Fluke Sculptures
Arpeggio is a humpback whale whom I have witnessed across the Pacific latitudes in his latest migratory cycle.
During my June 2024 artist residency with Alaska State Parks I encountered this creature in a chorus of feeding humpbacks, each hunter procuring chords of bubbles for hapless audiences of herring.
In February of this year I was observing humpback whales who had traveled from Southeast Alaska to reproduce in the alcove of Maui Nui Basin. While documenting the humpback CRC-13754 with calf in tow, I was aghast to identify her battle-scarred escort as Arpeggio himself!
Arpeggio’s earliest entry in HappyWhale records dates back to January 1988. During the last SPLASH humpback survey, Oregon State University Cetacean Conservation and Genomics Lab confirmed his sex to be male via biopsy.
Affectionately nicknamed “Ruffles” by Juneau naturalists, hydrophone recordings have revealed his feeding calls that beckon his fellow humpbacks for the hunt. His fluke pattern is amongst the most ornate of his Pacific stock, enriching photo catalogues of Alaska Whale Foundation and Juneau Flukes with his black and white cuneiform.