Graphic from HIHWNMS, and migration data from SPLASH Research and NOAA.
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Kanaloa Process: MigrationsMigratory PatternsMost koholā / palaoa migrate, and migratory patterns are specific to species. Migrations can also vary from one population to the next. While some migrations are undertaken by pregnant females to give birth in warmer ocean temperatures, others will migrate in seasonal cycles. Some baleen whales will travel alone, and toothed whales would likely be traveling in pods, of various sizes, depending on the efficiency of the pod size for hunting. Humpback and Gray whales migrate seasonally, they head towards colder waters. Factors for migrations include: climate, temperature of water, depth, salinity, seafloor topography and, true for Hawaiians also, the most important reason for migrating is the abundance of food. Koholā, humpback whales, will travel to warmer waters in the winter to mate and give birth then travel, late autumn and spring, to colder waters to feed.
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Processions in the Sea
In the Kumulipo, a Hawaiian cosmogonic chant, there are lines that say, “O ke kaina Palaoa e kai nei, O kuwili, o haahaa i ka moana”. One interpretation of these lines could be: The expedition is in procession, Churning and diving in the sea. This references the aristocratic nature of whales in their migratory patterns and movement. The large assemblage of whales travelling like aristocrats, like royal processions, leaving observers in awe and reverence.
Whangarei-Te-Rerenga-Parāoa
To demonstrate a similar or shared perspective of migrations: According to our pacific cousins, in Aotearoa, the area known as Whangarei was once named Whangarei-te-rerenga-parāoa by Ngāti Wai (tribe). Whanga has many meanings, one of them being to wait. It was named such (the gathering place of whales) because whales gathered there to feed during summer and correlates to the beachings that would often occur. Another interpretation is that the harbor was a gathering and waiting place for chiefs (most likely because of beachings and prized ivory). This indicates a similar understanding of migrations and resource use and control, royalty, and politics - between maori and hawaiians.