The humpback whale Megaptera novaeangliae is a species of baleen whale. The humpback has a distinctive body shape, with long pectoral fins and a knobbly head. It is known for breaching and other distinctive surface behaviors , making it popular with whale watchers. Males produce a complex song lasting 10 to 20 minutes, which they repeat for hours at a time.
All the males in a group will produce the same song, which is different each season. Its purpose is not clear, though it may help induce estrus in females. They feed in polar waters, and migrate to tropical or subtropical waters to breed and give birth, fasting and living off their fat reserves. Their diet consists mostly of krill and small fish. Humpbacks have a diverse repertoire of feeding methods, including the bubble net technique.
Like other large whales, the humpback was a target for the whaling industry. While stocks have partially recovered to some 80, animals worldwide, entanglement in fishing gear , collisions with ships and noise pollution continue to affect the species. Humpback whales are rorquals , members of the Balaenopteridae family that includes the blue , fin , Bryde's , sei and minke whales. The rorquals are believed to have diverged from the other families of the suborder Mysticeti as long ago as the middle Miocene era.
Though clearly related to the giant whales of the genus Balaenoptera , the humpback is the sole member of its genus. Recent DNA sequencing has indicated the humpback is actually more closely related to certain rorquals, particularly the fin whale B.
In , Georg Heinrich Borowski described the species, converting Brisson's name to its Latin equivalent, Balaena novaeangliae. In , John Edward Gray created the genus Megaptera , classifying the humpback as Megaptera longipinna , but in , Remington Kellogg reverted the species names to use Borowski's novaeangliae.
