Today's News
A/CPB
Gray Whale Migration Update: May 14, 1997
Orca (Killer) Whale USFWS
To: Journey North
From: Laura Gorodezky, Channel
Islands National Marine Sanctuary
Hello again! We are still seeing gray whale mother calf pairs fairly consistently off Santa Barbara. This seems to be a record year for calves, which is really exciting!
There have been some sightings on Orcas in the Channel, and a helicopter pilot recently reported seeing Orcas following two adult gray whales. A calf appeared some distance away and the Orcas took off after it. The pilot had to return his passengers to the airport, so he couldn't stay around to see the outcome.
Laura Gorodezsky
We have started to see humpback whales in the Sanctuary in the last week
and a half. Usually we don't see them until late May or early June. It has
been particularly windy this spring which causes cold nutrient-rich water
to come up from the depths. Under these conditions, tiny plant plankton is
formed which attracts larger plankton like krill (tiny shrimplike
crustaceans that whales like to eat).
Eighteen Humpbacks were seen on May 4th (9 pairs) - some just 4.5 miles from the Santa Barbara Harbor. There have been lots of friendly approaches, breaching, lobtailing and fluke slapping. Most of the Humpbacks have been seen 2-6 miles NW of Santa Cruz Island.
I was able to go on a dive trip to Anacapa Island last week and saw a fin whale! Minke whales have also been seen in the past several weeks. It is great that we have such a rich and wonderful habitat for these large animals right in our own backyard!
Will Hagan, Macalester College
Finally, let me answer Challenge Question # 3:
Challenge Question # 3
"Based on the average speed gray whales migrate past Santa Barbara, California, how long will it take a gray whale to reach the feeding grounds in the Aleutian Islands?"
Gray whales have been reported to pass through Santa Barbara at about 4 nautical miles per hour. One nautical mile equals 1.15 statute miles. so that's about 4.6 miles per hour. Assuming the animals are traveling at a constant rate throughout a 24 hour period, they can cover about 110 miles in a day. The trip from Baja to Alaska is about 5,000 miles, so the whales might be able to cover this in about 45 days. It is probably a bit longer than this because they animals may stop to rest and feed. The mothers with new calves probably take even longer.
Laura Gorodezky
Education Coordinator
Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary
Santa Barbara, CA
The FINAL Gray Whale Migration Update Will be Posted on May 28, 1997.