Whale Tag

(Image credit: Greenpeace/Paul Hilton)The Cook Islands whale research team tags a humpback whale as it surfaces off the island of Rarotonga. The whales are being tagged as part of "The Great Whale Trail." The project is a collaboration between Greenpeace and Nan Hauser, who studies humpback whales in the Cook Islands.

Straight and Arrow

(Image credit: Greenpeace/Paul Hilton)Researhers have found humpback whales, like this one off Rarotonga, Cook Islands in the South Pacific, are extremely precise navigators.

Whale Tail

(Image credit: Greenpeace/Paul Hilton)Marine mammologist Ygor Geyer tags a humpback whale while the director of the Cook Islands whale research team, Nan Hauser, records the event in Rarotonga, Cook Islands.

Tagging Humpbacks

(Image credit: Greenpeace/Paul Hilton)Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) regularly swim roughly 3,000 miles (5,000 kilometers) between breeding and feeding grounds.

Marine Giant

(Image credit: Greenpeace/Paul Hilton)Humpback whales can reach some 40 to 50 feet in length, here one is shown along the Cook Islands in the South Pacific.

Behemoth Undertaking

(Image credit: Greenpeace/Paul Hilton)The tags embedded in the skin and blubber of humpback whales are about 8 to 12 inches long and naturally fall off over time.

Radio Tag

(Image credit: Nan Daeschler Hauser)The Cook Island whale research team tag a humpback whale as it surfaces off Rarotonga, Cook Islands. The radio tag is embedded in the skin and blubber so scientists can track the animal's movements.