sierraclub.org - sierra magazine - july/august 2011 - whales - whales: the sea's mysterious giants
Photography by Flip Nicklin/Minden Pictures, from Among Giants | Captions by Della Watson
An orca breaches in Johnstone Strait, British Columbia, Canada. No one knows why whales leap into the air. Breaching could serve a social function, or the force of their huge bodies smacking against the water's surface might help whales dislodge parasites, barnacles, and dead skin.