As we returned to the shallower water of the continental shelf, we began to encounter groups of Humpback Whales (Megaptera novaengliae). Humpbacks feed by a number of different methods, sometimes herding prey singly or in groups, sometimes stunning it with slaps of the enormous flippers for which their scientific name (L. mega, big + pteron, fin or wing) is derived. They are also the only baleen whales known to blow "bubble-nets" to corral fish, which they then feed upon by lunging toward the surface with open mouths. When their huge snouts break out of the water at close range, a lucky angle may bring into view the single stiff hair that protrudes from each of softball-sized sensory knobs these whales use to sense water movements.

North Atlantic whale watchers may often be rewarded with stunning views of these whales feeding or breaching, bringing practically their entire bodies out of the water. In the waters of the North Atlantic, this is an especially appropriate sight, given that the whale is the only one that takes its name, novaengliae, from the region of New England. Those lucky enough to be in these waters aboard a boat fitted with a hydrophone may be able to hear the males' grunts and whoops, although the complex and extended songs for which tthese whales are famous are sung only on their wintering grounds north of the Dominican Republic or around the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.