humpback whale

A baleen whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) that arches its back when it dives, has long knobby flippers and a small dorsal fin, and communicates with complex songs.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

hump′back whale′

a large whalebone whale, Megaptera novaeangliae, having long, narrow flippers.

[1715–25]

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun

humpback whale - large whalebone whale with long flippers noted for arching or humping its back as it dives

Megaptera novaeangliae, humpback

baleen whale, whalebone whale - whale with plates of whalebone along the upper jaw for filtering plankton from the water

genus Megaptera, Megaptera - humpback whales

Translations

baleine à bossejubartemégaptère

Mentioned in

References in periodicals archive

The Humpback Whale monitoring data set is the product of the data collection, processing, and analysis efforts of many staff members and volunteers of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (GBNPP).

Population dynamics and demography of Humpback Whales in Glacier Bay and Icy Strait, Alaska

Driven by the question whether the winter-excursion of the humpback whales in the eastern Weddell Sea was a unique event, Ilse Van Opzeeland developed a procedure for the automatic detection of humpback whale calls and analysed all PALAOA recordings from 2008 and 2009 for acoustic signs of life from these animals.

Humpback whales spend winter in Antarctica

The story follows a mother humpback whale and her calf during their long migration from the Caribbean to the New England coast and back again, and is peppered with amazing true facts about humpbacks.

Here Come the Humpbacks!

An unprecedented 15 minke whales and even one rare humpback whale were seen swimming within 14 hours.

A warm welcome to whales signals a big sea change; MARINE MAMMAL SIGHTINGS COULD BE DUE TO FISH MOVE

The humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) appears to be such a model species and whale watching focused on this species in their feeding grounds and breeding distribution areas has been developed worldwide (Hoyt, 2009).

Is it possible to go whale watching off the coast of Peru? A case study of humpback whales/?Es posible hacer turismo de observacion de ballenas en la costa de Peru? Un caso de estudio con ballenas jorobadas

'We did record a humpback whale song with the repetition of distinct stereotypic phrases,' Dr Gales says.

Pioneering study shows value of non-lethal whale research

A humpback whale breaches the waters off Hook Head, in Co Wexford

High-flying humpbacks have a whale of a time off Irish coast

If the North Atlantic right whale, the endangered humpback whale and the 20 other marine mammals that use Stellwagen Bank Sanctuary for feeding and nursing are not afforded protections from ship strikes, depletion of their forage base, entanglement from fishing gear and serious disturbance that affects their behavior, then the Stellwagen Bank Sanctuary is failing to achieve its mission.

Why do we need a national ocean policy? Case in point--Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary

The great humpback whale is followed by an underwater shadow only fifteen feet long.

Incredible journey of the giants: scientists and tourist alike are helping raise awareness of the importance of humpback whales by observing their migratory routes from Antarctica to Panama

The travel history of a humpback whale spotted off the coast of Scotland has been tracked with the help of social media.

Social media helps track whale's trips; UK & WORLD

A GROUP nature lovers were given an amazing treat after a giant humpback whale swam incredibly close to their boat.

Humpback whale gives boat trippers a treat