The humpback whale, one of the most recognizable of the whale family, is also one of the most endangered. Despite gains made in the 1970's and 1980's to conserve the species, rapid human expansion and pollution are now becoming the chief threat to the humpback whale. Currently, scientists are working on conserving the whale's habitat; however, it is a slow process.

Humpback whales, unlike the other whale species, are fairly easy to identify by their knobbly head and long flippers. The humpback has a rather robust body, its flanks are gray or black with an area of white on either the throat or belly. The whale's head comprises about 1/3 of its total body length. Another characteristic that makes the humpback whale unique is that during breeding season, the males will sing some of the most complex songs known in the animal kingdom. Because the humpback whales use sound and complex songs to communicate with each other, noise pollution has a very negative effect on this species.

The two biggest threats scientists have identified are pollution and habitat destruction, and both have much to do with each other. The building of pipelines and harbors in near-shore areas pose a threat to the whales because of the noise from the harbor, the blasting, and the dredging. Observers have noted that when humpbacks are bothered by sounds, they will either move away from the sound, change their breathing and diving patterns, and occasionally display aggressive behavior.

Boating and other human activities along water fronts, such as fishing and whale watching, can also be harmful to the humpback. Frequently, fishing gear and other trash that is released into the ocean degrades the habitat. Once fishing lines are in the ocean, they can circulate and tangle together and sometimes a whale will get stuck in the tangled lines. To escape these threats, the whales will simply move away to a less populated area, but with human population growing exponentially, there are less and less places for the humpbacks to move to.

There are things we can do to help save this species. One thing that we can do is to send letters to our representatives in Congress in support of passing bills that will provide long term funding at the state and federal levels for wildlife and wild places. Already, this has shown to be successful in helping the humpback whales. In 1992, a National Marine Sanctuary was set up three miles out from the coast of several of the Hawaiin islands. This sanctuary was set up to provide the whales a habitat that stretches along much of the U.S. shoreline where they primarily breed. The mission of the sanctuary is to research the humpback's natural history and behavior, to educate the public about issues that threaten its survival, and conservation and protection of the whales within the sanctuary.

Another thing we can do to help the humpback whales is to purchase environmentally friendly seafood. The humpback whale feeds at the bottom of the food chain and eats mostly seaweed and fish; however, many fishes are being over fished and depleted to meet the demands of human consumption. Several of these species play important roles in maintaining the healthy ocean environment humpbacks depend on. You can find suggestions for which species are environmentally friendly to purchase via the Audubon website at http://magazine.audubon.org/seafood/guide.

The last and probably most important thing we can do to help the humpback whale is to protect the water quality in our oceans. If you do go fishing, please make sure that your fishing lines do not get lost in the ocean and clean up when you are done fishing. Also, if you go to the beach regularly, throw trash away in the proper receptacles instead of leaving it lying on the beach. You can also, through the EPA's website (http://www.epa.gov/owow/oceans/protecting_oceans/), adopt your watershed environment and also try to educate others on how to reduce pollution in our oceans.

These are just a few suggestions on how we can help this species. The humpback whale has started to make a comeback since the hunting of whales was made illegal; however, without careful conservation efforts and reduction of pollution to our oceans, we cannot hope to save this species from extinction.