gray whale – Syndication Server

Orcas try to kill ‘massive’ gray whale off San Diego; video

The killer whales “assaulted” the adult gray whale for nearly an hour in rarely documented behavior.

Killer whales from Mexico continue to thrill Southern California boaters while preying on dolphins and milling near vessels.

But on Friday off San Diego, a pod of Eastern Tropical Pacific killer whales was documented attacking an adult gray whale in a rarely seen predation attempt that lasted nearly an hour.

The accompanying footage was captured by Capt. Ryan Lawler of Pacific Offshore Expeditions. While the footage is graphic, the gray whale proved too large for the orcas and ultimately continued its migration toward Baja California nursing and mating grounds.

Delaney Trowbridge, also a Pacific Offshore Expeditions captain, described the encounter via Instagram, beginning her post, “Bloodied and bruised, but not broken.”

Trowbridge’s report included an image of the gray whale’s fluke with fresh bite wounds.

She added: “Over the last few weeks we’ve watched the Eastern Tropical Pacific killer whales plow their way through pods of common and bottlenose dolphins, but today their eyes were set on a much larger prize: a massive, adult gray whale.

“Despite their best efforts, lasting nearly an hour in their assault, the orcas abandoned their hunt and moved on.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Delaney Trowbridge (@seataceans)

Eastern Tropical Pacific killer whales, fairly common in Mexico’s Sea of Cortez, are considered rare visitors to Southern California. But that designation might no longer apply.

Alisa Schulman-Janiger of the California Killer Whale Project told FTW Outdoors that the ETPs have been documented off Southern California 18 different days since last Dec. 11.

While their presence is exciting for marine mammal enthusiasts, not everybody is pleased to see them linger for so long.

Reads one comment beneath Trowbridge’s post: “God Bless this Whale and any others tortured by these Orcas. They seem to be on a serious killing spree off of California and they typically don’t stay this long. This leads to many other concerns.”

Transient killer whales, commonly encountered in Monterey Bay, also visit Southern California sporadically.

Transients also prey on other marine mammals, including gray whale calves that pass through Monterey Bay with their mothers during the northbound migration to Alaska.

Watch: Jet-ski rider speeds over whale, almost hits boat

A photographer has captured drone footage showing a seemingly out-of-control jet-ski rider speeding directly over a gray whale and nearly slamming into a whale-watching boat.

A photographer has captured drone footage showing a jet-ski rider speeding directly over a gray whale and nearly slamming into a crowded whale-watching boat.

The accompanying footage was captured Sunday inside the L.A. Harbor breakwater by Daniel Genuth. It has no sound and is best viewed in full screen.

ALSO: Large bear vanishes in snow as if by magic; video

The footage was subsequently shared by Eric Martin, head aquarist at the Roundhouse Aquarium in Manhattan Beach, who wrote on Facebook:

“As [Genuth] was filming the animals feeding, he got a very horrible surprise. The jet-ski operator not only almost hit the whale, but almost hit the [vessel] Christopher. Then a sailboat went right over the whale, while the whale was feeding. I have no clue what people are thinking anymore when it comes to logic and our environment.”

Various gray whales have been feeding sporadically on the sandy bottom inside the harbor since mid-February, Martin told FTW Outdoors. At least two feeding there Sunday.

The footage begins with a whale surfacing with sand flowing from both sides of its mouth. Gray whales forage on sandy bottoms for crustaceans and other small critters. The sandy patches in the footage were created by feeding whales.

The Christopher, from Harbor Breeze Cruises in Long Beach, is visible at the top of the screen. The jet ski blasts into the picture at 35 seconds, passing over a whale. The driver then speeds toward and veers within feet of the Christoper before continuing the joy ride.

ALSO: Video shows elephant charging safari bus during harrowing encounter

It’s unclear what happened next, or if the incident was reported to authorities. Harbor Breeze Cruises did not respond to inquiries by FTW Outdoors and did not mention the close call in its Sunday Facebook report.

It’s worth noting that the jet-ski driver might not have been aware of whales feeding inside the harbor, and might not have seen the mammals. But the driver obviously saw the 65-foot boat and high-speed passes such as this are dangerous, if not illegal.

Martin said the incident occurred beyond the low-speed, no-wake zone, but added: “I don’t think he was out of the stupid zone.”

Gray whales are currently migrating from nursing and mating regions of Baja California to summer feeding grounds in Arctic waters.

Watch: Playful young whale twirls to the delight of boaters

Tourists in a Baja California lagoon enjoyed an extraordinary encounter last week when a gray whale calf twirled playfully within feet of the boat.

Tourists in a Baja California lagoon enjoyed an extraordinary encounter last week when a gray whale calf twirled playfully for a prolonged period within feet of their boat.

The accompanying footage, captured by Charlie Harmer of Silver Shark Adventures, shows the young whale spinning rapidly, as if showing off, as passengers laugh and cheer.

“That was amazing!” one of them exclaims afterward.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CNIHHiTBenX/

The unusual encounter occurred March 31 in Ojo de Liebre Lagoon, near the town of Guerrero Negro in the Mexican state of Baja California Sur.

Harmer told For The Win Outdoors that the mother and calf approached their boat and the calf became playful while mom simply “logged” or rested at the surface.

“Before we knew it, we noticed the calf blowing bubbles underneath us from time to time and doing these barrel rolls or spins off the side of the boat,” Harmer said. “Most were a couple of spins but there were a couple of times when it would spin and pick up speed with each spin.

“Everyone got really excited. It seemed like the calf was feeding off our energy and continued to spin. I’ve witnessed this behavior before from large adults but at a much slower pace. I’ve never seen a calf spin like this.”

The encounter, enjoyed by passengers from San Diego and Seattle, lasted five hours. Harmer described it as “one of the coolest days I’ve ever had in 10-plus years with a mom-and-calf pair.”

He added: “We all agreed we should name this whale ‘Twirly’ because of all the spinning and twirling it was doing.”

Baja California’s lagoons are seasonal nursing grounds for thousands of gray whales that migrate from Arctic waters during the winter.

The northbound migration back to summer feeding grounds off Alaska is underway but mothers with calves are generally last to leave the lagoons.

Watch: Tourist drenched by gray whale; ‘I was sprayed on purpose’

Beatriz Moreno knows a thing or two about stinky whale breath after her close encounter with a gray whale recently in Mexico.

Beatriz Moreno knows a thing or two about stinky whale breath.

Moreno, 30, was watching gray whales recently in Mexico’s Ojo de Liebre Lagoon when one of the mammals paused alongside the charter boat.

The accompanying footage shows the Glendale, Calif., resident positioning herself near the whale so Charlie Harmer, owner of Silver Shark Adventures, could capture footage of her wonderful encounter.

But at almost the precise moment when Harmer directed Moreno to look toward the camera, the whale exhaled a plume directly into her face and mouth, prompting a mixed reaction of joy and disgust.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CM3e3pyHkCw/

It’s clear that Harmer, who runs whale-watching expeditions at Ojo Liebre from February into April, had set up his client. But the timing was so perfect that viewers might wonder whether the whale’s action also was intentional.

“It feels like they do it on purpose,” Harmer told For The Win Outdoors. “That’s why I set her up, because I could see it happening based on the body language from the whale. I’ve been observing them for 10-plus years there, and after hundreds of encounters I can guess when this is going to happen.”

Said Moreno of the early March encounter: “The thing I feel when I play that video now and look back is just how human these animals are. They’re playful and there’s no doubt in my mind that I was sprayed on purpose.”

Call it an initiation of sorts.

Ojo de Liebre Lagoon and other Baja California lagoons are seasonal nursing and mating grounds for thousands of gray whales. During their stay, before they migrate back to feeding grounds off Alaska, they often interact with tourists on small boats.

The whales are curious and sometimes allow tourists to touch and stroke their skin, and because they exhale powerfully as part of their breathing process, tourists are sometimes sprayed.

Moreno said that throughout her time in the lagoon she was “mesmerized and incredibly aware of what a once-in-a lifetime type of moment I was living.”

Despite being pranked, she said she would gladly receive another gray whale drenching.

“Maybe this time I would close my mouth, though,” she joked.

Gray whale displays calf to boaters, image stirs emotions

After Capt. Alushe Camacho shared an extraordinary image Tuesday, showing a gray whale hoisting her calf almost entirely out of the water, his Facebook followers were quick to respond.

“What a beautiful photo,” one person wrote.

“The perfect shot at the perfect time,” another admirer stated.

But because the sight was so striking, with the large calf draped over its momma’s back and appearing motionless, some wondered whether it might be injured or dead.

https://www.facebook.com/alushe00/posts/3911330908965052

Additionally, there are scars on the calf’s back and its eye appears to be only partially open.

“Alive? Did you see him moving?” Asked Erin Johns Gless, a U.S.-based researcher.

ALSO ON FTW OUTDOORS: Tarpon leaps over boat, narrowly missing captain’s head; video

The image was captured last season, before the COVID-19 pandemic, in Magdalena Bay off Puerto Adolfo Lopez Mateos, in the Mexican state of Baja California Sur.

Baja California’s lagoons are winter nursing grounds for thousands of gray whales, famous for intimately close interactions between the curious mammals and tourists.

Momma whales occasionally play with their calves, and sometimes appear to show them off to boaters.

But behavior such as that captured by Camacho, with a larger calf being lifted so high, has not been widely documented.

Wrote Johns Gless: “I’ve seen mothers push their babies to help them breathe, but I’ve never seen one completely out of water like this on the mother’s back. If you saw it move, that’s okay, but this is very different than anything I’ve ever seen.”

She mentioned a well-documented case in which a Southern Resident killer whale, in 2018, carried her dead calf for more than two weeks off Canada and the northwestern U.S. in what seemed a period of grieving.

Camacho, whose family has run Pirates Tours for nearly 40 years, assured Johns Gless and others on the thread that the whale calf was alive and healthy, and that he would not have shared the image if that weren’t the case.

“It’s normal for whales to play with their mother and climb on her body,” he said.

Camacho, 33, told For The Win Outdoors that he has been leading tours since he was 21. He said a client captured the image and he’s the man standing at the stern of the skiff, wearing a red cap.

“Since I am the captain of that boat, I want to assure you that I saw that calf alive and swimming,” he said.

Gray whales are currently leaving the lagoons for their northbound migration to summer feeding grounds off Alaska. Mothers with calves are the last to exit the lagoons.

–Image courtesy of Capt. Alushe Camacho

Scuba divers’ rare whale encounter a ‘heart-pounding’ experience

For Christine Dorrity, encountering a gray whale while scuba diving Wednesday off La Jolla, Calif., was a “once-in-a-lifetime experience I will never forget.”

Dorrity and Elizabeth Benitez were diving at a depth of 55 feet when they spotted the whale rolling on its side and seemingly foraging on the bottom.

“We had to back up a few times so make sure the tail would not hit us,” Dorrity stated on Facebook. “My heart has never pounded so fast.”

Dorrity’s Facebook post caught the attention of Alisa Schulman-Janiger, a researcher who explained that gray whales forage in sediment by rolling onto one side and unearthing prey items.

Schulman-Janiger told For The Win Outdoors, “It’s most likely a southbound juvenile, getting close to Baja, and looking for a snack on the way.”

Gray whales feed predominantly on tiny crustaceans called amphipods in their summer range off Alaska. They migrate to Baja California each winter for the nursing and mating season. Some whales feed opportunistically during the migration.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CK3Cm6IhGd-/

Unfortunately for the gray whale population, food has been scarce recently in Arctic waters. The population has plummeted from about 27,000 whales in 2016 to about 20,000.

Dorrity’s footage shows the young whale – perhaps 30 feet long – stirring up sediment beyond La Jolla Shores, south of V Point. A second clip (posted above) shared via Instagram shows a curious sea lion swimming in front of the camera just before the whale appears.

[jwplayer gJIpBTpv-q2aasYxh]

Whale fails at social distancing with paddleboarder

A paddleboarder attempting to keep his distance from a whale off Southern California had a hard time of it because it kept coming at him.

A paddleboarder attempting to keep his distance from a gray whale off Southern California had a hard time of it because it kept coming at him.

“A couple of times he popped up right next to me, I saw the tail pop up right next to me,” Doug Griffith told the Orange County Register. “I just think it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I spend a fair amount of time in the water and you don’t see a whale every day.”

Also on FTW Outdoors: Watch ice fisherman pull a 50-pound fish through tiny hole

Photographer Matt Larmand, who captured video of the close encounter off Capistrano Beach in Dana Point on Sunday, told the Register it’s the closest he’s seen whales come to shore along this stretch of beach. It came within 10 to 15 feet of the beach at times. It also came quite close to Griffith, who told the Register it kept zigzagging at him.

“[The whale] was not keeping the 6-feet away like he was supposed to,” Larmand told the Register.

[protected-iframe id=”e479105595d377ba04f14556420864c2-58289342-9134387″ info=”https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2F340189479437567%2Fvideos%2F263532628118838%2F&show_text=0&width=560″ width=”560″ height=”315″ frameborder=”0″ style=”border: none; overflow: hidden;” scrolling=”no”]

For Griffith, who was paddling with his son and dad, the outing was a nice alternative to the whale-watching trip he and his son Fritz were scheduled to be on in Baja. It was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I don’t need to go to Baja now,” Fritz told his dad.

Follow David Strege and the outdoors on Facebook.

‘Friendly’ gray whale visit presents rare photo opportunity

A migrating gray whale paused to visit whale-watching boats Monday off Southern California, and for one operator this rare behavior represented a unique opportunity. Ryan Lawler, owner of Newport Coastal Adventure in Newport Beach, donned a wetsuit …

A migrating gray whale paused to visit whale-watching boats Monday off Southern California, and for one operator this rare behavior represented a unique opportunity.

Ryan Lawler, owner of Newport Coastal Adventure in Newport Beach, donned a wetsuit and slipped into the water just feet from the enormous leviathan, and captured a series of stunning images.

“The whale stared right at me!” Lawler told For The Win Outdoors. “But I don’t know how much it recognized or cared about me. It was instead very focused on the boat itself.”

ALSO ON FTW OUTDOORS: Coast Guard takes on massive surf in epic training session (photos)

Gray whales, which can measure 50 feet and weigh 40 tons, famously swim close to boats in lagoons along Mexico’s Baja California peninsula, where the mammals nurse and breed. But they rarely exhibit this “friendly” behavior during their annual migration from Alaska to Mexico and back.

Lawler and Capt. Alex Shaw went back out after a morning charter and were about one mile off Laguna Beach when the whale appeared and nudged the vessel with its snout. Lawler slipped into the water and captured footage while making sure to keep a constant hold onto the boat.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=me6h-gXdqzI&w=560&h=315]

When he was finished, Shaw dropped in and enjoyed up-close views of the whale, which moved slowly and gracefully, like a gentle giant.

“We were very cautious to just assume a position of being one with the boat,” Lawler said. “Since the whale was interested in the boat, we didn’t want to freely swim around the whale and potentially alarm it.”

Asked if he was tempted to swim freely with the whale, Lawler responded: “Yes. But … it was scary, too, since it was doing tight maneuvering around the boat, and to make those tight turns it was slashing its tail. That made me think twice.”

Lawler recalled Shaw saying “in particular how amazing it was to stare down this whale. Total eye contact, it was beautiful!”

The same whale also visited boats from Dana Wharf Whale Watching (see video) and Capt. Dave’s Dolphin and Whale Watching Safari. Capt. Dave’s video features a passenger gently touching the whale.

It’s not advisable to swim with or touch marine mammals off California, and it could be considered a violation of the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act if such actions alter the behavior of the mammals.

But in this case the whale initiated the contact, seemingly out of curiosity, and eventually continued its slow northbound journey.

–Images and video are courtesy of Ryan Lawler/Newport Coastal Adventure

Newborn gray whale bonds with mom in touching footage

Gray whale sightings are increasing off Southern California and some moms aren’t waiting until they reach Mexico to have their babies.

Gray whale sightings are increasing off Southern California and some of the moms aren’t waiting until they reach Mexico to have their babies.

The accompanying footage, captured Tuesday off Dana Point in Orange County, shows a cow-calf pair swimming slowly southward and beautifully illustrates the special bond that forms between a whale mom and her offspring.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_J4InJW0TE]

At times the newborn – perhaps only a day old – is resting on mom’s back near her fluke, and mom is seen gently hoisting the calf just high enough for it to take breaths.

The drone footage was captured Tuesday by Captain Dave’s Dolphin and Whale Watching Safari, and Dana Wharf Whale Watching.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CMcVx62CQE]

Both videos show the same cow-calf pair, and while the top video shows the whales in more detail, the bottom video shows interaction between sea lions and Pacific white-sided dolphins, and the newborn whale.

The footage helps to illustrate that, contrary to popular belief, not all gray whale calves are born in lagoons on Mexico’s Baja California peninsula.

Photo credit: Captain Dave’s Dolphin and Whale Watching Safari in Dana Point, California

The whales are migrating from Arctic feeding areas to the lagoons, where nursing and breeding occurs.

Schulman-Janiger said the peak period to watch northbound cow-calf pairs off Southern California is late April and early May.

–Videos courtesy of Captain Dave’s Dolphin and Whale Watching Safari and Dana Wharf Whale Watching. Photos courtesy of Captain Dave’s Dolphin and Whale Watching Safari

Stunning footage shows gray whale hanging out with surfers

The swell was fading, but for surfers at a SoCal beach on Sunday, the presence of a whale more than made up for any lack of waves.

The swell might have been fading, but for surfers at a popular Southern California beach on Sunday, the presence of a whale more than made up for any lack of waves.

The first video accompanying this post, captured by Daina Buchner at Black’s Beach in San Diego County, shows a juvenile gray whale lolling just yards from the shore, at times surfacing in the lineup as surfers paddled for waves.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4Q–29bM-Y]

“As for the surfers’ reactions, most of them looked curious and in disbelief,” Buchner told For The Win Outdoors. “Mostly they were trying to stay out of the whale’s way, but sometimes the whale was obscured by the water and that’s when the surfers were surfing next to it.”

At 53 seconds, a wave breaks over the whale, with surfers riding the wave on either side of the whale. The whale does not seem bothered by the wave or the presence of surfers.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MV6RR7VnSoM]

About 25,000 gray whales are migrating down the coast, from feeding areas off Alaska to nursing and breeding areas off Mexico.

Juvenile whales, not in a great hurry, sometimes appear to be more curious and adventurous, and might linger in one spot for hours.

Trystan Snodgrass, who captured the drone footage in the second video accompanying this post, was first to locate the gray whale at Black’s Beach.

His morning footage shows the whale in remarkably clear water south of the surfing area, in almost nonexistent surf. The whale, measuring 20-plus feet, seems to be lounging in a turquoise sea of tranquility.

“Apparently they’re known to take a breather once they reach Southern California and the waters warm up,” Snodgrass said. “It was there for at least a few hours on Sunday, and the next morning it was spotted by a friend and I saw it finally leaving the area around noon on Monday.”

Alisa Schulman-Janiger, a Southern California-based whale researcher, told For The Win Outdoors that juvenile gray whales are more likely to travel closer to shore.

The whale in the footage, she said, might have been relaxing and enjoying the turbulence against its body. But it might also have been searching for food, opportunistically, in the sediment.

“This whale quite possibly swam all the way from Alaska, traveling by itself,” Schulman-Janiger said. “That’s not unusual, so maybe it just stopped to rest and enjoy some stimulation in the waves and mud, to roll in the sand and remove parasites, and possibly forage.”

Gray whale sightings are starting to increase off Southern California. The peak period, according to Schulman-Janiger, is often around the third week of January.

–Follow Daina Buchner and Trystan Snodgrass on Instagram