Fall's Journey South FINAL Update: November 19, 1999 Today's Report Includes: Live from the Bering Sea Whale Trail: Challenge Question #6 Follow the Ice Pack Watch Out for Winter: Discussion of Challenge Question #5 Get Ready to Track the Gray Whale Migration Next Spring! How to Respond to Today's Challenge Question Live from The Bering Sea Imagine your school is in a village on a narrow peninsula in the Bering Sea. No roads link your school to anywhere. The only way in or out is by small airplane or boat. The weather decides if and when you leave your village. Since October 24, snow has covered the ground. As you look out to the sea, you can see the gray whales start the long migration to their winter homes in Mexico. Where are you? Nelson Lagoon (55.9 N, -161W) in the Bering Sea! Journey North asked the students in Mrs. Concilus' class at Nelson Lagoon School to tell us what is happening with them and the gray whales right now. Here's what they wrote: "We saw the last gray whales here in Nelson Lagoon on September 25th. The whales were on their way to California because it is getting cold and the water will freeze up. The most interesting thing we have learned about gray whales is how huge they are and what they eat. Once in a while they get stranded here and die. We see dead whales on the beach sometimes. Photo Courtesy of Laura Frances "In the spring, we take walks to watch the whales coming back. We have to be careful because that's when the bears wake up. We have brown bears here. "Right now we have emperor geese. They usually stay until the water freezes up which is about the end of November. "In the winter, we don't see any whales or bears here. We have other animals that we see in the village. We see foxes, otters, caribou, seagulls, geese, wolves, trout, ptarmigan, snow birds, wolverines and saltwater ducks." The students at Nelson Lagoon School would love to hear from you! You're invited to write to them at this address: rconcilus@nelsonlagoon.aesd.schoolzone.net You can drop in for a visit at Nelson Lagoon School's Website, too. Whale Trail: Challenge Question #6 The students at Nelson Lagoon School said the whales are on their way to California. Each October or November, gray whales leave the frigid waters of their northern feeding grounds in the Bering and Chukchi Seas between Alaska and Siberia. In about two months of continuous swimming, these 40-ton giants migrate southward up to 6,000 miles. In the sheltered bays and lagoons of Mexico's Baja California coast, they gather by the thousands to court and mate. Many females give birth to calves conceived the winter before. Each spring, the grays leave their warm lagoons to swim north to their Arctic feeding grounds. These gray whales travel farther than any other migratory mammal on Earth. How do they know where to go? Send us your ideas for Challenge Question #6: "How do migrating gray whales find their way?" (To Respond to this Challenge Question, please follow the instructions at the end of this report.) Follow the Ice Pack Winter is about to grip the Northern Hemisphere. The whales are on their journey south. The students at Nelson Lagoon wrote, "It's getting cold, but the water is not frozen yet. It will probably freeze in December, around Christmas." Will their prediction be right? As winter closes in, you can watch the formation of ice pack in Nelson Lagoon and all over the Arctic by visiting Sea Surface Temperatures and Sea Ice Analysis Website. Watch Out for Winter: Discussion of Challenge Question #5 We've been talking a lot about ice! Last week we asked "Why would it be a problem for a loon to be on a lake when ice starts forming?" You may know that loons are excellent fliers. But did you know that these heavy birds with the large feet must run across the water for about a quarter of a mile before taking flight? Like jets, loons need long runways to gather speed before lifting off. If there's ice on the lake, they can't run for lift off, and they may become trapped on the lake. The folks at Loon Watch told Journey North that every year a few loons are frozen in when the ice forms. Why? Perhaps these loons are sick, haven't yet built up enough energy to make the flight , or aren't strong enough to take off. We hope they all get airborne this year! Get Ready to Track the Gray Whale Migration Next Spring! This is the FINAL Journey South report for 1999 -and for the century! But we'll be back next February, tracking the whales' return for a new season in their northern feeding grounds. Until then, watch what happens to the ice pack in the whales' Arctic home, and meet Journey North here again in the spring! How to Respond to Today's Challenge Question: IMPORTANT: Please answer ONLY ONE question in each e-mail message! 1. Address an e-mail message to: jn-challenge-fall@learner.org 2. In the Subject Line of your message write: Challenge Question #6 3. In the body of the message, answer the Challenge Question. This is the FINAL Journey South Update. Watch for "Signs of Spring" beginning February, 2000 Copyright 1999 Journey North. All Rights Reserved. Please send all questions, comments, and suggestions to our feedback form