Amazing Photos!

rightwhales

This site has a ton of great photos of, mostly, right whales. Shows the whales in action! They are also very professional looking, and have great colors.

Be sure to check them out!

Gary

What's Really Out There?

There haven't been too many interesting stories to report about whales lately... usually the same old stuff about whales and any events regarding whales has been circulating the web. And that for several weeks. Nothing has occured that seemed break-through, or anything... However this was an interesting story:

Lessons from a whale stranding :: ABC North Coast NSW:

"The death of a female pygmy sperm whale found bleeding from its reproductive organs and wounded by shark bites on a Byron Bay beach this week, was inevitable according to scientists.

The whale was still alive when it beached but died shortly after."

In the lack of any special interest on the web or in the news circulation... if anyone would like to submit to me something that they came accross that would be fabulous!!

I'll take stories about whales in my inbox. Or leave a comment with a link in it and a description and if I find it substantially suitable for feature in the blog I will certainly make a post about it!!

Looking for anything you find about whales and whale watching that it worth posting up in this blog!!

Let me know

Gary

Behemoth Of The Air Spying On Behemoths Of The Sea

PM: Scientists Track Whales From A Fuji Blimp:

"The blimp is roughly the size of a Boeing 747, but 500 mph slower and, without ballast, lighter than air. This makes it the perfect vehicle for studying another behemoth: whales. Several species of this marine mammal are swimming dangerously close to extinction, but without knowing more about their behavior it's difficult for scientists to help them recover. It has never been easy to observe whales. They don't fit in a lab, and in the wild they spend only about 3 percent of their time at the surface."

A fascinating 3 article series of how several scientists around Cape Cod Bay are learning about whale behavior and studying the whales by tracking them and other things to better help protect the whales and determine how the populations of whales are doing overall.

Gary

5 Years, Baby Pilot Whale, RIP

New York Daily News - Boroughs - Whale washes up & dies:

"A baby pilot whale that washed ashore on Rockaway Beach died yesterday morning, despite rescuers' desperate efforts to save it.

The 5-year-old, 10-foot-long, 500-pound male whale was first spotted by locals sometime before 7 a.m. yesterday as it lay on the shore just off Beach 102nd St."

This is a sad story about an effort to save a young Pilot Whale that washed ashore, which nonetheless ended when the poor whale died.

Gary

Protecting Whales By Listening To Them

Untitled Document:

"Small survey planes, daylight and luck have long been the best tools for scientists hoping to spot the rare North Atlantic right whale. The results aren't too impressive.

An estimated one in four whales are spotted by aerial surveys, leaving the rest vulnerable to ship strikes or fishing gear entanglements. But scientists say an underwater listening system they're developing will dramatically improve detection and reduce whale deaths."

Here's a cool new tactic that scientists are trying to help prevent ships from literally crashing into whales... the North Atlantic Right Whale is the one in particular they are trying to protect better - which is one of the most endangered species of whales.

Gary

Blowing Up/Exploding A Whale

Cape Argus - Police blow up stranded whale:

"Police today used explosives to kill the Southern Right whale stranded on Mnandi beach, angering many onlookers.

But Nan Rice of the Dolphin Action Group said it was a humane way to put the whale down.

The blast destroyed the top part of the whale's head, bloodying the water.

Robin Adams, deputy manager of the Table Mountain National Park marine area, said it was 'very sad'."

This was a very interesting article that I came accross. Reporting that in South Africa that the police there used explosives to 'humanly' put out a stranded whale in shallow waters there.

The full story about the whole event of stranding and all can be checked out through the link.

Gary Schmidt

A Slow Death For Right Whale No. 2425

Injured Right Whale dying off Cape Cod :: Cape Cod Today :: Cape Cod News and Information:

"A tuna spotter sighted a 'tired and battered' right whale off the northern tip of Cape Cod late last week. The whale was emaciated and lethargic, with skin that looked gray, rather than a healthy black, and a chunk was missing from its left tail fluke.

Researchers identified it as Right Whale No. 2425, the 11-year-old female that was struck by the propeller of a 43-foot yacht near Cumberland Island Georgia on March 10."

This poor whale, one of the most endangered species in the world, has been under a lot of pain and difficulty over the last week after being hit by a yacht.

It's just disheartening to hear news like this.

Did the yachters even see the whale, and were they going against the marine mammmal conservation guidelines, by not keeping their distance like they should have? I beet that most people are ignorant of the rergulations, and they should know them... not just the commercial whale watching companies!

Gary

For Oil Or Whales

Independent Online Edition > Business News: "Shell is facing a mounting international backlash against its 11bn Pound plans to exploit the vast energy reserves off the coast of this former top secret Soviet military base north of Japan. It has already been forced to re-route oil pipelines that threatened to disrupt the breeding grounds of the critically endangered western grey whale, and has suspended other works."

With oil prices being so high I thought this would be an interesting post to that effect. Shell is under a lot of pressure to keep its operations from disturbing the endangered whales in the pacific (around Japan).

There's a delicate balance that must be maintained between human needs and the need to preserve the earth and species on this planet... and apparently shell is stuck somewhere in the middle of this.

Hopefully they clean it up soon...

Gary

Get Down With The Dolphins

Delivering Hawaii: Three Places to Interact with Dolphins in Hawaii: "Visitors to Hawaii frequently see dolphins from shore or on a whale-watching cruise or fishing boat. Visitors sometimes happen to be in the water snorkeling or kayaking when a pod of dolphins swims by. Some visitors even seek out dolphins, either by frequenting areas where dolphins live and play, like Kealakekua Bay on the Big Island, or by taking a boat tour that frequents areas where dolphins live and play."

If you're gonna be in Hawaii and wanna see some dolphins, or even hang out with them - even check them out up close this is a good article posted on a blog...

You can also use this The Guide to Whale Watching to find out ways you can see the endangered whale species and you can also use the same techniques and a lot of the information to see dolphins.

Check out the guide:
The Guide to Whale Watching www.theguidetowhalewatching.com

Gary

Hide-N-Seek With The Whales

Newsday.com: March of the Migration: Follow Wildlife As It Travels:

"Along the New Jersey coast in Cape May this summer, the whales are in hiding. One marine tour company has not spotted a humpback in weeks. They are redirecting passengers' attention to the dolphins.

Each winter, whale watchers on the Pacific Coast have the opposite problem: They can't avoid getting jostled by the mammoth creatures, which outnumber the boats in Mexico's San Ignacio Lagoon during the Pacific gray whale's annual migration. And forget about staying dry-- as blowhole spray drenches passengers like a garden hose."

Because of the reduced number of whales around today, and many other factors; it is getting even harder to find the whales.

It's almost like a game of hide and seek with the whales in many regions, such as the eastern seaboard of the United States as this article points out - but that isn't the only place!

If you really want to increase your chances of seeing the whales you want and not waste your time or your money you have to get this guide:' The Guide to Whale Watching. It shows you how you can drastically increase your chances of seeing the whales you want and how you can have the best and most memorable whale watching trip.

Check out:
The Guide to Whale Watching
www.theguidetowhalewatching.com

Gary