Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale

Open Ocean

The pelagic zone, also known as the “open ocean,” is the part of the ocean that exists away from coastal areas, and is home to many of the largest ocean animals. Thousands of humpback whales can be found in Hawaiian waters each winter. The largest concentrations may be found in the waters between the islands of Maui, Moloka'i, Lāna'i, and Kaho'olawe, as well as the area known as Penguin Bank – a bank extending approximately 28 miles southwest of west Moloka'i. Within the open ocean, microscopic plankton make up the base of the food web, the presence of which is influenced by large-scale oceanographic and atmospheric processes.