Tag Archives: whale watching

The trials and tribulations of killer whale research – part 3

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And so at last to that final bullet point…

Being an object of sport for fast paced dolphins, while simultaneously navigating round humpback whales, testing an underwater camera and preventing an excited dog from falling overboard

Photo courtesy of Tony Thomas, Blue Ocean Whale Watch

Photo courtesy of Tony Thomas, Blue Ocean Whale Watch

Another day, another whale… Albeit not of the killer variety. Peggy, Cindy, Whiskie and I were out on a beautiful, sunny, calm day in the bay. Having spent a few hours scouting for orcas with no success, we heard on the radio that a whale watching boat had found a couple of humpbacks; some of the first to be arriving in the bay from distant ocean playgrounds. Monterey Bay is not a breeding ground for these giant hobos, but it is their equivalent of a favorite, abundant restaurant. The bay is a feeding hotspot and many species come here to fill themselves up. (Not that it has always been this way. Monterey Bay’s healthy diversity was almost destroyed by the fishing and canning industry in years gone by. Today it is a real, tangible, miraculous conservation success story… Reassuring to know that humans can instigate miracles occasionally.)

Photo courtesy of Tony Thomas, Blue Ocean Whale Watch

Photo courtesy of Tony Thomas, Blue Ocean Whale Watch

While humpbacks are not Peggy’s research subjects, she will collect photographs and data on them when the opportunity arises. As a novice boat driver, I asked Peggy to guide me as I steered closer to the whales to ensure I followed the correct protocols around them.

Photo courtesy of Tony Thomas, Blue Ocean Whale Watch

Photo courtesy of Tony Thomas, Blue Ocean Whale Watch

The humpbacks were busy doing what humpbacks often do; hanging out at the surface to breathe, diving down to feed and returning to the surface at intervals. For first time whale watchers, this mundane event can be quite a spectacle as humpbacks fluke when they dive, (i.e. stick their tales in the air to thrust their buoyant bodies underwater). But for us, a more fascinating view was to be found looking at the radar to see bait balls (tightly shoaled fish), both small and huge, appear as a fuzzy blur, and knowing that this was the feast that the whales were after.

In the midst of this relatively tranquil scene, some exciting newcomers were about to come flying out of the wings to take center stage… Pacific white-sided dolphins… Hundreds of them… Careening past at high speed…

Pacific white-sided dolphin, © Peggy Stap/www.MarineLifeStudies.org

Photo courtesy of / © Peggy Stap, http://www.marinelifestudies.org

I cannot give adequate words to describe the physical tremor of energy I feel whenever these dolphins are present. Whales are beautiful, huge and majestic… Killer whales are sleek, stunning and dramatic… But dolphins, especially these small, dart-like creatures, are so fast, so fleeting, so full bodied, that they move me in a far greater way. There is nothing to compare with seeing them in the wild; a screen of any dimension cannot convey the energy they give off. I have never met any other animal with the same overwhelming sense of firework-sparkle-dancing-aliveness as these creatures. There is something so abundant about the way in which they move through their fluid environment. As a dancer I see this movement resembling a spontaneous, glorious, joyfully improvised dance. And in the core of my body I sense a buzzing, tingling, expansive, limitless energy emanating from them. Us humans, apart from dancers and other physically engaged people, have all but lost the immediate, embodied joy that comes from moving in such a completely unrestrained, unselfconscious, freely flowing way. And what we have lost, we often cannot imagine existing in another creature and we cannot connect with the simple fact that Pure Joy can be found in the body, rather than in the head. My urge to leave the world of trapped-in-their-bodies humans and join these liberated-in-their-bodies dolphins is overwhelmingly strong when I see them moving in this way!

Photo courtesy of / © Peggy Stap, www.marinelifestudies.org

Photo courtesy of / © Peggy Stap, http://www.marinelifestudies.org

Peggy, Cindy and I were mesmerized with the fleeting glimpses of leaping dolphins passing us on all sides. And Whiskie… Well, she was at the bow of the boat greeting them enthusiastically. “Let’s follow their path”, called Peggy, “They might bow-ride with us!”

And with that came my most treasured memories of being in Monterey Bay this year. I turned the boat and maneuvered away from the humpbacks to follow the tracks of the dolphins as they headed SSW. Under Peggy’s direction, I increased speed while she stood at the bow with Whiskie at her side.

Photo courtesy of Tony Thomas, Blue Ocean Whale Watch

Photo courtesy of Tony Thomas, Blue Ocean Whale Watch

For a few gorgeously fantastic minutes we were as much at one with the dolphins as it is possible for three humans and a dog on a boat to be. Which I guess is not saying much really! But, to at least be travelling close to their speed, in the middle of a pod that stretched out around us in all directions, sensing their interest in us as they veered towards the boat to bow ride briefly before careering off again faster than you could think was possible, and catching sight, ever so briefly, of a glistening, curious, intelligent eye as it took a sidelong look at us in mid-leap… Exhilarating… Totally exhilarating!

Now, we might all know what that word means, and it may get overused in print, but stop for a moment and contemplate… How often, really truly, can you honestly say that you feel exhilarated? How many times a day, a week, a month or a year, is that word not an exaggeration of your emotional state? …Mmm, I wonder. Maybe for some of us it is more often than others, but there is one thing I am certain of; experiencing the natural world offers such mood-enhancing moments more than many other experiences in life… Although of course, being the strangely conflicted and complicated animals that we are, we often miss out on such offerings, choosing instead to make other experiences such as television, computers and material things more important. While those things provide distractions from our worries; a constant background static, that serves to numb our lack of joy, I do not believe they often provide a source of joy itself. But without doubt, a deep, true source of joy, exhilaration and contentment can be found in nature and in our body’s connection with nature. And when we disengage ourselves from the complicated, confusing, life-sucking traps we have surrounded ourselves with, we can connect with it, maybe only for a few fleeting seconds, but the replenishment and hope that such moments provide can sustain us for a lifetime.

Photo courtesy of / © Peggy Stap, www.marinelifestudies.org

Photo courtesy of / © Peggy Stap, http://www.marinelifestudies.org

Anyway, I digress. Exhilarating… And, kind of comical too. Cindy was desperately trying to record data while catching glimpses of leaping dolphins; being the data recorder can be a self-sacrificing role as you often miss the most spectacular bits of action, “Wow, did you see that dolphin do a double back-flip, front somersault, perfect dismount?” “What, again? No way, I was busy recording our GPS position!” I was steering, constantly having to adjust to the push of each wave, with one hand at the ready to slow the engine if needed. Peggy was at the bow experimenting with a new underwater camera, attempting to record a shot or two of the dolphins as they rode the bow wave in front of the boat. And Whiskie… Well, Whiskie was beside herself. I think dolphins must be her favorite cetacean; she certainly seems to get most excited whenever certain dolphin species are present. She was barking at them from the bow, running along the edge of the boat to bark over the side, running back to the bow and barking some more… Which is all very good for canine-cetacean-relations, as the dolphins seem to be as curious about her as she is about them, but not so good for general dog-health-and-safety. After an almost ‘dog overboard!’ moment, we reluctantly slowed the boat. At which point the dolphins carried on their way. They were still travelling past us on all sides, but we were no longer an object of sport for them. No speed, no game… They ignored us!

Risso's dolphin, © Peggy Stap/www.MarineLifeStudies.org

Photo courtesy of / © Peggy Stap, http://www.marinelifestudies.org

After that, the scene returned to a gentle state. We traversed a wide arc or two, attempting to lure a few more dolphins close, but then let them be as one last group of animals came gently lulling their way onto stage… Risso’s dolphins… A family group, with babies. “Breathe out, slow down, go with the flow, there’s no rush, enjoy a tranquil moment or two, chill man chill…” That is the feeling that these large, white, blunt headed, slow moving dolphins emanate to me. There can not be a much greater difference in state-of-being than can be seen between Pacific white-sided and Risso’s dolphins. If you ever thought a dolphin was a dolphin, then rethink! Although Risso’s can get frisky, (and I have witnessed some pretty fast paced and flirtatious interactions between the two species, as well as a Risso’s version of surfing), most often they exude calmness and a kind of languid ease. Meditative relaxation appears to be, at least from a blatantly humanized perspective, their forte. I would not be surprised to learn that Buddha had been a Risso’s dolphin in a previous life, thus giving rise to his future enlightenment in human form!

Risso's dolphin, © Peggy Stap/www.MarineLifeStudies.org

Photo courtesy of / © Peggy Stap, http://www.marinelifestudies.org

After that encounter, our day at sea drew to a close. We returned home happy even though we had not seen a single hint of a killer whale that day. And that marks the end of my accounts of assisting Peggy Stap of Marine Life Studies in Monterey Bay this Spring… But, I hope to visit her again next year to partake in another game of trials and tribulations.

For now, looking back on that day and the joyful-in-the-moment-tingling-aliveness I experienced, I fall once again into gently mulling reflections… It occurs to me that the greatest gift which Nature can bestow on us, its most unruly and delinquent of children, is the gift of Now. How many spiritual and life-coach gurus attempt to nudge us onto the path of being connected to Now; to this single moment in time rather than the projected future or completed past? It is, supposedly, one of the highest forms of emotional and spiritual intelligence to achieve such a connection to the moment, such a letting go of all desires, distractions and thoughts built up from our addiction to our egos, our past and future… To attain such a total immersion in Now-ness that it gives birth to the unique bliss of ‘being in the flow’… How strange then that, when quite probably every other creature on Earth bar ourselves is able to achieve and live in this state effortlessly, we cannot be graceful enough to credit their intelligence as being anywhere near our own, let alone superior. We have only just relatively recently gotten our collective heads around the notion that there are different types of intelligence in humans. Bless our cotton socks, (an English term of endearment, given with a gentle pat on the head), how much longer will it take us to collectively accept and appreciate that there are many other non-human types of intelligence, some of which far surpass our limited, cognitive abilities?

I wonder…

Photo courtesy of Tony Thomas, Blue Ocean Whale Watch

Photo courtesy of Tony Thomas, Blue Ocean Whale Watch

A nearly Christmas request…

For anyone who has enjoyed getting to know Peggy & Marine Life Studies either back in April/May 2011 or summer/autumn 2012, she is, as ever, in need of your support to continue her work. Please check the links below if you are willing and able to send a small donation her way…

A Gift that Gives
Birdies for Charity
Montery County Gives!
Donate a vehicle to MLS
Take it to the Streets

The trials and tribulations of killer whale research – part 2

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If you read my last post you will appreciate some of the difficulties and uncertainties of cetacean research. It is far from easy! Becoming a proficient researcher depends on having, or attaining, certain attributes of character, including: patience, determination and flexibility. The researchers I know have an almost limitless patience for, and acceptance of, the sometimes daunting, trivial, impossible, stressful, hilarious, frustrating or distressing challenges they face every single day. The average person could be forgiven if they gave up, wept and decided to become a cat-herder instead. But for a researcher, cetaceans are so infused into their being, in their blood, heart and head, that they could not conceive of a life lived any other way and will always find the means to further their research, whatever the obstacles.

To some of us, the point and validity of such research, and such a life, may not seem obvious. Who cares what the population distribution and abundance of a spotted dolphin is? Why would I want to know the male to female ratio of gray whales? What is so fascinating about the feeding behavior of sperm whales? Let the whales and dolphins be, why bother prying into their private lives!? But, from a wider perspective, who are we to question the validity of anyone else’s passion simply because we do not share a passion for the particular subject they are passionate about? Surely, we can respect and admire the simple fact that they are passionate about SOMETHING, and furthermore that they ACTIVELY pursue that passion and have not allowed the FEAR of doing so to conquer them. And, from mother Earth’s perspective, such research contributes to the quest to look after her ocean dwelling children, for which I am sure she nods her head in approval.

All of which brings us back to Peggy Stap of Marine Life Studies, one such whale-addicted researcher who spends the majority of her time initiating conservation and education work, and the minority engaged in her passion for killer whale research. My last post documented our research attempts this April, when elemental forces either prevented our expeditions entirely, almost resulted in an upturned boat or lavished us with an abundance of rain. But, what were those three remaining bullet points left hanging mid-blog? There is a little more of the story left to tell…

Chasing strange smells, oily slicks and elusive reports of killer whales

So, one morning as Peggy and I headed round the bay to Moss Landing harbor, we received a report that killer whales had been spotted far out in the bay, possibly hunting, possibly with prey. Our sense of excitement rose twofold! We met Kate and Cindy, readied the boat in double-quick time and headed out to sea. Peggy took the wheel; as a seasoned captain we needed her to drive us as quickly as conditions, safety and good practice allowed. Even so, it was an hour or more before we reached the last known coordinates of the orcas. As we neared the area, a strange smell was in the air. A hard to explain smell; kind of bloody and oily and pungent, although not distasteful. Peggy stopped the boat. The smell was distinctive and one that Peggy and Kate have smelt many times at sea; it was the smell of a kill, the smell of blubber and other internal parts. Somewhere close by and sometime not long ago, killer whales had been here with prey at the surface. Maybe they had made their kill here. Maybe they had dragged it here from another location. Maybe they had been eating at the surface, (orcas sometimes eat underwater, with the body suspended in the water column, and sometimes at the surface). There was no way of knowing and, likewise, no way for us to know what animal had died in the predator-prey dance today. We looked, gazed and scanned some more, each of us straining to take in an expanse of blue-green waves in a wide arc around us, stretching our vision to the horizon, which from the height of our small boat was three miles. We waited expectantly, hoping to catch sight of blow (a whale’s out breath) or better still, the tall, dark, distinctive dorsal fin of a proficient hunter. Nothing… The smell dissipated…

We carried on until we reached their last known coordinates, wondering how likely it was that they would still be here after so much time had elapsed. Alas, of course, they were already gone. We headed in the direction which they were last seen travelling in and maintained that course while our eyes ranged unceasingly across the bare horizon.

A while later we came across another hint that orcas had been in the area with a successful kill. It was an ‘EX’ day in terms of sighting conditions, with a very calm and glassy ocean around us, some sun but not too much glare. In the distance Kate spotted a patch of ocean that looked different from the rest. It appeared somehow smoother and had an oily looking film on its surface. We slowed the boat and drew up close to the oily slick. A similar smell to before hung in the air. This had undoubtedly also been the sight of a kill or a feast, with the oily patch created from the blubber and liquids of the prey. But, everything was frustratingly intangible… We looked, we listened, we smelt, but no orcas indulged us with their presence and once again we were left with as many questions as before. Had this been the same group of killer whales or a different one? How many had been here? What had been their kill? Was it the same kill as before or a fresh one? (We were quite a distance from where we had smelt kill in the air before, but orcas are capable of moving their prey, depending on the size.)

Our questions remained unanswered. We covered a huge distance in the bay that day, heading alternately in the direction the orcas had last been seen travelling in, by Peggy’s special map highlighting killer whale hotspots in the bay (built from her data on previous orca sightings), and by misguided instinct. Whenever we stopped we dropped the hydrophone in the water, as Peggy has on occasion found orcas from sound alone, but we never heard a whisper of killer whale activity. (Not that transient orcas are known for being loud; they often maintain silence in order not to alert their prey, but they will vocalize when not engaged in the hunt.)

At any point during the day they could have been close by, without us even knowing it. Kate and Peggy have professional-whale-spotting-eyes, but even with their experienced vision (and Cindy’s and my less experienced but still competent eyes), we were out of luck. Killer whales are experts at subterfuge; if they do not want to be found, they are capable of travelling underwater until out of range. And when they surface their fin may appear for only the barest flicker of time and, if your eyes happen to be scanning another patch of ocean, you can miss them. On one of the large whale watching boats we might have stood a better chance as sighting distances increases dramatically the higher up your vantage point. But, there was no point in wondering what might have been; cetacean researchers have many such days as these and must learn to take them in their stride.

At the end of the day, we headed home with reams of data recording near-sightings and evidence of killer whale activity, but nothing concrete and not one single photo of a magical, glistening, night-shade, peak of fin.

Now, I am going to jump bullet points to the short and sweet…

Briefly spotting three orcas, before inadvertently, but ever so quickly, losing them again

And that really pretty much says it all. On this particular research day, we heard a reported orca sighting on the radio and headed to the area. There indeed were three killer whales, which we saw for all of about three minutes before they dived out of sight and went on their secretive way… We never found them again that day.

In fact, in all of my two week stay in Monterey, this was our one and only killer whale sighting. (The action heated up a few days after I left, when on one occasion Peggy found orcas hunting a minke whale and on another, orcas and humpbacks interacting in unusual ways… So the flow of peaks and troughs takes us; we never know when we will be dealt a ‘lucky’ or ‘unlucky’ day, likewise for a minke whale, orca or any other animal.)

The Toxic Pinnacle

That last undealt with bullet point, (the one with dolphins and an excitable dog), I will save for a final post. But for now, one sobering fact. The transient killer whales that frequent Monterey Bay, among other places in the NE Pacific, enjoy the dubious title of being, possibly, the most toxic animals on the planet. Transients are believed to be top of the list because of their diet; whereas, for example, resident orcas eat salmon, transients eat marine mammals. This puts them just about as high up the food chain as it is possible to get. They sit on the very pinnacle and unfortunately this is a dangerous place to be.

I will write more about this topic in the future, but in a nutshell, some of the pollutants which we put into the ocean never, ever, quite fully disappear. We have produced substances to be so wonderfully long lasting, (we love plastic because it lasts FOREVER right?!), that they really do just that. They last, and last, and last. Unfortunately, of course, in our childish dismissal of consequences, we have managed to create very HARMFUL substances which LAST and LAST and LAST. So, when a tiny organism ingests a tiny bit of harmful chemical, that harmful chemical stays in its body; it does not get miraculously transformed by the animal into something less harmful, it is not excreted back out again, and it does not break down of its own accord. It stays put. So when that animal is eaten, along with several others, the harmful chemicals get transferred to the predator… And when that predator is eaten, along with several others, it gets transferred again. Once the toxin is in the food chain it never leaves; it just becomes ever more concentrated as it is transferred up the food chain. Right to the very top, the pinnacle, where sits our majestic transient killer whale.

Scientists do not know for sure yet but they believe that, although current adult male orcas contain higher levels of toxin than females, they will maybe, possibly, probably manage to live a decent, if possibly shortened, life. But, why do females have a lower concentration? The irony is pretty torturous… The miraculous life-giving gift of the female is to give birth and transfer her nourishment to her offspring. From within the womb, to suckling from its mother, a baby killer whale is being given frequent, concentrated doses of harmful chemicals along with its life sustaining nourishment. As far as human science has so far discovered, (and of course it is rare for objective research into the harmful effects of chemicals to be funded), these chemicals affect in particular, thyroid and reproductive functioning, and the immune system. The consequences of such poisoning to orcas, and other animals including ourselves, may only be clearly evident to the most willful of deniers once today’s young orcas grow up. Monterey Bay recovered from the last manmade wound inflicted upon it. Whether its inhabitants and visitors will recover from this more insidious wound is, as yet, unknown.

If you are reading this and wondering, “Yes, but what can I do about it, there is no point in knowing this stuff when it is not within my power to do anything about it, I’d rather not know!” The best advice I can give you is actually to find out more, even though part of you revolts at the thought of doing so. Do not even worry what you can or cannot do, just bring a researcher’s intense curiosity to the subject. Leave any feelings of doom and gloom, negativity, blame, guilt or impotence to the side; they are not useful. Simply choose to learn more. We all love surfing the net, some of us could do it all day long. So surf… Go and find some websites with more information… Those websites will lead to others… You will soon find yourself immersed in a whole new world of learning. We can only take small steps. I do not believe anyone will ‘Stand up and Take Action’ without first learning more and gradually, organically, increasing their capacity to care, to be active, to WANT to stand up and take action. There are things that you and I can do, that we can all do… But you are not going to do them if you have not first developed a strong enough PASSION, WILL and LOVE to do so, coupled with a researcher’s patience, determination and flexibility.

So, go and explore, in whatever way gives you pleasure to do so… And I’ll leave you with a few sources to get you started, some of which I am already connected with, but all of which are easy to find in about five minutes flat:

http://www.planetwhale.com/Save-the-Whales-Reloaded-launch   http://www.savethewhalesreloaded.org/?page_id=563   http://www.orcanetwork.org/nathist/WhalewatcheVol40No12011.pdf             http://5gyres.org/                                                 http://wildwhales.org/conservation/threats/toxins/  http://library.thinkquest.org/CR0215471/ocean_pollution.htm                   http://acsonline.org/   http://www.ted.com/talks/dianna_cohen_tough_truths_about_plastic_pollution.html   http://www.marinelifestudies.org/index.php/about-marine-debris.html
ALL KILLER WHALE PHOTOS COURTESY OF PEGGY STAP / MARINE LIFE STUDIES - COPYRIGHT BELONGS TO PEGGY STAP / MARINE LIFE STUDIES
KILLER WHALE WITH MINKE WHALE PHOTO TAKEN UNDER NMFS PERMIT #15621

Top ten things to take on a whale watching trip

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With my personal life taking centre stage and the completion of Lilanthro’s Story demanding my attention, cetaceans (aka. whales and dolphins) have not had much coverage on this blog in the last few months. I decided to remedy this situation by posting the following revised article originally written for Planet Whale. Interestingly, for me anyway, I wrote it after only ever having been on one whale watching trip, (and that was on a ferry, not a dedicated whale watching boat). Now, after having been on a fair few trips and research expeditions, I can say with confidence that the following top ten list stands the test of reality…

No matter where you are going whale or dolphin watching, whether you are spotting Orca’s in Canada, Humpbacks in Australia or Blue Whales in California, there is no denying the fact that a whale watching trip can be a once in a lifetime experience. So if you do not want to have that stomach churning sensation as you realise “Doh, I forgot the…” follow these top ten tips for the essential must have’s on your trip:

Binoculars

Binoculars are an absolute must and if anyone tells you that you do not need them, nod politely and walk away singing to yourself. Although photographs of whale watching trips often make the experience look as if it is a close up affair, this is not necessarily the case. Some whale and dolphin spotting is carried out from a medium to long distance; without binoculars you may be left saying “What dolphin?” in reply to people’s exuberant shouts of “Look at those Striped Dolphins leaping!” Here’s a couple of rules to remember: buy or borrow decent binoculars with a magnification between 7x and 10x; and keep the strap around your neck unless you want to see them flying overboard to be swallowed by the next big wave.

Layers, layers, layers!

You may be subject to all the elements on a whale or dolphin watching trip, from the strongest of sun to the chilliest of wind and rain, so be prepared for anything, as any boy scout could tell you. Even on a hot summer’s day, the ocean can be a cold place to hang around and on the coldest day a drop of sunshine combined with glare from the water can leave you sunburnt by the end of your trip. Wear plenty of layers, that you can take off and put on as required, and include wet weather gear. Take a hat to protect from cold and/or sun and sensible, waterproof footwear with good grip; do not be tempted to show off your new best shoes. Polarised or UV glasses are a great idea to protect your eyes from water glare and make it easier to spot whales as they swim underwater. Lastly, do not forget your sunscreen unless you consider a puffy red face to be the season’s most attractive new look.

Camera

When you return home and tell friends “You’ll never believe what we saw…” They may well reply “No we don’t; prove it!” Make sure you have your camera to preserve the memory of your experience and share it with others. A zoom of between 4x and 6x magnification is best; any more is impractical due to the movement of vessel and animal. Keeping your camera dry may be a challenge, so have a waterproof bag with you to pop it in when not in use. You may also choose to take a video camera to record some footage that will hopefully have your friends back home asking for more rather than pleading for a break. A word of warning though; a whale watching trip can be an emotional experience and one that will have most impact when you are fully engaged with it. Use your camera wisely and do not hide behind it for the whole trip or you risk dulling your experience down to a flat two-dimensional impression of what it would otherwise be.

Food and drink

If your belly is rumbling from hunger and your brain feeling disoriented from dehydration, you are unlikely to enjoy your encounter to the full. Take some snack food to keep you going and plenty of fluid to drink. Depending on how extreme a temperature you are likely to encounter, a flask of hot or cold drink could be a lifesaver.

Yourself; but on a good day

It is a simple suggestion but one that may be easily overlooked; DO get a good night’s sleep before you go on your trip and DO NOT be hungover or suffering from any other excess. Your body and your spirits (not the alcoholic kind) need to be in tip top condition for your adventure; you may have choppy seas to bravely navigate and downtime to patiently endure. It is essential that you are feeling alert so that you have the best chance of being the first person to spot the blow from a passing whale and the last person to lose their good mood when nothing exciting happens for a while.

Guide book

Get yourself a good whale and dolphin guidebook before you go. Whether or not you have children with you, your whale watching experience is likely to be more enjoyable and fulfilling if you know a little bit about what you are seeing. Not only will you be able to pat yourself on the back when you tell people you saw “a Sperm Whale!” as opposed to just “a whale”, you are likely to be even more awed by your encounter when you read about the lives of these deep-diving, squid-fighting leviathans. There may also be plenty of downtime on the trip when there is not a Fin Whale or Common Dolphin in sight; your guide book can entertain you during these lulls, maintaining your momentum until the next sighting is made.

Think like a scientist (or an artist!)

Take a notepad and pencil to record what you see, make a sketch, write a poem, or do whatever you may be inspired to do! Doing a bit of homework before you leave for your trip may even enable you to help with the research efforts of cetacean conservationists. Some conservation groups run cetacean sighting and photo-ID schemes which the public can input into; check out conservation groups in the area you will be visiting to find out if and how you can get involved.

Anything to help you avoid seasickness

Even a full night’s sleep and a good breakfast cannot guarantee that you will be immune from the ravages of seasickness. Wear comfortable clothing, pack any medicines or remedies you have been advised to take, (ginger sweets are given out on some boats), and have plenty of water and comfort food to hand. If you do suffer from seasickness, give the guide book to someone else, sit on the outside area of the boat and make sure you keep your eyes focussed on the sea around you.

Kidnap a guide

If you know a cetacean geek, take them with you! Failing that, if you want the most educational and illuminating experience, book a trip on a whale watching boat which has a nature guide on board. They are likely to be the best whale and dolphin spotter, ensuring you do not miss that elusive Beaked Whale as it dives beneath the boat. They will also be able to give you expert information about everything you see and put it across in a lively and engaging way. Some cetacean species are very hard to tell apart; they will not conform to the clearly drawn pictures in a guidebook and you may only get a glimpse of a dorsal fin on which to base your estimation as to species. An expert guide is the most likely person to be able to identify the animals you spot and may be able to confirm that you have indeed just witnessed the rarely spotted Cuvier’s Beaked Whale.

Lucky charm

Whale and dolphin watching can be a hit and miss affair. You may get lucky and have the most amazing encounter of the century or you may get unlucky and not see so much as a splash. To increase your chances of coming home smiling, if you have a lucky charm take it, if you can sing a whale-charming song sing it, if you can dance a dolphin-loving dance dance it… You get the idea!

Good luck whale watchers and enjoy your adventure…

Laurie Murison – a life of juggling

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Laurie describes herself as an “Intensely private person”. Much of her life is lived in the public domain, as the public face of GMWSRS and the ‘go to’ person who is constantly in demand. This in itself requires a juggling act of sorts, balancing her private life with her very public one.

Describing Laurie in a few words is incredibly difficult, she is a complex creature whose depths are mostly hidden from view. Some aspects of her character which are evident on the surface are her calmness, curiosity, passion, humour, (she has a sharp wit), intelligence, creativity, problem solving and mediating skills, and non-complaining attitude. She always wants to learn, desiring to know why something does or does not work, and she always wants to give of herself. Laurie veers towards optimism rather than pessimism and would rather treat life with lightness than heaviness. She is “Happy to be moderate in my emotions. Intense emotions are draining, I would not have the energy to hate or even to be ecstatically happy”. Laurie is a woman of the calm, centred, middle ground in many respects.

An important aspect of her character is her tolerance. Laurie describes this as something which “I try to carry throughout my life. Even if I do not like someone I remind myself that there must be something good about them. Tolerance is difficult, but nature can help us learn it. For example, in nature, homosexuality is very common, it is no big deal. Some humans turn it into a big deal. There is no need to do so, it is natural in itself”. This attitude is essential for her work as a conservationist, enabling her to juggle the conflicting needs of nature and people to reach the best compromise possible.

Another highly important aspect of her character is her attitude towards living a life of giving. This comes from a “Family tradition. My grandmother had to bring up her siblings from the age of 13, and then her own children and her brother’s, my mum brought my brother and I up as a single mother who also had to work. I brought myself up in some respects and was expected to solve problems from a young age. Living a life which involves so much voluntary activity, a charitable life, is just a way of life for me. It is something I accept and do without really thinking about it”. To Laurie, the way other people live their lives is strange. She cannot imagine a “9-5, five days a week, working for someone else” kind of a life. It would not suit her; she is too used to working under her own volition for the benefit of those around her. “Most people seem to think in terms of how much they are worth; for example, how much they should earn to carry out a certain job. Not so many people think in terms of how much they can give of themselves.” I remember Bob Bowman describing Laurie as a woman who is “Dedicated to being in service to the community”, I can now fully appreciate the reality of this.

In her seven day week during the summertime, a typical day for Laurie may go along the lines of:

8am = administration for three organisations (GMWSRS, Swallowtail Keepers Society / SKS, and unofficially Grand Manan’s Tourism Association), catching up on unfinished business from the previous day
9am = attending the research station to oversee the museum and gift shop
9.30 – 11am = emails (answering questions from tourists, whale watchers, researchers, consulting companies, fisherman…), banking, checking on any needs of researchers at the station, general DIY
11am – 4.30pm = marine biologist aboard Whales’n'Sails whale watch boat, educating tourists while collecting whale photo-ID’s and data
4.30 – 7pm = gift shop accounting, responding to messages and more emails, checking weather updates, downloading data and photos, ID’ing individual whales and studying their interactions and behaviours, more DIY
7.30 – 9.30pm = giving a lecture to local or visiting groups
After 9.30pm = completing data, writing articles, blog posts and newsletters
12pm = go to bed!

This pattern has some variations, such as delivering morning lectures to a holiday camp for teenagers, doing two or sometimes three whale watch trips, or responding to an immediate crisis such as a porpoise trapped in a weir or a dead animal on a beach, but her first priority is always the whales. The only time Laurie would not be aboard the whale watch boat (apart from in bad weather) would be to attend North Atlantic right whale meetings which fortunately seldom occur in the summer.

When people ask her “When do you eat your dinner?” she often replies with a laugh, “Oh, next Friday evening!” – the only guaranteed meal because she “Works for my dinner!” at a local inn on lobster night. Laurie usually grazes her way through the day rather than sitting down to eat. She and her husband Ken talk to each other “Once in a while”, and she also checks in on her mum and attends to her needs. The one character able to demand Laurie’s attention enough to take her away from her work is Gandalf. Gandalf is Laurie and Ken’s cat. He is an unusual cat who enjoys going on walkabout, and at least once a day he likes to go walkabout with Laurie. At some point every evening he will give Laurie the look of “We haven’t been for our walk yet!” and Laurie has to leave her work to accompany him on a stroll down to the beach and back.

During the winter, when the whale watch boat is not operating, Laurie’s schedule relaxes somewhat but still includes a seven day week. Winter allows time for her to catch up on all the tasks that may have remained at the bottom of her ‘to do’ list all summer, such as ongoing administration and management for GMWSRS, SKS and the Tourism Association. During winter Laurie writes funding proposals, restocks the museum and gift shop, attends meetings and conferences, reads scientific reports, scrutinises her own data, organises and sends ID photographs to various research institutes, updates the GMWSRS website, updates the North Atlantic Right Whale Adoption Program, provides maps and updates a small booklet for the Tourism Association, prepares for the following summer and carries out general maintenance. Winters allow her to talk to Ken more frequently, try to finish renovation projects on their own home without starting new ones, and, occasionally, take a day off. Juggling finances is, of course, an important and challenging ongoing task for the Research Station and Laurie has to manage all donations and create promotional material for GMWSRS.

As if Laurie’s life was not full enough, in recent years she has also taken on a community project to fill any spare minutes in her day. In 2008, the keepers buildings owned by the village of Grand Manan at Swallowtail lighthouse on Grand Manan Island had been empty for four years. Laurie, and other members of the community, formed a charitable organisation to create a new future for it. Swallowtail Keepers Society now manages the out-buildings, and hopefully, next year the lighthouse itself. Their long term aim is to host artists and musicians to run workshops, house historic information for tourists and generally be an asset to the local community. In the medium term they are looking for a summer live-in keeper, to manage the renovations and talk to tourists. But until then Laurie and Ken oversee the majority of the work taking place, from writing funding proposals and arranging fundraising events, to organising volunteer work parties, to managing students employed on renovation work, to picking up a power drill and renovating it themselves!

There are a few things Laurie would like to have the time to do in life such as gardening, enjoying calm, peaceful times with friends and having an outlet for her artistic streak. She loves music as it “Stimulates different parts of the brain” but has not played the piano or clarinet for years. However, overall Laurie “Enjoys most of what I do, otherwise I would not go through the pain of so much juggling! I am good at it but it can be overwhelming at times and I have to constantly keep the bigger picture in my head as well as the 101 small pieces of it. It can be stressful but that stress is alleviated by going out on the water with the whales. They are my first love. I also particularly enjoy the educational work as this gives me the chance to talk about what I love!”

Laurie’s passionate life of giving encompasses both the animal and human worlds. But it is her love and knowledge of the North Atlantic right whale which really intrigues me. I want to know more about these rare cetaceans who are hanging onto existence by the merest of threads. So it is these beautiful and highly endangered creatures, through the eyes and experiences of Laurie, who will be the focus of my next post.

Laurie Murison – from monkeys to bears to whales

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Laurie Murison says, “I am a researcher first, but then you see problems along the way and you try and deal with them, and that is how I also became a conservationist. Whales came first, conservation came later… And in fact I didn’t even mean to work with whales at all…”

Laurie was born and grew up in Alberta then Saskatchewan, in western Canada. She always loved animals, and at school she was also keen on science and maths. Her schooling during her teenage years made she aware that “We were headed for a very different world because of what humans were doing to it”. She became very interested in large land mammals, with her role models being the ‘Leakey Girls’. It was Mary Leakey who first discovered the famous early hominoid skeleton ‘Lucy’. The ‘Girls’ Dian Fossey, Jane Goodall and Birute Galdikas all worked for Leakey in their early days. Laurie would read about these incredible women in journals such as National Geographic and become inspired by them and the animals they worked with.

However, they were in Africa and Laurie was in North America. She remembers thinking, “I can’t get to Africa so it’ll have to be other mammals then!” The family sometimes took their vacation in the Rockies, so Laurie had plenty of large land mammals, such as grizzlies, to choose from. So, she took her degree in biology focussing on terrestrial mammals. At the end of her course she happened to see a poster advertising a study course on marine mammals on the west coast at Bamfield Marine Lab. She figured this would be good experience and it sounded interesting, so she phoned them up and was asked, “Can you be here in three days?” “Yes” was her reply and so, just like that, she went! (For anyone wondering; that sort of thing does not happen nowadays. The field is very competitive, and budding marine biologists have to prove their worth; remember how it took Peggy three years to get her resume looked at by Dr. Dan Salden?)

The course was not until August, but Laurie arrived in April to be put to work. She carried out maintenance, fed the octopi, and “Slugged mud”. Throughout this time there were various other courses going on which she was able to sit in on. Suddenly she was immersed in the world of marine mammals, getting to know a lot of people who were already in the know, and talking to marine biology students. Her course was run by Kenneth Norris, who was “An amazing storyteller. He had the ability to really get you in to the subject and visualise. He taught me to think like a whale”. His assistant was Jim Darling who was also good friends with Flip Nicklin and whose student was Beth Mathews… For anyone in the marine mammal world, these are big names, for anyone outside it, just believe me; they are big names!

At the same time, Laurie’s brother happened to know another whale-guy, Kerry Finley, who was working in the Arctic. Laurie remembers her brother advising her that she should “Think about studying and working with whales…”

Laurie decided to apply for a Masters focussed on marine mammals, and she wrote to Dr. David Gaskin requesting him as her professor. Amazingly, with the wonderful references she had gained from her time at Bamfield his reply was, “Sure!” In the meantime, before her Masters started, Laurie of course had to work and save up her money.

Dr. Gaskin happened to be carrying out North Atlantic right whale research in the Bay of Fundy, Canada. Now, right whales will feature highly in forthcoming posts as they are worthy of attention, so I will not write too much detail about them here. But just to give you a heads up; North Atlantic right whales are very rare… and that is an understatement. In 1968, Dr. Gaskin was working in the Bay of Fundy and he spotted right whales. He duly made and published a note of this in 1971 and was subsequently laughed at for his trouble. “There can’t be right whales there, there has never been right whales in the Bay of Fundy!” they cried. In 1980, a survey of the entire eastern seaboard was carried out and low and behold, an “Official discovery of right whales in the Bay of Fundy!” was made.

So Laurie joined Dr. Gaskin in the Bay of Fundy and began studying North Atlantic right whales. Gaskin was collaborating with a local fisherman and innkeeper; between them they were setting up a whale watch company, ‘Ocean Search’, to provide additional income for the two locals and a potential research platform for Dr. Gaskin. This was not whale watching as it is done today, this was a whole week’s package where whale watchers spent the entire day at sea, and in the evening watched films and lectures. Laurie began her studies in 1983. She worked for the whale watch company as a spotter on the boat, (with only 200-250 right whales in the entire North Atlantic, her eyes were very much needed), and in the evenings she was given the task of delivering presentations. Her work towards her thesis included collecting behavioural information on the whales, something which “I have not stopped doing since!”

Because of her additional workload with the whale watch company, the unreliability of field research and taking two summers to work with her brother’s friend Kerry Finley in the Arctic studying bowhead whales, it took Laurie about three and a half years to complete her masters. She was then faced with a choice; should she stay on Grand Manan Island in the Bay of Fundy which had become her home, or move on to a new place? Incidentally, Laurie met her husband Ken Ingersoll while studying her Masters; he was a local fisherman who assisted Laurie with her research, so the decision of whether to stay or leave was a joint one.

She chose to stay and has remained here ever since. The next question was one of survival; how to earn a living and also study whales. Luckily she was offered the job of becoming manager of the Grand Manan Whale and Seabird Research Station which paid a small salary. She additionally worked over the years as a naturalist on board commercial whale watching boats; today she collaborates with a great whale watching company based on the island called Whales’n'Sails Adventures. And she has also done “Whatever work I can get!” to bring in an additional income.

And that is how Laurie, who “Had no intention of becoming a marine biologist, but somehow I ended up in the ocean!” came to be here, on Grand Manan Island in the Bay of Fundy, studying North Atlantic right whales.

Throughout her time on Grand Manan researching whales, Laurie has become more aware of, and consequently more involved in, conservation issues and projects. As she says, “Once you get to know individual whales, and then something happens to them, it becomes personal…”

More about that next time…

Nature Expeditions – opening Peru’s secret treasure chest

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Peru is known for its inland treasures, for its mountains and rainforests, ancient ruins and rich culture. Tourists flock here to visit the Inca city of Machu Pichu high up in the mountains and conservationists tell the world to protect Peru’s diverse rainforest. But there is an undiscovered treasure in Peru, or more accurately, in its oceans.

Stefan lives every day in amazement at the bounteous nature of the ocean and in disbelief at how invisible it is to the rest of the world. Peruvians, conservationists, tourists, international organisations… anyone and everyone has the general perception of the waters here as being, “Cold, green, with no visibility and just a load of anchovies!” This part of the Pacific is vaguely known to have a high biomass (meaning biological mass, i.e. a lot of anchovies), with 10% of the world’s fish catch coming from here. But what remains totally unrecognised is its astonishing biodiversity (meaning many different animals, i.e. not just anchovies!)

The richness of the Peruvian coastal waters is the result of two ocean currents. One is the Humboldt Current, which flows northwards along the Peruvian coast, bringing with it cool oxygen rich waters from Antarctica. The other is a strong upwelling close to the Peruvian coast which draws up nutrient rich water. These two currents combined cause a very high production of algae, creating the primary level in the food chain, and consequently forming the basis for an extraordinarily rich diversity of marine life. There is one big party going on here, and everyone is invited, be they a charismatic whale or a humble mollusc.

The figures which Stefan gives are, quite simply, staggering. Over 30 species of cetaceans either reside or migrate here to feed. That’s 37% of the total number of cetacean species in the world, and they hang out right in front of Peru’s coastline. There are 1,000 species of fish, 600 crustaceans and 1,400 molluscs. There are sea lions, fur seals and sea otters. There are 87 species of marine birds, 27 of which are albatrosses, shearwaters and petrels, and seven are gulls. These numbers can literally fly overhead without really sinking in, but Stefan painted a very clear picture when he described the Galapagos albatross.

“People travel from all round the world to see a Galapagos albatross on the Galapagos islands. But how much time does this bird spend there? It hatches… then it disappears… it comes back as an adult to breed for a few months… then it disappears. Where does it go? It goes to a place where it can find food and that place is here in the waters off Peru where it lives for 80-90% of its life!”

Bird lovers, divers and whale watchers flock to other well-known destinations to see cetaceans and birds, or go diving and kayaking. But Peru remains an unknown hotspot. The water here is dense, it is a “Floating soup of food”, but with no existing culture of marine tourism to promote it, no one knows of its rich beauty. Stefan’s pioneering marine ecotourism company Nature Expeditions is attempting to change this status quo.

When Stefan takes tourists out on trips with Nature Expeditions, they are at a loss for words. He has guided dolphin researchers from Europe, who often spend a whole week searching the Mediterranean to find just one pod of dolphins. In Peru they see three or four pods of dolphins on just one trip and their mouths hang open when Stefan tells them this is an everyday occurrence. More than 1,500 individual bottlenose dolphins reside along one short stretch of coastline south of Lima, which means there are a staggering six dolphins per kilometre.

He has guided kayak tour operators who have never in their life seen as many species of marine birds and animals as they see here on a two hour kayak trip. And he has watched tourists become emotional, even hysterical, at the experience of seeing dolphins swim up to the boat and look them in the eye.

On diving trips, Stefan smiles at divers who are amazed to see rocks covered in a carpet of life not just one animal deep, but two or three animals all sitting on top of each other! Stefan told me that he knows of one kelp forest diving spot in America where there are 40 dive operators all diving in the same area. In the kelp forests off Peru Nature Expeditions is the only operator in existence.

When Stefan takes tourists on trips to Parakas, to the south of Lima, they are blown away by the contrast there. To view the dead nothingness of desert meeting the alive richness of the ocean, and to watch dolphins leaping out of the water against a background of dramatic sand dunes, takes their breath away.

One of Stefan’s personal favourite nature experiences, which can be had a short boat ride from Lima, is swimming with sea lions. There are only five places in the world where you can swim with sea lions, and generally they have the added excitement of a potential shark attack thrown in. In Peru the sharks do not come close to sea lion colonies; there is just too much food for them elsewhere. As Stefan says, “Swimming with dolphins is not half as great as swimming with sea lions. Sea lions make contact with you, they come and very gently nibble at you to see what strange creature you are. They are funny, they play, they sneak up on you from behind and shoot away when you turn and look at them!”

In could be assumed that it is a blessing for Peru’s ocean to remain unknown to the world at large. After all, surely this means that it will not become spoilt. However, in Stefan’s words,

“That’s bull****! The ocean here is being overfished, contaminated and destroyed, and no one knows about it. Nobody sees the plastic bags and other waste floating in the waves. Because no one sees it, there is no one to shout out ‘Wait! What are you doing to this beautiful, ocean!’ Conservation only works when people are aware of the fact that beauty can disappear. When no one is aware, no one cares, and when no one cares, unscrupulous people are free to continue destroying.”

I asked Stefan what he hopes Mundo Azul and Nature Expeditions can achieve in the future. He replied, “Helping people to discover the beauty, so that they can care and take action to protect it.”

There is a huge potential in Peru for marine eco-tourism. At present Nature Expeditions is leading the way. Stefan is not worried about competitive companies being established because he knows there is room for them all. Indeed, the more successful Nature Expeditions and other companies become, the more known Peru’s ocean treasures become. Stefan hopes this would start the metaphorical snow ball rolling on its way to bringing him a much deserved income, providing incomes for other local people and, most importantly, gaining the worldwide recognition which the area needs to ensure its protection for the future.

But before we can carry on exploring Stefan’s hopes for the future, there are current issues still to address. Illegal dolphin killing is one example of how the oceans around Peru are not being looked after or noticed by the world at large. In my next post I will be writing about the work which Stefan, Nina and Mundo Azul have undertaken to end the trade, and what further measures are still needed to successfully bring it to a stop.

Peggy Stap – her best bits!

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You may have noticed that every whale related job Peggy has ever done has been as a volunteer. Peggy calls it the “3 M’s method – Maui, Monterey and Michigan!” Whale research has been her passion and vocation, but it has never made her wealthy. I asked Peggy to tell me about her most memorable encounters from her love-affair with cetaceans and why these experiences make her feel like the richest person alive. She found it hard to answer, “I’ve been lucky enough to have so many amazing experiences, it is hard to pick some out”, but with a bit more begging from me here is what she came up with:

The first time that Peggy lived her childhood dream of swimming with dolphins was in 1998. She was asked by the Oceanic Society to work on their Spotted Dolphin Project in the Bahamas over the summer. Participants on the course were learning photo ID techniques. At the dive site Peggy was the first person in the water to check things out while the students were getting ready. She remembers the amazing sensation, part hearing, part feeling, of the dolphins echo-locating her, and listening to their various whistles and clicks. Then she had the good fortune to watch the dolphins at play. One dolphin found a piece of seaweed and carried it in its mouth, then flicked it to its pectoral fin, from there flicked it to its tail flukes and from there passed it to another dolphin. Peggy was exuberantly happy to be treated to watching a graceful dolphin equivalent of a football game.

Peggy remembers the first time she got really close to a Humpback whale while researching in Maui. On this particular day she was snorkeling with the whales, documenting their behavior on film. A Humpback chose to swim up from the depths straight to her till it was within two feet of her with one eye staring straight into hers. It then swam past her so close that its pectoral fin moved under her body as it passed her. Peggy remembers keeping the advice of another researcher at the forefront of her mind with the words “Do not worry, stay calm and stay still.” At the same time her own voice was calling out in her head, “I love you whale!” To this day those are the only words she has to describe this encounter as she was, and is, so in awe that any other words simply fail her.

While working one year for the Oceanic Society in Monterey Bay, a Humpback decided to mug the boat. ‘Mugging’ is the term given for a curious whale who approaches a boat to investigate. It circled the boat for a while and then played its own game with the people on board. It started on one side of the boat, with all the people hanging off that side looking at it, then it dived and resurfaced on the other side. Of course all the people ran to the other side… Then it dived again and resurfaced on the first side, and all the people ran back to that side… This continued for a while with the people on the boat looking like drunken sailors staggering from one side of the boat to the other and back again. Then finally, for the grand finale, the Humpback threw its tail up on the starboard side of the boat. For a glorious moment it sent its fluke arcing over the boat itself so that the people had to lift their heads to see it above them before it dived down and away. Everyone on board the boat, including seasoned researchers and naturalists, turned into little awe-struck children that day, giggling and smiling their way back into port.

Around 2005 Peggy was with a volunteer researching in the bay. Two Orcas were close to the boat with another one further away. The boat was stationery and Peggy was lowering the hydrophone into the water to record their vocalisations. She heard a “Kerplunk” and looked up to see the third Orca pop its head up ten feet from the boat. Then it disappeared again. Through the headphones she heard a “Ssshhh, sshhhhh” sound. What was making this strange noise? She gave a little tug on the lead and to her surprise there was a tug back. She tugged again and felt another stronger tug back. Suddenly she realised that she was engaged in a tug of war with an Orca. The Orca, with its inquisitive nature had come to investigate the hydrophone, taken it in its mouth and was now pulling it away from the boat. For a minute or two Peggy was worried it might tear the hydrophone from the lead, but a moment later it let go. For the next 45 minutes the recorder, which was accidentally left running, recorded an ongoing conversation along the lines of, “Oh my god, it had it in its mouth! What do we do now? Do we put it back in? What if it comes and grabs it again? Oh my god, can you believe that? I know, I know, that was incredible, it had it in its mouth!”

In 2010, Peggy was researching in Monterey Bay with new volunteers. They had spotted a Blue whale quite far from the boat but then it had vanished again. 45 minutes later they were sitting with the engine off and the hydrophone in the water, trying to locate Orcas by their vocalisations. Out of nowhere the Blue whale surfaced about 400 yards from the boat. Then it kept surfacing and circling round until it was heading straight for their boat. 80 feet of Blue whale headed straight for the stern of their 19 foot boat. By now, Peggy had got the video camera going and was thinking “Oh my god, oh my god, I hope I’ve got this in frame!” The volunteers experienced a mixture of awe and fear that the whale might ram the boat. Peggy had to “Sssshh” all their exclamations so she could capture the sound of its blow on the video. The Blue whale came within 10 feet of the boat and then dived giving them the best possible view of its magnificent fluke before it disappeared into the depths, never to be seen by them again. When Peggy later sent in the photo ID for the whale she learned that this particular individual had only ever been recorded twice before, in 1987 and 2006. Peggy says that this encounter still amazes her; it is the only time she has ever had a Blue whale come so close, it was just “unbelievable”.

In 2008, Peggy was in Maui assisting on the filming of ‘Humpbacks – from fire to ice’ by Ross Isaacs. Peggy was in the water when two Humpbacks approached. It was a female and her calf. The mum kept swimming towards Peggy and each time she did so Peggy tried to slowly retreat so as not to get between mum and calf. But at one point she could not retreat any further because of the positioning of her, the whales and the boat, so she lay completely still instead. The female Humpback swam close so that it was within two feet of her and parallel to her. The calf swam up to them both and decided it wanted to get close to its mum. So it gently squiggled and wriggled its way in between Peggy and its mum, making contact with Peggy while doing so, like a child climbing into bed between its two parents. As the calf nudged its way in, Peggy was gently rolled off to one side. While she certainly did not ‘fall to the ground with a scream and a shout’ (lyrics to a children’s song), she did cry a fair few tears of love and gratitude that day.

In all of Peggy’s encounters she has held strongly to the belief that you never reach out to touch an animal. It is their world and we are visitors; if they initiate contact then that is their choice but the choice should always be theirs. She says of swimming with dolphins, “You do not swim with them, they swim with you if they so choose. And if they do choose to do so, you are truly blessed.”

When I hear Peggy speak of her experiences, I have the greatest tingling sensation when she refers to them as, “Touching the soul”. Peggy has of course had many encounters with humans as well as cetaceans during her years as a conservationist. More about whether or not those experiences have also touched her soul and what she thinks about humanity’s role on this planet next time…

Awesome Orca’s all round

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Peggy and I are conducting research on commercial whale watching boats. Peggy has her own research vessel but with rising fuel prices and the costs involved in making the boat sea-worthy, she cannot afford to put it in the water. She had a choice; she could afford to take the boat out in the spring OR the autumn, but not both. She chose the autumn as she has collected less data for this time of year so needs to balance her research. This is the everyday reality for a conservationist; a lack of funds means difficult decisions must be taken regularly and life cannot always be as one would want. Peggy’s absolute first love is to be out on the water with the animals and she would spend 90% of her time at sea if she could. But often she may only get 10% of her time at sea with the other 90% being taken up on land carrying out education work, fundraising and other organisational tasks.

However, a mere lack of funds and dedicated research boat will not stop us getting out there and doing the research. Luckily, Peggy has an excellent relationship with most of the whale watch operators in and around Monterey, so we are able to go out on their boats several times a week. We may only get a few hours at sea rather than a whole day and cannot get as close to the animals, but we can still collect a wealth of data and photographs for the photo ID catalogue (used to identify individuals).

Now I have to tell you about the encounter we had this Wednesday but firstly I must give a mention to Monday. Monday was my birthday and we were welcomed on board Monterey Whale Watch’s boat ‘Princess Monterey’ owned by Benji Shake and captained by Leon Oliver. My birthday presents that day included seeing a pod of Risso’s dolphins and two groups of Humpbacks, with some spectacular breaching (where the animal propels itself out of the water) and fluking (where the animal dives and shows it’s tail, or flukes, as it does so), followed by flowers and dinner from Benji, and cake from Peggy. A lovely day all round.

But now, onwards to Wednesday. We were invited to join Naturalist Kate Cummings and Captain Jim Davis on Blue Ocean Whale Watch’s boat ‘High Spirits’.

We were hoping for Killer Whales, or Orca’s as they are often known, as these are the main focus of Peggy’s research, and Peggy had made a wish that morning to come across a group close to the boat. The transient Orca’s (transient meaning they are not resident here but roam over large areas of ocean), can enter the bay throughout the year but spring is a particularly good time to find them. At this time they are in the bay to hunt female Gray Whales and their calves. The Gray Whales are migrating through the area from Baja California in Mexico, where the mothers have given birth to their young, to their feeding grounds in the North.

This would be my first ever encounter with them, if we were lucky enough to find them, and they were a species which I had a secret wish to see close up. Well, we found them and had what turned out to be one of those rare encounters that happen once in a deep blue moon.

I’ll give you a running commentary version of events:

We are about 40 minutes out of port when Kate spots what she thinks are going to be Humpback Whales up ahead. Ten minutes later as we draw close it becomes apparent that these are not Humpbacks but Killer Whales. Suddenly there are Orca’s seemingly on all sides. They are spotted in front, then to one side, then further off to the other side. How many? Hard to tell at this point. They are moving purposefully in different directions, porpoising through the water, (leaping the waves to create less friction and travel faster). They are on the hunt, although hunting what exactly we cannot tell. Are they chasing multiple prey? Have they already corralled one victim away from a group or its mother to play with it before the kill? We keep watching, not fully aware as yet of the significance of the unfolding drama.

We have counted at least seven Orca’s by now with males, females and calves, but there are probably more as they have split off in different, disorientating directions. Up in front the action becomes more lively, with one or more Orca’s going into attack mode, leaping out of the water and crashing back down, possibly lunging on their prey, although the prey is still not visible to us. The breaches out of the water where the Orca’s entire body flies through mid-air for a flash of a moment are spectacular and draw stunned gasps from everyone on the boat. Then there is a split second moment where one adult Orca leaps and while in mid-air I glimpse something just ahead of its mouth; it has to be the prey. In that moment, Peggy and Kate are snapping away on their cameras with no idea of what image they may capture. Is this the actual moment of the kill, or was the victim already dead? Is it a Harbor Seal or Sea Lion fated to be their feast this day? We do not know, but I am aware of opposing feelings of thrill at having witnessed such a spectacle, gladness that the Orca’s have food to eat and empathy for the doomed victim.

After this climactic moment their behaviour changes. The pace slows, there is some general milling about with Orca’s popping up on different sides of the boat. Are they relaxing after their frenetic activity? Who is eating the kill? We do not see the prey being eaten so will never know if the calves are the ones to feast on this day. We do however have the privilege of seeing an adult Orca spyhop twice right in front of the boat (sticking its head directly up out of the water to take a peek at whatever is around; in this case us). In this moment their character appears different to us; from sleek, fast, determined, professional hunter to playful, inquisitive, multi-focussed and aware creature. (Although our human interpretations may be meaningless to these beautiful animals whose intelligence and consciousness are so different from ours.)

Their behaviour shifts again as they set off travelling in one clear direction, moving sometimes at the surface and then diving for a few minutes before resurfacing again further ahead. We hear that another boat about three miles ahead of us has also been with a group of Killer Whales. Have the two groups been communicating? Is our group now travelling to meet the other group further out in the bay? We follow the pod as they maintain their direct line of travel, by now we know there at least 11 individuals, but maybe more, with at least two males in the group, (mature males have much taller striking dorsal fins than females and immature males). Somewhere along the way, the group splits with some heading off southwards and the others west; whether any of them meet the group further out in the bay remains unknown to us as it is now time for our boat to start heading back to port.

All in all, we spend over an hour with this pod of Killer Whales and everyone is exuberantly happy, if a little exhausted, from the excitement of the experience. And I would say that none are more happy than Kate and Peggy who know better than anyone how rare and fortunate an encounter this has been

That night, Peggy sat in front of the computer going through over 500 photos from the trip. It was only now that we discovered in amazement that she had a picture of the actual kill. Now we could see that the prey was not a Seal or Sea Lion at all but was in fact a Harbor Porpoise.

… Or so we thought. The following morning, when looking with less tired eyes and comparing with Kate’s photos, we were able to determine that it was not a Harbor Porpoise but a dolphin of some kind.

…Species as yet unknown.

For more photographs look at Blue Ocean Whale Watch’s photo page!