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Migration
Update: March 30, 2011 |
Please
Report
Your Sightings! |
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Gray
whales
are surging northward. The first leaders
have reached Alaska. Reports are flooding in from Washington, and
California
Post #7 set a sightings record. Explore
the
order
of travel; what are the reasons behind it? Discover what's
so unusual in our Image of the Week.
This
Week's Report Includes:
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Image
of the Week |
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Whale
Watching: News from Observation Posts
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Click
on the globe to see the migration route. Then click
red dots for latest news from our Posts.
This week: See fresh field notes from #2, #5, #6, #7,
#8, #9 ,
#10
We
thank all the citizen scientists who report sightings. Be sure
to click sightings or
the dots on the MapServer for
their stories and comments.
Image: Michael H. Smith
"Patch" (Cascadia
Research ID# 49) is one of the regular returning gray whales
in Puget Sound.
Patch was first
seen
in 1991— and
every
year
since.
Image:
Michael H. Smith
A cow/calf pair migrates past Post #7!
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The first
gray whales to reach Alaska were joyfully reported March 19.
The whale parade is causing
big excitement off the coast of Washington, where highway
patrolmen directed
traffic
near Penn Cove because so many people had slowed or stopped
to see the
whales!
At Bainbridge Island, WA,"We've had whales every day for
almost a week." Many, like Patch, are old favorites returning. "Seeing
the gray on this beautiful 1st day of spring, I paused to reflect
on the
yearly visits
of grays in Puget Sound. How they represent the time of year
where winter is losing its grip—and the hope of warmer
spring days awaiting us all," wrote a whale watcher.
In
California, whales stream past Monterey Bay (#9) and
the two point-count sites.
Alisa
Schulman-Janiger at ACS/LA (#6) jubilantly
reported a
13-year record of 64 northbound on March 21! She predicts: "I
think that we will be seeing a good number of grays over
the next few weeks. Hopefully
they will
be accompanied by a bumper crop
of calves!"
On
March 29, Michael Smith's Counters (Post #7)
celebrated their first cow/calf sighting!
Their string of double-digit days included a new record
high. (See data.)
In
San Diego (#5) they
continue to see the gray whales heading North, notes Birch
Aquarium's Staci Shaut, but "it looks like many of the moms
and calves are still in the lagoons.
One of our naturalists just returned from our last trip to
Baja and said that the moms and calves were very relaxed.
Moms were spy hopping and breaching and even some of the
calves
were trying to spy hop,"
March 28 was day one of biologist Wayne Perryman's annual cow/calf
count at Pt. Piedras Blancas, CA (#8).
It brought good weather and more than 40 adults and juveniles
streaming past. The crew counted about the same on day 2, March
29. "No cows with calves yet but we are at the ready," reports
Mr. Perryman.
All
these observations indicate that the
migration will soon end one phase and begin the next. What
will we see?
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Migration
Order: What's the Pattern? |
Over
years of watching the migration, experts have seen that groups of whales
generally travel in surges. These jumps in numbers are called pulses. They
also travel in a certain order. Explore this animation with the help
of these questions:
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Tracking
the Migration: Using Daily Data |
Explore
This Week's Questions:
What a surprise we see in this
week's data! As you look at the numbers, think about these questions:
- Do
the latest numbers show any pulses (surges in numbers)
at Post #6 and #7? Any calves yet? Summarize what you see.
- Travel
time for a whale choosing a certain route between Post #6 and Post
#7 is just
under a day—maybe 22 hours—for mature
whales without
calves.
Since
Post
#6
had
a HUGE
day
March
21, folks at Post #7 were hoping to set another record
day on March 22. Did
that
happen at Post #7? Share possible explanations.
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Questions?
Prepare to Ask the Expert! |
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Marine Biologist Kim Shelden, our Gray Whale Expert |
What
Do You Wonder?
Click your way through the gray whale images in the photo galleries
as you prepare to Ask the Expert. Try to notice two things
about each image. What makes you curious? What would you like to
know? Wonder
aloud about
gray
whales and their migration, then prepare your questions. Marine
biologist Kim Shelden is waiting for them! Submit
your questions from noon on April 1 until noon on
April 15. Here's everything you need to know:
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Links:
Gray Whale Resources to Explore! |
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The
Next Gray Whale Migration Update Will Be Posted on April 13, 2011.
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CRC ID# 49 Patch: First seen in 1991 and every year since .