Animals

A humpback whale was spotted breaching in Boston Harbor

Five or six whales have reportedly been swimming in the area.

Boston Harbor Island National and State Park Screenshot via Facebook

By Nik DeCosta-Klipa

“It’s not everyday you see a humpback whale breach from the shores of Spectacle Island.”

No, it is not.

But on Tuesday it was.

Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation boat operator Shane Dwyer captured footage Tuesday morning of a young humpback leaping out of the water just off the island in Boston Harbor. The 10-second video was shared on social media by MassDCR and the Boston Harbor Islands National and State Park.

https://www.facebook.com/bostonharborislands/videos/465976087218740/

“That was sweet,” a man can be heard saying after the whale splashes back into the water.

“That was awesome,” another agrees.

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Boston Harbor Cruises also posted a photo of a whale in the harbor Tuesday morning, writing on Twitter that the boat tour company was “hopeful that it will return to safer waters soon.”

Sheila Green, a spokeswoman for Boston Harbor Cruises, told The Boston Globe that naturalists from the company had identified five to six individual whales in the harbor. Though most of them remained miles offshore near Boston Light, Green said that one of the whales has been swimming back and forth between Deer Island and Spectacle Island.

The company added on Twitter that they had reported the sightings to the U.S. Coast Guard. A Coast Guard spokesman told the Globe that multiple sightings had been reported and urged boaters to take “extreme caution.”

https://twitter.com/cruiseBHC/status/1034457987182673920

According to WBZ, the giant waterborne mammals were reported as close as a quarter-mile from downtown Boston.

The sightings Tuesday follow boaters in Boston Harbor getting an up-close view of two whales Friday near Graves Light. Another humpback whale was spotted swimming among a group of boats Saturday.