Over the weekend, the Great Maui Whale Count spotted 1,208 humpback whales.  More of a snapshot than a census, the watchers counted 676 pods or groups of whales, with an average of 214 pods or groups sighted per hour.

1,208 whale sightings in Great Maui Whale Count

1,208 humpback whale sightings were reported in the Great Maui Whale Count, conducted on Saturday, March 6 by the nonprofit Pacific Whale Foundation. An average of 382 whales per hour were tallied during the count, which took place at 12 counting stations along Maui’s south and western shores, and at Hookipa Beach Park on Maui’s north shore. It averaged out to 31.9 sightings per hour at each of the stations.

The count was conducted between 8:30 and 11:50 a.m. by more than 100 volunteers who worked alongside Pacific Whale Foundation researchers and staff. The stations extended from the Ritz Carlton in Kapalua to Pu’u Olai in Makena, and also included Hookipa Beach Park in Paia.

The 1,208 whale sightings today represented a 19.6% increase over 2009, when 1,010 whale sightings were recorded. Yet, it was still below the record of 1,726 sightings, tallied in 2008, when sighting conditions were ideal.

“The Great Maui Whale Count represents a snapshot view of whales that can be sighted nearshore during a morning at the peak of whale season,” says Kaufman. “In general, what we are seeing is evidence of a growing number of whale sightings in recent years, which correlates to research that shows the humpback whale population in the North Pacific increasing at a rate of 5 to 7% each year.”