WildView™

August 14, 2025

What Big Baleen You Have…

- as seen by -

Chris St Lawrence

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We had a fantastic whale watching out of Brooklyn, New York, and this was a standout shot from what was easily one of the best weeks I’ve had on the water.

This specific humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae, was lunge feeding a few dozen yards from shore, surging through thick patches of bait fish in beautiful sunlight. The whale had a pretty unique method, where it would do a typical lunge, then let its mouth fall open with a big splash (pictured above). This behavior gave us consistently great views of the whale’s upper jaw, complete with hanging baleen plates and a pink soft palate. The whale would then swim through the water with its mouth open as if it were skim feeding before sinking back below the surface.

We were lucky to view this whale and others in the area over a number of days.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Check out the scientific and conservation efforts from WCS’s Ocean Giants team that are focused on better protecting humpback whales, critically endangered North Atlantic right whales, endangered fin and sei whales, dolphins, and porpoises throughout the New York Bight, including the Hudson Canyon.

Sony A7rV / Sony FE 200-600 f5.6-6.3 G OSS

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