Visitors at the Jersey Shore say that there has been an increase in whale sightings off the coast in the last few weeks.

“We just had a banner humpback migration with a lot of activity and a lot of people capitalizing on it,” says Wall High School marine science teacher Greg Grober.

Grober says that he has personally seen a humpback whale at the Jersey Shore recently.

“I just felt blessed,” he says.

The whales are chasing menhaden, a type of bait fish. Recent restrictions put out by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission increased the population of the baitfish, bringing the hungry whales closer to shore.

“What I’ve seen in the rivers and off close shore…is a super abundance of the menhaden,” Grober says.

News 12 New Jersey reporter Jim Murdoch says that he saw about six whales between Belmar and Spring Lake Friday, all within an hour span. Murdoch says that many boaters were hanging out in the ocean to catch a glimpse of the whales.

“Boats will chase up on them. They’ll do their feeding pattern. They don’t seem to run away very quickly, and it’s good for both of them,” Grober says.

The whales are not expected to stay around much longer because they will migrate south as the ocean cools. Scientists says that the whales will migrate to Florida and the Caribbean.