Humpback whale spotted off Brunswick County coast

BRUNSWICK COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — The nonprofit organization Cape Fear Dolphin Research spotted a humpback whale offshore on Thursday, October 22, off the Lockwood Folly Inlet and Holden beach, noting a unique feature on its dorsal fin: a whale barnacle.

Humpback whales are known to host specialized barnacles, namely the species Coronula diadema.

Whale barnacles are also known to attach to whales through their adult lives, allowing them to capture plankton and other microscopic food particles as the whale swims.

However, too many barnacle loads may increase drag or cause localized skin irritation on the whale, and Cape Fear Dolphin Research says that distinctive dorsal fin shapes, scars, and attached organisms help provide supplementary information when comparing photographs of individual whales.

Cape Fear Dolphin Research is a nonprofit organization dedicated to studying, protecting, and educating the public about bottlenose dolphins and marine ecosystems throughout the Cape Fear.