To: Journey North
From: Anne Smrcina
Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary
Greetings!
No whale deaths to report this week, and that's a welcome change. Not so welcome is the answer to last week's challenge question about the reasons for the deaths of the right whale calves. The necropsies have not produced any hard data that can substantiate any theory, although the one possibility that is coming to the forefront is "barotraumatic shock" or death from pressure waves. Other possibilities that have been considered are a fast-acting infection (although no definitive evidence points to this), and pollutants in the water (a small possibility, but since the calves are nursing it would be hard for them to get these pollutants by ingesting them). There were no signs of body damage/contact indicating collisions with ships, and no indications of attack by other animals.
Chris Slay reports that there were only ten sightings last week -- things seem to be slowing down. Most of the sightings were of three different mother/calf pairs who seem to be slowly meandering northward. The researchers have also seen a pair of large juveniles haunting the beaches of Amelia Island. Chris says that his guess is that the whales are dispersing "and looking for the nearest entrance to the northbound lane of I-105 (the ocean version of route I-95)... the traffic flow is better but the road no less hazardous."
Chris also reports that the Navy has been particularly helpful this week with sightings. One report from a Naval vessel coming into Kings Bay afforded the research team an opportunity on Feb. 27 to obtain small biopsy samples of right whale blubber for analyses on contaminants in whale fatty tissues. The blubber samples will be sent to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution on Cape Cod for study. A Feb. 23 sighting by the Navy Destroyer USS MOOSBRUGGER, out of Mayport (near Jacksonville, FL), allowed the right whale team to identify a mother that had been missed by the aerial survey team. When the survey crew returned to the coordinates provided by the Navy, they found a sea-going tug and barge on a course that would take them dangerously close to the whales. The tug captain was notified by VHF-radio and was able to navigate around the whales safely.
The whales noticed up in Cape Cod Bay were definitely identified as right whales. The fifth grade students from the Wixon School in South Dennis (Cape Cod), Mass. were correct last week. I will be sending some journal entries from the students in my next report. They were taking part in a week-long environmental education program at the Cape Cod National Seashore that is sponsored by several school departments on Cape Cod.
The Center for Coastal Studies, which verified the whale sightings, sent out its vessel over the course of several days last week. On March 1, two boats went out -- the R/V Halos and the inflatable Catspaw.
Laurie Goldman, a researcher on habitat studies, noted that one whale was positively identified as "Staccato" (#1014) -- (Staccato has a mark on her back that looks like the musical symbol. She has had no calf since 1991. Researchers were hoping that she would have had one last year or this year.) Another whale, although not identified by catalog number, was easily distinguished from the others because of the number of circular lesions evident on its body. These kinds of skin lesions have been seen with increasing frequency on right whales in recent years; the cause is unknown.
Also seen during this day's research trip was a phenomenon called "sailing," a behavior reported frequently for southern right whales in Patagonia, but something never seen (to anyone's recollection) here in the northeast. The whale's tail was suspended high up in the air for noticeably longer than it would be for the continuous movement of fluking (flinging its tail up just before diving). The wind was blowing between 15 and 20 knots. Laurie reports that there were three to five whales together at that time, and that their behaviors were quite unpredictable: sometimes rolling, sometimes fluking dives, and sometimes these extraordinary "sailing" or "headstand" postures. She notes, "Once it occurred right beside us; these enormous flukes hanging high above the seas for several moments. As many times as we have seen these animals over the years, there are still sights like this that can take our breaths away. It was an exciting way to begin the season."
Now for today's CHALLENGE QUESTION # 25
"Do you think these whales were part of the group the researchers saw off the Georgia/Florida coast? Why or why not?"
1. Send an e-mail message to: jn-challenge@learner.org
2. In the Subject Line write: Challenge Question #25
3 In the Body of your message give your answer.
The Next Right Whale Migration Update Will be Posted on March 13, 1996.
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