How do Humpback whales reproduce?

Although some whale species are known to migrate long distances there are a number of species that inhibit the same area throughout the year or follow the migration patterns of their food rather than looking for an ideal mating environment. read more

Humpback whales are a migratory species, feeding during the summer at high latitudes and traveling 1,500 and more miles south each winter to warmer waters to mate and to give birth. There is much still unknown about reproduction in humpback whales. read more

For a number different whale species the path to reproducing offspring begins by leaving their local feeding grounds and preparing for their long migration trip to their breeding/calving grounds where the male whales compete with one another for the right to mate with a female and have a chance to pass on their genes to the next generation. read more

Humpback whale winter grounds are generally located in waters of low productivity, and during their stay in the winter grounds, humpback whales generally do not feed (7). Due to their migration patterns, reproduction is strongly seasonal, with peaks of spermatogenesis and ovulation occurring during the winter. read more

The first phase a male whale goes through when it attempts to find a female mating partner to reproduce with is to attract a female whale during a courtship phase. During the courtship period unrelated male whales will compete for the right to mate with the female whales first by showing their worthiness, dominance, competitive advantages and strengths. read more

Whales do not reach sexual maturity until they are 8 to 10 years old and sometimes as old as 15 in some species. Sometimes these newly mature whales stay with their original pod, which is made up of family members. read more