Until recently, it was believed that only 85% of the Atlantic humpback whales were born in Dominican waters and returned annually to mate and breed. But a recent study revealed that all populations of the Atlantic come to reproduce in our waters.
It's an amazing sight waiting for you every summer in the Samana Bay, humpback whales that come from the seas of Iceland, Greenland, Canada, and North America, who come to the Caribbean Sea to give birth and seek a mate in the hot water. From January to March, thousands remain in Samana Bay.
The show is impressive, when the 40-ton males jump up the water and fall down a few meters ahead. If it does not win any female reactions the male tries to attract them with a long and monotonous song that the whales can hear up to a radius of 30 kilometers. Only those who are diving can hear this song. After giving birth to their children, the whales prepare their return to the north. Since 1986 "Banco de Plata", Samana, has become a sanctuary for the protection of whales.
Samana is considered one of the best places in the world for humpback whale watching.
These beautiful and giant marine mammals, breathe air and come out regularly to the surface, remain in apnea for about 20 minutes, but can remain under water for up to 40 minutes. After the long trip they make and during which they do not feed, they spend part of the winter in the Bay of Samana, still without food. That way they will lose the fifth of their weight.
Whales come to give birth to their little ones because the whalebone, when born, has a very thin layer of fat to withstand the cold waters. At birth, it measures between 3.50 and 5 meters, and weighs a ton. To constitute a protective greasy layer and acquire enough forces to follow his mother on the return trip, will consume, daily, about 200 liters of breast milk that is very nutritious, the whale is going to take 45 kilos a day.
It's a thrill to watch the mother play with her offspring. In this regard, the whale only has a single small and this, every 2 years. Gestation duration is 11 to 12 months. Well, come to give birth to your baby to the place where he conceived it! Although it is rare, sometimes it happens that some of them are coupled during the same season as the birth.
