The Minke Whale: A Very Common Whale in New Brunswick's Bay of Fundy
Minke Whales are very common in the Bay of Fundy on the southern coast of New Brunswick, Canada. Minkes are not considered endangered like the North Atlantic Right Whale. In fact, they continue to be hunted in some areas of the world. Thanks to the Grand Manan Whale and Seabird Research Station personnel a new net has been designed to release these whales from entanglement in herring weirs without any loss of fish.
What’s in a name?Minkes were named after a Norwegian whale spotter named Meincke. These whales can be seen in the world's oceans from the Arctic to the Antarctic. They are not tracked as closely as others since there are so many of them. There are almost 800,000 of this species of whale worldwide. They are fast swimmers, capable of reaching 16-21 miles/hour.
Weight and size:The Minke is the smallest baleen whale. They usually weigh between 6 and 8 tonnes. The female is bigger than the males, as with most baleen whales, by about 2 feet for a total of 30 feet.
Special Features:All Minke whales have a white strip on each of its very long flippers, a white belly, a pointy triangular nose, one dorsal fin, and 2 blowholes. The spout of this whale is a very shallow since they start exhaling before they reach the surface minimizing the blow. Minkes do not have a dramatic tail fluke as they greatly arch their back just before they dive and the tails do not rise out of the water. Minkes are fast swimmers except for when they are eating.
Distinguishing one from another:It is next to imposssible to distinguish one from another unless one has a specific scar or marking.
What do they eat?Like the North Atlantic Right Whale, these whales are filter feeders. They use baleen to filter through the food at or near the surface of the water. Their diet consists of plankton, krill, and other small fish. Minke whales are commonly found near the surface of the ocean except for in polar seas. In Antarctic waters the minke is the bulk of the killer whales diet.Minke whales, just like the North Atlantic Right Whales, return to the warmer water to mate and bear their young.
New Brunswick Whale Watching Tours:New Brunswick offers Whale Watching tours departing from St. Andrews, Deer Island, Campobello Island and Grand Manan Island. We were on a whale watching tour called "Sea Watch Tours" from Grand Manan in late August and it was excellent!! The North Atlantic Right Whales were there and they put on quite a show! We liked it so much we went back the following year and took two other families with us.Return to Travel New Brunswick Canada Home Page from Minke Whale
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