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from Observation Post #8 Biologist Wayne Perryman explains: "We stand watch from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., with each observer rotating positions each 1.5 hours. So the team of 4 are on watch 6 hours a day, each with a 3-hour break between watches."
May 12: We had 35 c/c pairs last week so the migration rate has held steady for two weeks. This puts the annual total at 150 calves so far, up from last year's full season count of 117. Migration is stretching a bit later than usual, and as yet has not indicated that it wants to slow down. Based on ice distribution from last April through July, we expected a significant increase in calf production this year — and so far we are on the right track! May 5: We had another good week, counting 34 calves in some marginal sighting conditions due to high winds. That brings our season's total to 116 calves, or one short of the full count from last year. So it is another poor recruitment year, but it will be up from last year when all is said and done. April 28: Things finally started picking up last week and we had 16 c/c pairs on April 25, our busiest day of the season so far. Total for the week was 58 calves, bringing our total for the season to 83. This is still very low (5th out of 15 for lowest at this date) but things seem to be increasing so: Are they late? Is calf production down again? More to come next week. April 22: It has been a slow year so far. We counted only 25 calves through last Friday (April 28), but on that day we had 6 calves (the highest day of the season). On April 21 we had 9, so things appear to be picking up. I don't expect a banner year, but I was hoping for a better year than last. April 15: Last week was a little slow, with 9 c/c pairs, bringing our total for the year to 12 pairs. It has been pretty windy so far this week, so we haven't gotten much effort in. We are still seeing more adults and juveniles offshore. That's usual, so maybe they are just a little late. This isn't the lowest count by this time; I think 5 of the 15 years were lower, and we are only counting 5 days a week instead of 6. So, it is too early to guess how this season will shape up. April 7: We are still seeing a fair number of animals offshore. We saw 347 adults/juveniles during our Monday-to-Friday watch. That phase of the migration is winding down now, so we should see fewer animals offshore and we will get more cows with calves as the week wears on. Total so far: 3 calves. April 4: We saw our first 2 calves today, so the northbound parade is starting right on time! April 2: We had a good week at Piedras. Started watches on Monday and got in about 52 hours of effort from Monday through Friday. We saw 380 adults and juveniles which is higher than average for the last week of March. All but 9 on the animals we saw were clearly in the offshore corridor ( about a mile offshore, the "highway" that the adults and juveniles follow), rather than the inshore path followed by cows with calves. We saw a few small animals in the offshore highway that were 1- or 2- year-olds. Looks like the northbound migration of adults and juveniles is a little later than normal, but nothing really significant. We expect to get a few calves this week as the adult count slows a bit and the inshore migration starts to heat up. March 24, Day #1 of 2008 Cow/Calf Census: Wayne Perryman reports: We had 85 adults and 1 juvenile recorded today. No calves, but this is early for that phase of the migration. Pretty normal here in paradise. March 10: No mom/calf pairs yet, but Mr. Perryman reports: Last season was off the chart for the low level of ice in the Arctic. I think that is the driving force behind what is clearly an anomalous year. Gray whales are reported to be turning the corner into the Sea of Cortez, and there aren't many calves in the lagoons from what I have heard. We plan to start as scheduled on March 24 and see how it goes. Feb. 18: Biologist Wayne Perryman finished a shore-based survey of southbound gray whales last week and won't start counting mothers and babies until March 24. He sums up and makes a prediction: "Weather was a challenge this year and we saw more calves born on the south this year than last. Based on an early melt of arctic ice last spring/summer, this should be a good year for calf production. Last year's estimate was very low (low 400s is the approximate number), and looks like it will be the third-lowest in the 14 year time series of counts." We'll have more photos and stories of Mr. Perryman's 2008 count of cows and calves in coming weeks! For now, meet one of his counting partners:
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