Photographs Capture Humpback Whale’s Seattle Visit, Breaching in Waters in Front of Space Needle

Seattle—Pictures released by a conservation group show a young humpback whale breaching in front of the Space Needle as it visited the waters off Seattle last week, capturing a rare display of wildlife next to a major city. The photos were also used to gauge the general health of the whale and create a serial identification number that will help researchers keep track of the young marine mammal. This young whale, which is estimated to be about two years old, now has the designation of CRC-20899, according to Cascadia Research Collective. The photos were taken by Jeff Hogan, co-coordinator of the Seattle-branch of Soundwatch Boater Education Program. Mr. Hogan shadowed the whale for most of its time in the bay to alert other vessels to it. Mr. Hogan said the whale looked healthy and watched it breach nearly 30 times....