Salt  HWC# 0036

Salt is among the most famous whales in the world today.  She was first seen in the mid 1970s here in Massachusetts Bay.  Photos were taken of her fluke and, the most striking feature, her dorsal fin.  Later that same year she was photographed on Silver Bank off the coast of the Dominican Republic.  These photos provided information scientists needed to understand the migration route of the North Atlantic Humpback Whale.

 Salt has been seen just about every year since researchers began keeping records (around 1976).  She is a very productive whale too.  She has had at least ten calves since that time (see Salt's Family Tree).  Some of her calves are almost as famous as she is.  Her first calf, Crystal, was born in 1980.  There is a book written about him called, Crystal: The Story of a Real Baby Whale, by Karen Smyth.  An exact replica of her second calf, Halos, hangs inside the New England Aquarium for all to see.

 Recently, Salt broke the record for the longest known association between humpback whales.  In the summer of 1999, Salt and Cardhu (an adult female) were seen together from June to November.  This record was previously held by Salt and Pepper (another adult female) in 1976.  These extremely long lasting relationships, also known as associations, are uncommon among baleen whales.

Salt is very easy to recognize.  She has a large white marking on the front side of her dorsal fin.  

It looks like someone sprinkled "salt" on her back.  Even though her dorsal is one of a kind, photographing her fluke is key to positive identification.

 

Salt's Family Tree
Salt- F --- fs: 1974	Crystal- M yob: 1980 Halos- M yob: 1983 Thalassa- F ---- yob: 1985 Brine- M yob: 1987 Bittern- M yob: 1989 Salsa- M yob: 1991 Tabasco- F yob: 1998 Mostaza yob: 2000 Soya yob: 2006	Skeeter yob:1992 Etch-A-Sketch yob: 1998