| Please
Report Your Sightings! |
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For
whale watchers it's time for the greatest show on Earth! Pacific
gray whales are swimming south AND north along the Pacific coast.
Among those still headed
for Mexico were 17 new babies. Click through
today's slideshows to see why gray whales rule when it comes to amazing
animal migrations. Welcome to the 2010 season!
This
Week's Report Includes:
- Longest Mammal Migration: Where Are They Now?
- Sightings: Going Both Ways
- Journal: Good Whale Nurseries
- Tracking the Migration: Using Daily Data
- Links: Gray Whale Resources to Explore
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How
are whale moms and babies like human moms and babies? Photo Adrienne Deliso, Baja Ecotours, Laguna San Ignacio |
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As
you sit in cozy classrooms today, where are the Pacific
Gray whales? Click on the globe to see their
migration route. Are you surprised to learn that many are still
plowing
south on their 5,000 to 6,000-mile swim from Alaska to
Mexico? So far, only a few gray whales
have begun the northward migration back to the Arctic. As they
return northward up the coast, we'll be hearing first sightings
and news from a network of observers along the way. Will this
season bring more whales than recent years? We'll see. |
Most gray whales are in the warm lagoons of Mexico's Baja peninsula right now. They started arriving in December to mate, give birth, and nurture their newborns. Why do they migrate? How can observers spot them? And just how long are those one-ton babies? Why are they fondly called pickleheads? Find out in this slideshow: Gray Whales: The Monumental Migration. |
Two-way
Traffic
Whale observers along the California coast
have spotted a few whales migrating north. (Click the globe and
navigate to #6 for news).
Babies
in Lagoons and Babies Heading South!
But
the real action
right now is in the warm lagoons of Mexico's Baja Peninsula.
The whales swim so far south to mate and give birth — two
important
life cycle events. Most
births take place in two lagoons. But Caitlin's
news from San Diego (#5 on the globe) tells that some births
happen on the way. How
does being born in the open ocean during their mom's southbound
migration affect the babies? So far, scientists can only wonder.
Two scientists
tell you what they think: Southbound
Babies: Two Scientists Speak.
Photo:
Keith Jones
A curious and friendly mother and baby gray whale come to a tourist boat in one of Mexico's nursery lagoons. (Enlarge)
We
know why people like Mexico in winter, but why do the whales go there? Explore Life
in the Nursery Lagoons 
to answer:
- What makes the lagoons of Mexico's Baja Peninsula such good nurseries for baby gray whales? Use what you discovered in the links above to name at least two conditions. Tell why each is important.
Write your ideas in your Gray Whale Journal.
With each Journey North report, you can view current migration data showing the gray whale counts from two California counting stations (click dots #6 and #7 on the globe). This is called a point count. This week's handout offers questions about the latest data from the Los Angeles counting station. Where are those gray whale adults and babies (calves) — and which direction(s) are they going? Click Migration Data to find out.
You may wish to graph spring gray whale data at one or both point-count stations using blank student data sheets and graphs in this lesson: Tracking Gray Whale Migration from California Observation Posts.
- Welcome and Orientation: About Journey North's Gray Whale Migration Study
- Overview: Tracking Gray Whale Migration from California Observation Posts
- Learning from Experts: Southbound Babies: Two Scientists Speak
- Slideshow: Gray Whales: The Monumental Migration.
- Slideshow: Life in the Nursery Lagoons
- Using Data: Questions About This Week's Data
- Gray Whales for Kids: Overview (booklets, photos, videos)
The Next Gray Whale Migration Update Will Be Posted on February 17, 2010.
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