Latest news with #ErinGless
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
'Big Momma' humpback returns to Salish Sea with eighth known calf
No one knows exactly why humpback BCY0324, better known as Big Momma, decided to pivot right one day in 1997, rather than continuing north up the west coast of Vancouver Island for summer feeding. Maybe a giant swarm of krill caught her attention, maybe it was a huge school of baby herring. Whatever the reason, she was one of the first humpbacks sighted in inland waters, off Victoria, since the early 1900s, the executive director of Pacific Whale Watch Association, said. On Wednesday, May 21 she was spotted again, this time with her newest calf in tow. 'She's been returning ever since 1997, and now has at least eight calves, seven grandcalves, and four great-grandcalves,' said Erin Gless, Anacortes-based executive director of the Pacific Whale Watch Association. 'She's widely beloved for playing a key role in the recovery of local humpbacks. 'We're always eager to see who the first calf of the season will be and we're always anxious waiting for Big Momma's return. This year we got to celebrate both happy occasions at once!' Big Momma and her calf were spotted Wednesday in Haro Strait, northeast of Sidney Island, followed by several more sightings the next day. The calf, Gless estimates, is four or five months old, and stayed close to mom through every sighting. 'This is actually very, very early in the season, that's why it's kind of a big deal that this is the first baby (spotted), they'll be coming in all through the summer and they'll stay, usually, through October and November.' Pacific Ocean humpbacks spend their cold months in warmer climes, where they mate and the females give birth, then head north as far as Alaska, and south as far as Antarctica to raise their calves and feed. Adult humpbacks weigh up to 40 tonnes and grow to 18 metres long, with tails as wide as 5.5 metres, and they migrate as far as any mammal on the planet — Hawaii to Victoria is almost 5,000 kilometres one way and takes five to six weeks. Brett Soberg first saw Big Momma in 2003, off Vancouver Island's Sheringham Point and also with a calf. 'That was the first humpback I'd ever seen,' Soberg, who co-owns Eagle Wing and Wildlife Tours in Victoria, said. 'I've been in this industry since '97, so that was an exciting day for me.' When the passengers on his tours see Big Momma, he said, they are awed but also inspired to learn that each humpback has a unique personality, its own feeding technique, and feelings. 'Personally, the emotional connection and the power of the emotional connection is offering details about the individual animal as an individual, a unique personality, unique set of skills,' he said. 'When you share that, people are, I think, kind of flabbergasted a little bit. 'They don't realize the complexity of the personality of these animals, they all have personalities. That's the beautiful thing.' Big Momma, he says, looks healthy, happy and well fed. 'She's delightful, just one of those animals that has a really nice disposition and personality, and she is a fantastic mom, so she she's found a really good humpback-whale rhythm.' But more than that, she's been one of the keys to Pacific humpbacks increasing their population since commercial whaling was banned in 1967. It's estimated the humpback population in the Pacific fell to below 1,000 by the time whaling was outlawed. And, of course, none had visited the Salish Sea in decades before that. Today, Gless said there are probably about 25,000 humpbacks in the North Pacific, with about 400 or so coming to the Salish Sea to feed each summer and fall. 'Big Momma is a perfect example of how important a single whale can be to a population,' she said, pointing to the 19 calves, grandcalves and great-grandcalves of hers. There's no way of knowing how old Big Momma is, but humpbacks can live to be 80 or 90, and females do not undergo menopause so there may be many more of the whale's descendants yet to come. It's a perilous journey from Hawaii, especially with a newborn calf, Gless said: Big Momma has to swim slowly so her calf can keep up, and manoeuvre around fishing gear and commercial shipping traffic. 'And they do have a natural predator so they're trying to dodge orcas on the way, too,' Gless said.'We're thrilled that she's back every year. 'Waiting for her, we get really anxious, so it's a weight off our shoulders when she gets spotted again.' gordmcintyre@ Humpback comes within paddle length of startled kayakers in B.C. Four-day rescue operation freed a humpback whale off northern B.C.: DFO
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
First baby humpback whale of season seen swimming with mom off Washington. See it
The first baby humpback whale of the season has been spotted swimming in the Salish Sea off Washington, photos show. Big Mama was seen with her baby Wednesday, May 21, in the Haro Strait, northwest of San Juan Island, the Pacific Whale Watch Association said in a news release. Also known as BCY0324, the mom whale has had at least eight calves in the past 30 years, the conservation group said. The group estimates the newest calf is about 4 to 5 months old. It was seen in photos breaching from the sea. The two were seen again Thursday, May 22, with the baby staying close to its mom. Every year, humpback whales travel long distances to find warmer waters near Hawaii, Mexico and Central America to mate and give birth to calves, according to the association. The marine mammals then travel thousands of miles to cooler waters in the summer to feed, though the journey isn't easy, the association said. They have to make it past fishing gear, ship traffic and their predators, killer whales. 'It's a perilous journey, but one Big Mama has made many times before,' the group said in the release. Big Mama was discovered in the Salish Sea in 1997, decades after commercial whaling ended in 1966, the nonprofit said. Not only does she have eight calves, but she has seven 'grandcalves' and four 'great grandcalves.' 'We're always eager to see who the first calf of the season will be,' the association's executive director Erin Gless said in the release. 'And we're always anxious waiting for Big Mama's return. This year we got to celebrate both happy occasions at once!' Last year, Black Pearl was the first humpback whale to be seen in the Salish Sea with her calf, McClatchy News reported. Massive sea creature has 'friendly encounter' with boaters. See the 'rare' sight Elusive sea creature seen on Canada coast. See why officials are 'deeply concerned' Boaters follow 'spouts' in distance to find huge sea creatures feeding near CA
Miami Herald
23-05-2025
- General
- Miami Herald
First baby humpback whale of season seen swimming with mom off Washington. See it
The first baby humpback whale of the season has been spotted swimming in the Salish Sea off Washington, photos show. Big Mama was seen with her baby Wednesday, May 21, in the Haro Strait, northwest of San Juan Island, the Pacific Whale Watch Association said in a news release. Also known as BCY0324, the mom whale has had at least eight calves in the past 30 years, the conservation group said. The group estimates the newest calf is about 4 to 5 months old. It was seen in photos breaching from the sea. The two were seen again Thursday, May 22, with the baby staying close to its mom. Every year, humpback whales travel long distances to find warmer waters near Hawaii, Mexico and Central America to mate and give birth to calves, according to the association. The marine mammals then travel thousands of miles to cooler waters in the summer to feed, though the journey isn't easy, the association said. They have to make it past fishing gear, ship traffic and their predators, killer whales. 'It's a perilous journey, but one Big Mama has made many times before,' the group said in the release. Big Mama was discovered in the Salish Sea in 1997, decades after commercial whaling ended in 1966, the nonprofit said. Not only does she have eight calves, but she has seven 'grandcalves' and four 'great grandcalves.' 'We're always eager to see who the first calf of the season will be,' the association's executive director Erin Gless said in the release. 'And we're always anxious waiting for Big Mama's return. This year we got to celebrate both happy occasions at once!' Last year, Black Pearl was the first humpback whale to be seen in the Salish Sea with her calf, McClatchy News reported.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Famous humpback whale ‘Big Mama' returns to Salish Sea with new calf
The first humpback whale calf of the 2025 season has arrived back in Salish Sea waters, according to the Pacific Whale Watch Association (PWWA). The calf is believed to be the eighth calf of a whale affectionately known as 'Big Mama.' 'Big Mama' is widely beloved for playing a key role in the recovery of local humpbacks, the PWWA said. This is her eighth known calf in 30 years. Humpback whales aren't born in Salish Sea waters-- it's too cold. They migrate to waters off of Hawaii, Mexico and Central America before coming back to the PNW. 'Big Mama' is a part of the Hawaiian population and has made the trek from there to the Salish Sea many times. The pair was first spotted by PWWA members on Wednesday afternoon in Haro Strait on the US/Canadian border between BC's Sidney Island and Washington's San Juan Island, followed by several additional sightings on Thursday. The calf, likely four to five months old, stayed close to mom throughout the encounters. 'Big Mama is a perfect example of how important a single whale can be to a population,' said the PWWA's executive director, Erin Gless. 'She was first seen in 1997, and was one of the first humpbacks to return to the Salish Sea after the end of commercial whaling in 1966. She's been returning ever since, and now has at least eight calves, seven grandcalves, and four great grandcalves. It's very impressive!'
Axios
01-04-2025
- Science
- Axios
Narwhal prank fools Seattle on April Fools' Day
The joke was on us Tuesday morning when an Instagram post claimed a narwhal had been spotted in local waters for the first time in over a century. The intrigue: The post by the Natural Resources Defense Council claimed the appearance of the marine animal was a promising sign that the whale with a long, spiral tusk could make a comeback in Puget Sound. Reality check: Then we remembered what day it was. NOAA's Brad Hanson of NOAA confirmed it was a "great April Fools joke." "Narwhals have never been documented in Puget Sound," Erin Gless of the Pacific Whale Watch Association told Axios. They're typically found thousands of miles away in the Arctic Ocean near northern Canada, Greenland, and the European Arctic, per Gless, though there have been rare sightings near Alaska.
