Whale Watching | Mammals
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Fin Whales are Flying! | Kera 
That's more rare than pigs flying!
I thought for sure I’d seen something spectacular when I saw a fin whale fluke this last year since they are a whale that is very shy with their tale. But on December 17, 2009, they decided to show me something even more amazing… a breaching show!
Whale Watching | Mammals
Thursday, December 10, 2009
They’re All Heading South | Kera
We’re a bit into December now and at this time we’re waiting for the gray whales to start passing by as they head south for the winter. While we’re out looking for the first grays, besides looking at the seals, sea lions, a variety of dolphins and sea birds, we’re STILL seeing blue whales!
Whale Watching | Mammals
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Telling Whales Apart | Kera
A continuation of the last blog
My last blog was about how I’d seen the same fin whale fluke three times in the last year. What makes this exciting is that fin whales don’t fluke. If you happen to have read the last blog, you might have been wondering how I figured out that it was the same fin whale all three times. This week’s blog is about how I use the pictures I take to tell whales apart!
Whale Watching | Mammals
Thursday, October 29, 2009
When a Fin Whale Flukes | Kera
Fin whales are the second largest animal in the world, only second to the blue whale. If you were to read up on the fin whale you would probably learn the longest recorded is about 89 feet, they look similar to blues, and that they rarely raise their tale out of the water while diving (fluking). Having read up on fin whales myself numerous times, when I saw a fin whale fluke I couldn’t believe my eyes! And even more amazing, I’ve seen fin whales fluke three times this year!
Whale Watching | Mammals
Thursday, October 15, 2009
How Many Whales Did We Spot this Summer? | Kera
Read on to find out!
I’ve calculated the number of whales we’ve seen from June 1, 2009 until last week from our logs! What an incredible amount of sightings and the numbers seem to be holding strong daily!
Animal Updates | Mammals | Whale Watching
Thursday, October 01, 2009
Orcas on the Way? | Kera
Anyone that’s ever chatted with me about whales has probably learned that my all-time favorite animal is the orca a.k.a. killer whale. Out of everything I want to study and be around, orcas are my number one! I’ve recently gotten a report that a pod of orcas are on the way and might be in Long Beach this week!
Animal Updates | Reptiles | Whale Watching
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Blue Whale Season Isn’t Over Yet! | Kera
Even though our summer has winded down, the blue whales and other wildlife haven’t seemed to notice. The blue whales won’t be here for too much longer, but they’re still showing strong. On my trip out a few days ago I saw six blue whales and bottlenose dolphins! What a trip!
Whale Watching | Mammals
Thursday, September 03, 2009
Something I’ve Only Ever Talked About…Until Now! | Kera
“Why are the blue whales here?” is a common question I get while working on the boat. The answer I most often reply with is “They’re here because they’re feeding on krill which is a small, shrimp-like animal.” Typically the krill they eat are pretty deep, around 500 feet or so, but I always mention how on rare occasions the krill are at the surface and the blue whales will lunge feed at the surface. I’ve never seen it done … until now!
Animal Updates | Mammals | Whale Watching
Thursday, August 20, 2009
How Do Whales Nurse? Let’s Find Out! | Kera
The past few weeks, we’ve been seeing a decent number of cow/calf pairs of blue whales. Just recently I got word that a calf was seen nursing! Now even though I haven’t witnessed this with blue whales myself, I did recently get to see beluga whales nursing!
Whale Watching | Mammals
Thursday, July 23, 2009
When Bottlenose and Risso’s Dolphins Mix! | Kera
Just the other day I was talking to Alicia, my whale watching partner, and we were discussing how I haven’t seen any Risso’s dolphins this summer. Risso’s dolphins are usually here all summer long, and it’s not uncommon to see them on a trip when we’re looking for blue whales. Well I guess the Risso’s dolphins heard me because that’s all I’ve seen the last couple of days. More than I’ve EVER seen, and even better, they were mingling with bottlenose dolphins!!!
