CHAPTER 1 A LONG JOURNEY Deep Deep in the ocean a humpback whale flaps its huge tail Two other whales follow behind The whales swim for many days They travel from Alaska to Hawaii Later that year they will swim all the way back In total they will travel 6,000 miles 9,600 km each year This is one of the longest journeys made by any mammal Humpback whales are some of the largest animals in the world 5
Unlike some whales humpbacks live in both hemispheres They can be found in all the world’s oceans Several groups of humpbacks live in each ocean The whales in each group follow a different route when they migrate For example some humpbacks live in the eastern and central part of the Pacific Ocean These whales live in the Northern Hemisphere They swim between Hawaii and Alaska Other humpbacks live in the Southern Hemisphere They travel to and from waters off the coast of Antarctica In the spring humpbacks swim to their feeding grounds The water there is cooler and more food is available In the 6
fall humpbacks change direction They swim back to their breeding grounds where the water is warmer Humpbacks go there to breed and have babies Unless they are in trouble humpbacks never migrate alone They swim in groups HUMPBACK WHALE HUMPBACK WHALE MIGRATION ROUTES MIGRATION ROUTES North America Europe Asia Africa Pacific Ocean Pacific Ocean South America Atlantic Ocean Indian Ocean Australia Southern Ocean Antarctica Breeding grounds Feeding grounds Migration routes 7
