News from Observation Post #3
Laguna Ojo de Libre, Baja California, Mexico
News from the 2010 Season

Here's the latest from Keith Jones (Baja Jones Adventures) at the lagoon:

June 2010

June Summary: For each of the last 3 migrations the whale census inside Laguna Ojo de Liebre has dropped from the previous year. I suspect this is part of a natural rhythm and not anything catastrophic. In the late 1990s into early 2000 we saw the census climb from around 1,000 up to 1,500 and it stayed there until around 2006 when the numbers suddenly jumped to 2,000 whales. Year 2007 was similar, with more than 2,000. Then in 2008 the number was again around 1,800, still a high number. But 2009 saw a drop to only around 1,000 and for 2010 the count was 600 at the peak of the season.

Fishermen and clam diving friends have told me the water inside Laguna Ojo de Liebre was warmer than usual this year. Possibly this is related to the El Nino condition that has been present recently in the Pacific. The divers noted that an unusual and worrisome number of Chocolate clams have died in the clam beds. I’ve not read any research or other speculative reports. My conclusion at this moment is that a natural cycle is in progress, combined with water that is uncomfortably warm for the whales. Thus they are migrating, but not coming inside the lagoons. Or if they are coming inside, they don’t stay around for weeks or months, thus the lowered counts.

April 2010

April 30, 2010
Hola amigos y amigas: We think that the El Nino condition this year affected the migration I think that the water was warmer in the lagoons and a number of whales (who might normally come inside) chose to remain in the open ocean. Although the census count was down, this was a very satisfactory year for those who came along with us. Every group again had the opportunity to touch, pet (and yes, even kiss) some gray whale adults and babies.

March 31, 2010
Here is the official census in this lagoon. (Enlarge) How many adults? How many babies? Read the March 17 entry (scroll down this page) and then answer: How do these numbers compare with previous years? What might explain it?

March 2010

March 17, 2010
The migration this season followed the normal pattern: Whales began to appear in late December and the number inside the lagoon increased until February 15. Then, between the time the whale count was completed on February 15 and again on February 25, the population inside the lagoon began to decline. This is exactly what is expected. The only difference between this year and past years at Laguna Ojo de Liebre is that the whale count was so much lower. I'm waiting to receive the latest census figures from Laguna Ojo de Liebre, but my recollection is that their March 1 count showed the whale population down to around 520 or 550 total whales (down from the February 15 Census).

It was only 3 seasons past that the count was 2,000 and there were about 750 baby whales counted that season at the peak. There was a similar count for about a three- season stretch. Prior to that three-year time period, the count for many years ranged from 800 to 1,500.

The population counted inside the lagoons has varied considerably since I first began my whale watching career in 1995. This was an El Niño year again and much marine life is affected by this warm-water condition. Fishermen and diver friends of mine who work the water of Laguna Ojo de Liebre told me that they had seen many dead scallops this year. They think the water temperature is higher and may have caused the die-off of scallops. My speculation is that the water temperature inside the lagoon was so warm that many whales stayed outside. I haven't had time to review the census figures closely for the shore-based count done by ACS near San Pedro. I did look at the figures and they don't seem to be down significantly, just a little bit. This would seem to support my belief that the whales just are not coming inside with the same frequency, but that they are still around.

I do not count whales or do research because I don't have permits to do that. Population cycle fluctuations are normal in the migration and don't necessarily reflect the dangers facing the Gray Whale population.

March 3, 2010
Just a quick report from Laguna Ojo de Liebre where the gray whale migration is underway again. This year the census inside Laguna Ojo de Liebre counted the lowest number of whales in my memory of 16 years visiting here. Only 578 whales were counted at the peak of the migration this year. Many people, including the local biologists and scientists wonder what is going on and why the count dropped from a normal 1,500 to just below 600. Of note to me is that this is an El Niño year again with warmer water in the Pacific and inside the lagoon. Some fishermen reported to me that they have noticed large numbers of scallops that seemed to have died because of warm water. I wonder if the warm water inside the lagoon has kept many gray whales from coming inside the lagoon and they are instead gathering in the ocean outside the Bay. This is of course just speculation on my part and is not backed up by any research.

Chelsea Jones, age 13, sends photos from her whale watching trip to the lagoon Feb. 12-16, 2010:

Chelsea Jones, age 13, writes: My favorite part of the trip was being able to pet the whales! Here's a mama and a baby. The photo shows me and a boy (age 12) on this trip. Below is a mom and a baby.

February 2010
Feb . 17: Hola amigos Y amigas: On On February 12 we arrived on a 4-day gray whale trip. My 13-year-old granddaughter Chelsea is among the visitors. The whale census is very low. The February 8 census counted 573 whales with 183 baby whales. Three years ago 750 baby whales were counted and more than 2,000 whales total. There is no apparent reason for the change, which actually took place last year when the census dropped to around 900 whales at the peak time. More census counts are ahead.

	Chelsea Jones (left) on a whale-watching trip in 2002 at age five. She's standing next to baleen from a gray whale. Now she's 13 and visitng the whales again. Chelsea writes:
"Hi, I'm here to see the whales! One other other kid is on the trip, and we are having a blast. We are seeing a lot of baby whales and moms. We saw the adults jumping and spouting. I'll send photos and tell you all about it for the next Journey North report."

Laura, an adult on this trip said, "At first we shouted and pointed at every whale spout. But soon we stopped because there were so many sightings it quickly became 'normal' to see a whale swim up from below and blow a spray of water just feet from our boat." When a huge adult whale swam under the boat, everyone spent the next hour, "which seemed like only 5 minutes, taking turns touching, rubbing and even kissing this wonderful animal." Click the video to see what it's like to be in a whale watching boat in the lagoon!