-like baleens. To see a handful doing this is a thrill, but a dozen, continually over two days, was extraordinary and for a bunch of photographers pretty close to the maritime grail. “The wheezy trumpeting lament, the guttural percussion of the blow and the almost balletic-qualities of their fins and flukes is both evocative and moving.” Paul was guiding a dozen experienced photographers on a small yacht in South East Alaska with his friend and skipper Jonas Fineman. Jonas says: “Two years ago, Paul and I hauled up a halibut during the proceedings as there was so much food in the water, but this was the most extensive and indeed close-up ‘netting’ I have ever seen, and a small quiet yacht just amplifies the thrill.” Paul adds: "Jonas is right. I have been guiding for many, many years but these two days are right up there with the very best. If these huge mammals had been abandoned to the whalers they would all be gone by now.” Paul guides photo expeditions all over the world for Exodus travels (www.exodus.co.uk).

Keywords: Science

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