Whales in the Rain

[5waldos]

I know they aren't afraid of getting wet, but do whales play around when it is raining out or do they tend to stay under the water? Old wives tales say that birds will be out if the rain is going to last for quite a while but hide out for short showers (wonder if that is true?) but I don't know about whales.

[Adri204]

Hi thier, ive seen them play in all kinds of weather. If they want to play they play. The only time I have not really seen them play is during calving season and also severe storms.

 

Adri :)

[wwinfl91]

We saw whales while it was raining on several excursions on our Tahitian Princess Alaskan cruise. They didn't seem to be bothered by it at all but it wasn't pouring down but it was raining hard enough to get me wet. Be sure to plan on wearing rain gear of some kind even if it doesn't look like it is going to rain because short rain showers can show up unexpectly on the water.

 

Have a great next cruise.

[AkSusan]

I know they aren't afraid of getting wet, but do whales play around when it is raining out or do they tend to stay under the water? Old wives tales say that birds will be out if the rain is going to last for quite a while but hide out for short showers (wonder if that is true?) but I don't know about whales.

Well since whales are wet all the time, I'm definitely sure they don't mind the rain as I've seen them in all kinds of weather (friends went out of Seward the end of April and had some snow and they saw whales too):D.

 

Susan in Anchorage :)

[5waldos]

I know they are wet, but I also know that rain does things to fishing- I think the fist hide out. I could imagine the whales not like the sound, for example.

 

But as far as the suggestion above about rain gear- I just ordered some new ponchos.

[mahassiddasairy]

I know they aren't afraid of getting wet, but do whales play around when it is raining out or do they tend to stay under the water? Old wives tales say that birds will be out if the rain is going to last for quite a while but hide out for short showers (wonder if that is true?) but I don't know about whales.

 

Not sure about the whales, but I know my bird feeders are extra active after a storm. I get the feeling the birds hunker down and wait it out unless they're going to starve otherwise.

[Toyz711]

we had rain, fog and sleet, it was cold! whales were out, so were a couple of sea lions that were bothering them. saw a distance breach, lots of tailing flapping and a great fin dance. the tail action was to get rid of the sea lions. the only problems: trying to keep the camera lens from frosting up , keeping warm enough to stay out on deck (the boats windows were hard to see out with the rain running down them).

[BIG_Steve]

It's so irresponsible of the Alaskan government to allow Whales to swim in the rain. Hello!! **Lightning** Why don't the lifeguards make the whales get out and hide under some trees?

[Putterdude]

I have seen them in all kinds of different weather.

[anamanxs]

Capt. Larry, told us they were usually got more during the rain. We did see a few on our recent cruise.

[AkSusan]

I know they are wet, but I also know that rain does things to fishing- I think the fist hide out. I could imagine the whales not like the sound, for example.

 

But as far as the suggestion above about rain gear- I just ordered some new ponchos.

Must be the kind of fish because our salmon, rainbow trout, halibut don't care if it's raining or not. I've spent many a time sitting in a boat in the rain catching fish.

we had rain, fog and sleet, it was cold! whales were out, so were a couple of sea lions that were bothering them. saw a distance breach, lots of tailing flapping and a great fin dance. the tail action was to get rid of the sea lions. the only problems: trying to keep the camera lens from frosting up , keeping warm enough to stay out on deck (the boats windows were hard to see out with the rain running down them).

Good thing that the whales weren't orcas because those sea lions would of been breakfast :eek:

 

Susan in Anchorage :)

[mytime53]

Must be the kind of fish because our salmon, rainbow trout, halibut don't care if it's raining or not. I've spent many a time sitting in a boat in the rain catching fish. Susan in Anchorage :)

 

Ditto, I was wondering what kind of fish don't like rain. I'd like to fish for those! No more soggy days!

Actually, rain can be helpful for king salmon fishing, as they tend to get sluggish and not want to bite when it's too warm.

[Adri204]

Must be the kind of fish because our salmon, rainbow trout, halibut don't care if it's raining or not. I've spent many a time sitting in a boat in the rain catching fish.

 

Good thing that the whales weren't orcas because those sea lions would of been breakfast :eek:

 

Susan in Anchorage :)

 

I agree the Orca's would have been on the prowl, probly hungry and bammo. I love Orca's they are awesome and rock. But they are true predetors. Its a good thing in the wild they dont kill people. In captivity they do but not in the wild. I think its interesting and smart of them to know the difference as they are the Seawolves" of the ocean.

 

Adri :)

[skierT]

since whales are mammals, I will assume they have to surface to breathe air.

[Adri204]

since whales are mammals, I will assume they have to surface to breathe air.

 

 

They do but they can stay under for a long period of time and will do that sometimes if thier are storms or they feel threatened and so on and so forth.

 

Adri :)

[5waldos]

Despite some of the responses, I don't think it was a completely off the wall question- whales know if it is raining out- the water drip drip drip. Glad to know that whales seem not to care about ordinary rain anyway.

[grrl2grrl]

I caught a few photos of the whales in the rain on our trip last week. Make sure you have something to protect your camera. Fog will ruin a shot, but water will ruin your camera...

[Sargent_Schultz]

Many animals, including whales, love the rain. Rain also cuts down on the number of tourists. Coincidence? Who knows.

 

The darkness also cuts down on visible light above water and even more so below water.

 

Thunder and lightning could be a different story, but you shouldn't be out in a boat under those conditions. If you do see whales, they are probably taking a slight risk for potentially incredible entertainment. :eek:

[Beach4me]

I caught a few photos of the whales in the rain on our trip last week. Make sure you have something to protect your camera. Fog will ruin a shot, but water will ruin your camera...

 

Have seen a couple comments about cameras/photo ops. I've learned over the years that it is often times more enjoyable to put the camera away and truly experience the event than to worry about getting the shot.

 

In fact, while I usually have a small camera on me during whale watches, the only time it is used is to take some candid shots of my family on the boat.