Sometimes they twirl around while breaching. Breaching may be purely for play or may be used to loosen skin parasites or have some social meaning. Spyhopping is another humpback activity in which the whale pokes its head out of the water for up to 30 seconds to take a look around. It makes a very loud sound. The meaning or purpose of lobtailing is unknown, but may be done as a warning to the rest of the pod.
Humpbacks lobtail more when the seas are rough and stormy.
Slapping a fin against the surface of the water is another unexplained humpback activity. Feeding speeds are slower, about 1.2-3.5 mph. They have long, varied, complex, eerie, and beautiful songs that include recognizable sequences of squeaks, grunts, and other sounds. The songs have the largest range of frequencies used by whales, ranging from 20-9,000 Hertz. Only males have been recorded singing.