Citizen science driven by pure passion. Tracking, identifying, and protecting humpback whales across Hawaii and Alaska — one fluke at a time.
Click any whale icon on the map to view their full bio and sighting history. Switch between Hawaii and Alaska.
Learn to identify what you're seeing on the water. Each behavior tells a different story about what the whale is doing and why.
When a whale dives, photograph the underside of its tail — the full spread, clearly visible. The unique pigmentation pattern on each fluke is how we identify individuals across years and locations.
Upload your photos to imgbb.com and send us the direct link along with the date, time, and location of your sighting. Even a phone photo helps build the catalog.
Every fluke photo submitted brings us closer to understanding where these animals go and how we can protect them.
Submit a sighting →The warm, sheltered waters off Oahu's North Shore are a critical winter breeding and nursing ground for North Pacific humpbacks. From November through April, these animals arrive to mate, give birth, and raise their calves.
Come summer, the same whales make one of the longest migrations of any mammal on Earth — traveling 2,400+ miles north to the cold, krill-rich waters of Southeast Alaska.
What started as a passion for the ocean and the whales turned into a passion project that has taken us across the North Pacific.
Founded in 2019 on the North Shore of Oahu, we began documenting the humpback whales that return to Hawaiian waters every winter — building a photo-ID catalog one fluke at a time. Year after year, our excitement for these animals hasn’t slowed down. If anything, it’s taken us further.
We love these whales so much, we follow them. Every summer we pack up and head to Sitka Sound, Alaska — tracking the same individuals across 2,400 miles of open ocean as they migrate through the rich feeding grounds of Southeast Alaska. Same whales, different ocean.
This is citizen science driven by pure passion. Every sighting, every fluke photo, every data point brings us closer to understanding where these animals go and how we can protect them.
Join us on the water in Hawaii or Alaska. Small groups, expert guidance, and the best chance of seeing humpbacks up close.