The Log

Season 2005

May 14, 2005 - Gamekids of Kihei, Maui visited the Whalesong Project a couple of times this season, and their second show on our project is running on the children's channel OC16 this week. You can catch them at 8 am on Sunday and 3 pm on Monday. The first Whalesong show ran earlier this season. Thanks to the Gamekids, their parents and adult support team for the nice coverage!

May 9, 2005 - There are a few whales lingering in Hawaiian waters, but most have headed towards Northern waters with this season's newborn calves. The hydrophone is in need of repairs that will require a boat and calm seas. We are temporarily playing a recording made April 6 between the islands of Molokini and Kaho'olawe....we are assessing what's next, and will be updating the log with entries and images that we haven't yet had time to upload. Best wishes to all of you out there who have been listening. Stay tuned.

April 23, 2005 - It's a full moon night here on Maui and there are still quite a few whales singing tonight....mostly off in the distance, but it is beautiful nonetheless.

April 22, 2005 - Happy Earth Day to all! We are participating today in an interesting project initiated by the Sirius Institute on the Big Island of Hawai'i. We are providing a live feed to them of the Maui Humpback Whalesongs, and they are broadcasting the songs into deep space, through an affiliation with University of Hawai'i and the Deep Space Communication Network. See the story from the www.space.com website. The whales are returning to Alaska in large numbers, and sightings have dropped significantly. However, we are happy to report that as we go into Earth Day here on Maui...we are getting some of the loveliest songs of the season in these early hours. Please enjoy these songs...those of you who are earth bound, and any of you out in distant parts of the galaxy.....when you pick up the transmission. It's coming to you at 186,000 miles per second. Another song that deserves close attention was recorded when we took Raina Ferris out to the whales (see April 10 log entry). Raina tells us that her clan on Aotearoa (New Zealand) refer to the whales as the "keepers of ancient knowledge," and that they (the whales) share this knowledge in the vibrations of their songs. These are some things to ponder on Earth Day. Here's the song the whale sang to Raina when she sang and chanted to the whales. And here is the Haka (Maori chant) that Raina did for the whales. In her chant she also pays respect to places considered sacred on Maui....notably Haleakala and Iao Valley.

April 20, 2005 - The hydrophone is working again! There are less whales here, so enjoy the sounds of the Maui ocean, and the occasional whalesongs.

April 15, 2005 - The hydrophone developed a problem this morning. Kent went out by kayak, but could not fix it. We will need a boat and some time. Right now we are playing a recording that was made by Kent between Molokini and Kaho'olawe during the boat expedition we took with Raina Ferris, the Maori kai-karanga tahuna that we spoke of in our April 10 log update. To hear the the Haka that was chanted by Raina to acknowledge the whales during this voyage click here.

April 10, 2005 - We witnessed a beautiful and unusual, from a modern western perspective, event this week. Raina Ferris visited us from Aotearoa, New Zealand, and we took her out on the ocean to support her cultural interest and connection to the whales. Raina is a Maori kai-karanga tahuna (spiritual chanter) and professor of Maori studies at Te Wanganga O Raukawa in Otaki. She came to Maui to share Maori tradition, and to further research on ancient ties between Maui and Aotearoa - alluded to in the ancestral chants of her clan. Those of us who saw the movie Whalerider witnessed Maori chanting and belief systems that connect the Maori to Hawai'i, and to the whales. Paikea, the young woman who inherited the name of the Maori "prophet" who came to Aotearoa on the back of a whale, from Hawai'i, chanted and the whales came. We witnessed this in real life when Raina performed her Karanga prayers in a chanting format. We cut the engines and drifted in the wind and waves as Raina chanted from the bow and we were followed my a mother and calf on the surface. And a male with a powerful voice stayed below the boat and sang a beautiful, powerful, soulful song. Those of us who have been listening closely to the songs of these whales for over five years now were surprised to hear the characteristics of the song change rapidly and dramatically. There was a strong impression that there was an unexplainable interaction between Raina and the whales... Listen to MP3 file

March 27, 2005

Happy Easter to all our friends and listeners! We really appreciate your support!

The 13th annual "Celebration of the Arts" was held at the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua under the theme "Ka 'Aina, Ke Kai, Ke Kanaka...Na Kako'o Nohana" - The Land, The Ocean and Man...Partners for Life. The program can be viewed under www.celebrationofthearts.org . It is a very important event concerning the dialogue between the cultures on the islands. Therefore it was a great honour for us to be invited. We had the great opportunity to present live whalesongs during the last two days.

March 3, 2005 - 6:18 PM - A mother and calf showed up at the buoy site about twenty minutes ago. The calf appears to be recently born. In a pattern that appears to be typical during this season, the mother basks and frolics on the surface as the baby plays around her...often, it appears, in direct physical contact with each other. A beautiful site this was at sunset here. There is a lot of singing going on at this time.

February 22, 2005 - 6:06 PM Hawai'i time - What's all that rumbling on the hydrophone? The sea is literally exploding here as a very large pod of whales are racing, spouting, slapping the water with tails and fins, splashing..........it's a sight that cannot be readily explained...and causes those of us on land to ponder what all of the commotion is about. There are at least twenty whales out there in close contact with each other, and these creatures appear to be among the most large, powerful and energetic creatures on this planet. The noise is so loud it is causing distortion in our highly sophisticated hydrophone system.

February 19, 2005 - Today is Whale Day on Maui, which means front page stories in the newspapers, and lots of good music and celebration here in Kihei. The annual event is put together by the Pacific Whale Foundation . We hope to see you there, in Kamaole Park, Kihei.

February 13, 2005 - An irritating midday noise on the hydrophone system was diagnosed as a problem with the photovoltaic charge controller...the electronics that charges the batteries with energy from the solar panels. A trip to the buoy will fix this. Whalesongs this season seem to be as energetic as we have witnessed in the past four seasons, but ocurring on a more continuous basis. The late night and early morning songs continue to be the most dramatic.

February 8, 2005 - A Calf is breaching this morning not far from the Whalesong Hydrophone. The songs of the whales pervaded the ocean night, and this morning the sounds of the canoe club's turns around the buoy ocassionally remind us that there are humans out there in the ocean too. Dennis Kamakahi , one of Hawai'is favorite musicians and composers, visited Maui for a concert at the Ritz Carlton Kapalua. Dennis is a frequent listener to the Whalesong hydrophone, and he tells us that he thinks Beethoven was correct when he said that music is the universal language...and that this universality extends between humans and animals, nature, as well.

February 6, 2005 - A trip by boat to the buoy allowed us to reduce the hydrophone noise caused by contact with the anchor line. We took some time to enjoy life out on the ocean while we were out there. We saw lots of whales. Mothers with nursing calf and male escort abound. There is a lot of singing going on by the males. Hundreds of dolphins greeted our boat off of Makena:

February 5, 2005 - Some bumping sounds inspired a trip to the buoy by surfboard. The problem was diagnosed as the hydrophone rubbing against the anchor line. We have been working with this issue for over four seasons now...we think our solutions are getting better. It will take another trip to fix this.

January 26, 2005 - We are continuing to enjoy high quality whale songs on our new solar powered hydrophone system. Kent and David made a trip out by kayak yesterday to adjust the way the hydrophone is secured...this reduced noise. Kent, by the way, designed the electronics for this beautiful new system, and continues to be vital to the project. He is also a member of the Whalesong Project board of directors. More on our board and volunteers, and some more project pictures soon.

A Washington Post news story says recent whale deaths in North Carolina ocurred after Navy sonar use. The Navy denies a connection. Read the full story. The same author, Marc Kaufman, also covered the July 3 incident at Hanalei Bay, Kaua'i , and the move by the European Parliament to limit sonar use.

January 26, 2005 - There are a lot of whales here, many mothers with newborn calves. Many of these mother/calf pairs are accompanied by an adult male. Mothers appear to rest at times on the surface. The calves are playful. The whalesongs have been energetic during this full moon period. We asked Whalesong Director George Kahumoku about the cultural significance of the Mahealani Moon period that we were in last night. He says it's a time to call out to the heavens, to sing or pray. If you are on Maui, don't miss George's weekly slack key guitar shows at the Ritz Carlton, Kapalua www.slackkey.com.

January 24, 2005 - We at Whalesong Maui are very happy to report that the new system is working well, that the whales are singing, and that a lot of people are listening. Many volunteers have worked hard for weeks, and we want to thank them. We continue to note dramatic changes to the songs this season. Please check back regularly as we will be making system and website improvements.

January 23, 2005 - We are very happy to report that our new buoy hydrophone system was placed in the ocean today at 12:30 PM with the help of twelve volunteers and two boats. Her name is "Hokumoanalani", "Star of the Heavenly Ocean". Volunteers have been working for weeks on various parts of this beautiful buoy, and we are grateful for the outpouring of support for the project. We began the live webcast at 3:30 this afternoon, and we are noticing substantial new elements to the songs this year. Please enjoy this season's whalesongs. Thanks for listening.

Here is a picture of our new buoy, "Hokumoanalani." She is powered by solar energy and is designed to cause no harm to the ocean environment.

January 18, 2005 - We are sad to report the deaths of three Pygmy Sperm Whales here in Kihei....a mother and baby, and an adult male. These are a deep water species not normally seen in these waters. For more see the report in the Honolulu Advertiser.

January 2, 2005 - The storm that has been lingering offshore arrived today. We continue to make preparations for the launch of the new hydrophone when the weather clears.

January 1, 2005 - The whales are back and so is Whalesong. The new hydrophone system that we have been dreaming about is now a reality..the weather situation is improving here and the solar panels are being installed this weekend. We had a boat lined up to deploy the system, and we stalled due to weather conditions. It's a matter of logistics and continued good weather, but we will be in the ocean with the new buoy shortly. Expect an improved website soon, with new information and improved audio performance.