Humpback Whale Breaches Off Toms River

TOMS RIVER, NJ -- If you're headed to the beach this week, be sure to bring your camera: A humpback whale was seen breaching off Toms River on Sunday. 

In a video posted by Joe Valerie on Facebook, the whale can be seen coming out of the water and splashing back. He took the video from the beach in the Dover Beaches South portion of the barrier island.

Humpback whales have been seen more frequently off the New Jersey coast in recent summers, often coming very close to shore. 

In the 15-second clip, reported by NJ.com, the whale can be seen coming out of the water and splashing back.

Last summer, a humpback whale delighted beachgoers up and down Monmouth and Ocean counties, showing up off Asbury Park in this video, where the whale not only breaches but appears to be hanging out, just enjoying the area:

Another humpback drew attention of anglers and boaters in October and November.

Humpback whales, which had been listed as an endangered species for many years after commercial whaling decimated the population, have rebounded enough in recent years that National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) last year sought to revise and refine the Endangered Species Act status for the population. The population in the Atlantic is no longer considered endangered, but it remains illegal to hunt or harm the massive mammals. 

Humpback whales have a lifespan of about 50 years and in that time can grow from about 15 feet long and 1 ton at birth to as much as 60 feet long and 25 to 40 tons, according to NOAA Fisheries.

Part of the group of baleen whales, which have no teeth but swallow their prey whole, humpbacks feed in colder waters. Currently, the water closest to the beaches at the Jersey Shore is about 60 degrees; water farther out, at the edge of the Continental shelf, has been reported by fishermen as being in the 70s, bringing lots of migratory species to the area.

The humpbacks -- along with striped bass and bluefish -- are feeding on menhaden, also referred to as mossbunker or just bunker by anglers at the Jersey Shore. This video from August 2012 shows a humpback feeding on bunker close to the beach that summer.

So keep your eyes peeled and your video camera or phone ready if you go to the beach in the coming weeks. You may just get to see one for yourself.