Humpback Whales, is there no greater Oceanic majesty than these sentient leviathans? As yet I have not personally had the pleasure to swim in close company with this species. I've seen them numerous times from the decks of boats, and one of my buddies recently almost had one land on his head! I've heard them while snorkeling but never been really close to them in the water. Underwater photo naturalist and personal friend Tony Wu has though, on numerous trips to the Pacific Island of Tonga. Each year the Humpback Whales make the journey to the warmer waters of this picturesque setting in preparation for their calving season. It's during these times that photographers and Whale lovers alike are able to get up close and personal with these incredible beings. Wherever there are babies being born in the wild there will also be predators laying in wait for easy pickings.

The initial response to this image is as one would expect. What appears to be a mother and calf enjoying the transparent, warm waters of Tonga belies the reality of the situation. Tony had observed this couple who had just been the target of a potentially life threatening experience by the Calf. If you take a closer look at the Dorsal fin of the Calf you will see a significant chunk of it is missing. Now again cast your eye over the pectoral fin of the Calf, the one almost caressing it's mothers back. You can see that it is pretty much severed. This poor Whale had been the victim of a sustained attack by predators, possible False Killer Whales, just a few days since being born. Welcome to the Jungle little fella!

In the water this pair were as expected somewhat wary of Tony who spent an age to get into place to shoot this incredible image. As Tony would be spending the best part of a month on location he had the opportunity to witness this same Mother and Calf during that time. Two weeks after this image was taken the injury on the pectoral fin was well on the road to recovery. The little Whale also seemed to be in a better place mentally and all seemed well with the World. They also had a bodyguard! A larger Male Humpback was often seen escorting the Mother and Calf right up until Tony's time in Tonga had come to an end. From there on in it is just now open to speculation as to whether or not the Calf survived.

On leaving the relatively safe and protected waters of Tonga the Humpback Whales head South to New Zealand and continue on to the rich feeding grounds of the Antarctic. Their journey started in these same frigid waters with the adults bulking up on the abundant Krill prior to their migration to Tonga during which time they don't feed. It therefore comes as no surprise that some of the female Humpback Whales shed up to 25% of their body weight between leaving and returning to the feeding grounds. With greater foes than False Killer Whales to contend with the formative years of a Humpback Whale Calf are filled with challenges. We can only hope that this little fighter is still with us and will one day return to the waters of Tonga where, on a planet where stranger things have happened, it may well grace once more cast light across the imaging sensor of whichever camera Tony may be wielding. in the future.

Many thanks to Tony for allowing me the use of this incredible image as the first slide to welcome new and returning visitors to this site.

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"Man can now fly in the air like a bird, swim under the ocean like a fish, he can burrow into the ground like a mole. Now if only he could walk the earth like a man, this would be paradise".

Tommy Douglas