Wisp & Malachite

This season, guests touring through Howe Sound with us at Prince of Whales have been treated to a remarkable sight: the humpback whale duo, Malachite and Wisp, spending day after day together in these coastal waters. These two have been spotted surfacing side by side, diving in sync, and even feeding together, an incredible display of coordination and companionship that’s turning heads and sparking curiosity in Vancouver!

Malachite and Wisp are the ultimate humpback duo! They do everything together, and exactly at the same time, like synchronized swimmers of the sea. Even their feeding is a team effort, lunging through schools of fish side by side in perfect harmony. It’s a spectacular sight that showcases just how smart and social humpbacks can be.

Malachite is the 2021 calf of humpback whale Slate, and Wisp was born the same year to mom Ghost, so this pair is young, playful, and clearly enjoying life on the coast. Talk about the best flipper friends!

While humpbacks are usually solitary, they sometimes form temporary feeding partnerships like this during the summer months. Cooperative feeding helps them corral fish more efficiently, using strategies like bubble-netting or tandem lunging to secure bigger, energy-rich meals. These moments of teamwork not only boost their foraging success and offer us an unforgettable look at their complex behaviour.

If you’re hoping to catch a glimpse of their graceful teamwork, now’s a great time to join us on the water. With every surfacing spout and mighty tail slap, Malachite and Wisp continue to remind us how magical whale watching can be!