Minke Whale In Plymouth Bay

We went on an ice cream cruise on Plymouth Bay, but it turned into a whale watch as a pair of Minke Whales made a rare, close-to-shore appearance.

Minke Whales get their name from a Norwegian whaler named Meincke. It rhymes with "stinky," not "mink." They go 25 feet or so in length, with really big ones getting up to 35 feet.  Average weight is 5 tons, but they can hit 10 tons if they eat well. They can hit 25 mph swimming, and typically dive for 1-20 minutes. They feed on krill, but will also eat cod if one swims by. 

They are fairly common, and are often targeted by New England whale watches. The 20 minute dive times earn them the wrath of whale watch captains, who call them the "Stinky Minke." They often end up in harbors when evading predators (typically orcas), although ours was more business casual. My people tell me that he has been chillin' off Duxbury Beach.

You can see him pop out of the water for a sec in the video below.

Photos and video by Teresa Neves and Stephen Bowden.