Humpback whales have been spotted making a splash on the UK’s south coast.
Wildlife watchers were treated to sights of the once-endangered whales off the Sussex coast, from Eastbourne to Hastings. Others have been spotted off the coasts of Kent and Cornwall.
The 40-tonne mammals could be seen breaching the waters, leaping out of the waves and coming back down with a splash.
Experts have said though these sightings are not unheard of, it is rare for humpbacks to travel up the east coast. It has sparked hopes that whale numbers are on the rise.
However, others are concerned that their reappearance is a sign of changing patterns for the species, with warming waters pushing them away from their typical routes in search of food.
Danny Groves, from Whale and Dolphin Conservation, told the Mail: “Humpback populations, in general, are recovering after their numbers were decimated by hunting, but it could also be that humpbacks are being forced to change their movements due to changes in climate.”
According to the Sussex Dolphin Project, whales have now been seen at Rye, Pett Level, Fairlight, Hastings, St Leonards, Bexhill, Pevensey and Eastbourne. Earlier sightings were also made at Beachy Head in Sussex and Dungeness in Kent.
In one video, a whale can be seen breaching several times off the coast of Hastings. Scientists believe this is a form of communication, allowing whales to send messages over vast distances.
Likewise, a recent sighting in the Birling Gap shows a whale slapping its front pectoral fin into the surface of the water. The Sussex Dolphin Project said: “This is a form of non-verbal communication to attract attention and communicate with other whales.”
Humpbacks spend the winter in the Arctic circle, feeding on krill and herring before heading south at the start of the year. Their routes typically bring them along the UK’s west coast, past Newquay and the Isles of Scilly.
Dr Carol Sparling, director of the Sea Mammal Research Unit at the University of St Andrews, told MailOnline: “While not as common as our more resident whale species, such as minke whales, humpback whale sightings have become increasingly more common around the UK in recent years, with winter being the main time to see them.”
The best areas to spot whales are around Scotland where humpbacks can be seen alongside Orcas, minke whales, and bottlenose dolphins.
