Eyjafjörður fjord in North Iceland is full of whales, local whale watching guides say. Travellers taking whale watching trips have been treated to amazing demonstrations by these gentle giants.
The following video, shared by a local whale watching company shows two humpbacks jumping in front of one of the whale watching boats:
One of the owners of Whale Watching Hauganes, one of the whale watching firms in Eyjafjörður fjord, and the oldest whale watching firm in Iceland, told the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service RÚV that conditions in the fjord were unusually good. Usually the whales stay further out, not venturing very deep into the fjord, but this time around the large number of humpbacks have been swimming deep into the fjord.
A growing humpback population
The large number of humpback whales in Eyjafjörður is also remarkable when compared to earlier years. These giants of the oceans rarely visited the fjord, but in recent years their numbers have increased:
The first few years after we began whale watching in 1993 we never saw humpback whales. But then the numbers increased around 200 and by 2011 we are seeing a humpback whale on every single whale watching trip.
Whale watching guides have counted at least 20 whales in the fjord.
A marine biologist who spoke with RÚV said the humpback whale population in Icelandic waters has been growing steadily in recent years. In 1987 the population counted 2000 individuals, but recent estimates put the number at 10-15,000 animals.
Eyjafjörður fjord in North Iceland is full of whales, local whale watching guides say. Travellers taking whale watching trips have been treated to amazing demonstrations by these gentle giants.
The following video, shared by a local whale watching company shows two humpbacks jumping in front of one of the whale watching boats:
One of the owners of Whale Watching Hauganes, one of the whale watching firms in Eyjafjörður fjord, and the oldest whale watching firm in Iceland, told the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service RÚV that conditions in the fjord were unusually good. Usually the whales stay further out, not venturing very deep into the fjord, but this time around the large number of humpbacks have been swimming deep into the fjord.
A growing humpback population
The large number of humpback whales in Eyjafjörður is also remarkable when compared to earlier years. These giants of the oceans rarely visited the fjord, but in recent years their numbers have increased:
The first few years after we began whale watching in 1993 we never saw humpback whales. But then the numbers increased around 200 and by 2011 we are seeing a humpback whale on every single whale watching trip.
Whale watching guides have counted at least 20 whales in the fjord.
A marine biologist who spoke with RÚV said the humpback whale population in Icelandic waters has been growing steadily in recent years. In 1987 the population counted 2000 individuals, but recent estimates put the number at 10-15,000 animals.
