t raise the flukes above the
surface when beginning a dive.

Minke whales feed primarily on small shoal fish (herring, cod, pollack,
and capelin).

Minkes sometimes breach, leaping completely clear of the water and
entering smoothly, head first, or with a substantial splash like
humpback whales.

May Be Confused With

When they are seen at relatively close range, minke whales can be
readily distinguished from the other rorquals that have relatively tall,
falcate dorsal fins (fin, sei, and Bryde's whales) by their considerably
smaller size and by their distinctive white band on each flipper.

At a distance, however, positive identification may be difficult. Minke
whales have a small, low, inconspicuous blow. Like sei whales, they
frequently expose the dorsal fin simultaneously with the blow, but minke
whales hump the tail stock much higher when beginning a long dive--more
like fin whales.

From a distance, minke whales might also be mistaken for northern
bottlenosed whales (or any of several other beaked whales with a similar
dorsal fin). They can be distinguished by the differences in head shape,
body color and markings, and behavior, detailed on p. 67.

Distribution

Minke whales are distributed in the polar, temperate, and tropical
waters of the western North Atlantic. They are found from the pack ice
south to at least Anguilla, Lesser Antilles, and the eastern Gulf of
Mexico, though they appear to be most abundant in temperate waters north
of the latitude of New York and are infrequently reported from tropical
waters. At least some of the population migrates to the northern
portions of their range in spring and back south in autumn. They often
approach close to shore and enter river mouths, inlets, and estuaries.

Minke whales arrive along the Canadian coast in May or June. Some
migrate as far north as Hudson Strait, where they remain until the
freeze in October, November, or December. By December the majority of
the population has begun to move to the south, although some animals
remain behind so long as to become entrapped in the ice and die. Spring
and summer concentrations along the Canadian coast correspond to
concentrations of capelin, cod, and herring. Southern concentrations,
also corresponding with concentrations of herring, extend farther
offshore at least to the edges of the Grand Bank. Minke whales also
summer off the south coast of western Greenland, which they probably
reach from waters