One of the silver linings of winter in Ballito is the ability to spot hundreds of humpback whales passing our coastline.

The massive, majestic animals swim past us twice on their annual 5 000km migration from the icy, nutrient-rich Southern Ocean to their breeding grounds in warmer Mozambican waters, and back. They can generally be seen swimming north between June and August, and south between September and October, although there is overlap and the periods are not always so clearly defined.

According to the Marine Mammal Protected Areas Task Force, humpback whales typically pass closer to shore on their northbound journey to avoid swimming directly against the southward-flowing Agulhas Current. Swimming with the current on the return trip, they are normally slightly further offshore, although still within about 15km.

Speaking at the Welcoming the Whales Festival in Durban in July, UKZN marine biologist Gan Moodley said the number of whales making the annual migration represented a bounce back for the species.

“In the past, the intensity of whaling in the Southern Hemisphere, including off the coast of Durban, threatened to lead to the total collapse of many baleen whale species, including both humpback and southern right whales,” said Moodley.

“These two species have made a remarkable recovery.”

He said the number of whales making the journey was once around 340, but had rebounded to an estimated 7 000 a year.

“Their recovery from levels that were close to extinction demonstrates the success of conservation efforts,” he said.

“In view of declining global biodiversity, the whales should be celebrated as a symbol of nature – they represent hope for human survival, for the health of our oceans and for the conservation of nature.”