AHUKINI — Allie Lindow of Wailua was getting worried Saturday during the Ocean Count. “It’s almost the end of the 15-minute count period and we haven’t seen anything,” Lindow said. “There were a lot this morning when we started, but
AHUKINI — Allie Lindow of Wailua was getting worried Saturday during the Ocean Count.
“It’s almost the end of the 15-minute count period and we haven’t seen anything,” Lindow said. “There were a lot this morning when we started, but now, it’s quiet.”
As if reading her mind, the whales appeared with less than two minutes remaining in the count period, blowing in the distance.
“They’re out there,” said Marga Goosen, the Ahukini Landing site leader for the annual event coordinated by the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary. “It’s just that we can’t see them even if we have perfect weather for viewing.”
Jean Nishida Souza, the Kauai Programs coordinator and Sanctuary volunteer coordinator, said the 124 volunteers who participated in the count on Kauai experienced good to excellent whale viewing conditions, and the state Department of Transportation Highways crew did a great job whacking the tall weeds at the Lumahai Lookout, enabling that site to be used.
“The average number of humpback whales sighted on Kauai during a 15-minute count period was three, compared to six a month ago during the January count,” Nishida Souza said. “The sites where the most whales were sighted included Crater Hill within the Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuse, the Kapaa Overlook and Mahaulepu- Makawehi Point, where they reported seeing an average of five whales per 15-minute period. Most of the behaviors noted were blows and dives.”
She said other species observed included seabirds, spinner and bottlenose dolphins, and sea turtles.
Colleen Ogino, a volunteer at the Ahukini Landing site, was in the process of ascertaining the identity of a larger seabird skimming the surface when the call of “There’s one!” interrupted her.
Cindy Among-Serrao, project coordinator, said more than 661 volunteers gathered data from the shores of Oahu, Kauai and the Big Island during Saturday’s second event of the 2016 Sanctuary Ocean Count.
“Our Sanctuary Ocean Count project is highly dependent and successful due to our dedicated volunteers,” Among-Serrao said. “With their help, we are able to increase public awareness of humpback whales in the Hawaiian Islands, and they all have a ‘whale of a time!’”
Ralph and Carol Stewart said they have been volunteering for the past eight or nine years. On Saturday, they were visited by Mershie Shaw.
“She’s never been to a count,” Ralph Stewart said. “She’s our neighbor, and because she didn’t have anything else on her calendar, she joined us to see what this is all about.”
The count is conducted three times a year during peak whale season and is a shore-based census that provides snapshot data on humpback whales. During the count, participants tally humpback whale sightings and document the animals’ surface behavior during the survey period.
The year’s final count will be March 26. Interested volunteers may register online at www.sanctuaryoceancount.org, or by calling 246-2860. Volunteers are required to register, and registration closes a week prior to the count.
