Is this normal?
Posted by Jabercaw@reddit | whales | View on Reddit | 33 comments
Whale sighting at Gray Whale Beach, location is Northern California today (4/25).
Posted by Jabercaw@reddit | whales | View on Reddit | 33 comments
Whale sighting at Gray Whale Beach, location is Northern California today (4/25).
Wonderplace@reddit
I’d call someone. Is there some type of animal welfare organization?
Jabercaw@reddit (OP)
I tried calling, getting stuck in a loop of voicemail.
My_2Cents_666@reddit
The Marine Mammal Center
Jabercaw@reddit (OP)
That is the one. Left them a message, looks like they don’t work on weekends.
erossthescienceboss@reddit
The MMC mostly handles smaller marine mammals like sea lions. Do the NOAA stranding hotline.
benbugman@reddit
Did it appear to roll on one side repeatedly and then make coordinated surfacings to breathe? This whale may be in distress but it could also be doing a behavior called “sharking” where the whale turns on its side and sticks its pec fin and part of its tail out of the water. It is typically associated with foraging.
Jakku-Kun@reddit
I would love to read more about this, but I'm struggling to google it correctly [ I keep getting whale sharks, not whale sharking] do you have any reference links??
basically_clueless@reddit
https://www.thespout.org/when-should-i-go/
https://visittheoregoncoast.com/travel-guides/how-to/gray-whales-close-encounters/
https://www.instagram.com/reels/Czbe9cRxCiI/
when you google it put "sharking" in quotes, and that forces it to look for an exact match, so I typed.
Whale rolling shallow water "sharking" and found lots of results and mentions in the context you're looking for:
https://www.google.com/search?q=whale+roll+on+side+in+shallow+water+%22sharking%22
deleted_by_reddit@reddit
[removed]
benbugman@reddit
The “sounder” gray whales, a group of around a dozen gray whales that take an extra feeding stop in Puget Sound are experts in super shallow water foraging so researching them in particular should have a bunch more footage and information showing those behaviors.
erossthescienceboss@reddit
I can’t really tell from how short the video is — but there IS a chance this may be normal. On years where the water temps are abnormal, grays do come in near shore to feed. Yes, sometimes even in past the breakers. They feed by scooping up sand, water, and the teeny crustaceans that live in both & filtering them … which often does involve turning on their side in shallow water.
So what you need to ask is: did the whale appear to be moving under its own power? Did it turn over often to breathe? Or was it getting pushed around by the waves?
We can’t tell from this clip.
Mic98125@reddit
The coolest water is near shore. The Pacific is unusually warm right now and many animals are starving.
erossthescienceboss@reddit
Yeah, we had a lot of grays come in near shore in OR and CA and feed inside the breakers during the Blob, too.
It’s really sad — but it does make for amazing near-shore whale watching and some cool behaviors. The closest I’ve ever been to a whale was sitting on a low rocky cliff during the Blob — and I’m saying that as someone who used to work on a whale watch boat! I could feel their breath when they spouted.
foreverhawk@reddit
Where in Northern California is this?
DanoPinyon@reddit
Grays do this every year in CA. We watched one this close 5-6 years ago north of Shelter Cove.
Jakku-Kun@reddit
I've read that greys venture into the shallows and stir up sediments to forage for invertebrates, and it can look like this. Though the fact it's that close to shore is a little worrying. I wonder if it got stranded from heading too close to shore while feeding?
Nanna_Geddon@reddit
Ohhh, no. Not another dead one is it? Does that make it 14 now? Something's very very wrong. But I'm no Marine Biologist not ANY kind of 'ologist' whatever but ... the Pacific Plate *has* to be moving; was a quake in Hokkaido earlier this week & they're all grey whales, all in the western edge of the Plate (WA, OR) they're saying starvation but how long does it take for a grey to starve? By the size of those in the video from WA showing two on beach, both looked immature length-wise. I'm sad. Concerned. Worried. Scared. We all are. I know. I'm just an old artist who illustrated a kids book 40yrs ago & chose a grey as they were most endangered back then. Still - it feels personal. Like happening to friends of mine.
Is there a central site we can keep up with this? Anyone know? Thanks.
hodgsonstreet@reddit
This comment is kind of hard to follow, but this occurrence has nothing to do with the earthquake in Japan last week.
Nanna_Geddon@reddit
Thanks - USGS has quite a few, yeah. But they don't centralize die-offs, like the enormous krill die off somewhere in Oman last week. Wish there was one though.
hodgsonstreet@reddit
Again, the ‘quite a few’ is completely normal. There has not been any increase in earthquake activity.
Nanna_Geddon@reddit
Just to clarify since I'm up front about not being any kind of 'ologist': mid 90's, west Africa coast reported massive 'dead zones' in several places, etc. had the actual studiers of such areas way concerned, one of whom was the brother of a dear friend, a genuine Marine Biologist with more than the one degree; we called ourselves 'the Cousteau stepkids'. It was finally discovered that fissures had appeared directly underneath these massive areas in previous weeks had released cyanide-like gasses that killed everything as it floated to the surface. (as has and does occur in Yellowstone: sometimes officials have to shut down trails, roads around the Mammoth Springs with big signs not to go there) It was recorded that the dead zones would dissipate over weeks or month, changing shape & moving along the coast following currents & tide flows. Mid-90's. A huge deal back then. I don't remember seeing anything about the association in the news, yet knew because of my friend & was in their publications though. This big discovery back then is now considered mundane: just another factor 'they' include when recording, observing events pretty much worldwide. **Just so it's not misunderstood in a World 'the way it's become' that my comment wasn't based out of nowhere or without any basis or something seen in an anime. I lived over 33yrs in Montana, 15 less than 40mi from Yellowstone combined with a lifetime close to Nature, spent watching & noticing associations between earth events that even non-scientific types can and do keep up with. Seemingly strange associations kind of like astronomers who confirm many if not most comets & sky events are made by amateur sky watchers usually without degrees or jobs being expert either; right in their own back yards. okay, ,that was verbose but I know some very sketchy people are making some absurd statements about many things they obviously know nothing about - I wanted to make it understood that ... I'm not one off those people. (:
Soma_azus@reddit
Hello
I did find a very cool website shared by someome else in this same subreddit
https://happywhale.com/browse
Its is a bit less user friendly in terms of UI/UX but once you get the hang of it, the data is really awesome.
Nanna_Geddon@reddit
oh wow! I wake up & already thinking about them & here you bring me gifts! THANK YOU! I'm grateful!
DemandImmediate1288@reddit
13 dead Grays have been found in this area so far this year, and necropsy suggests starvation. This appears to be yet another casualty. Heartbreaking...
breezefesf@reddit
this is getting actually scary with the amount of whales dying from starvation
SnooRobots1169@reddit
I would call but he could be feeding.
prunus_cerasifera@reddit
Rip
Lychee_489@reddit
No
Jotraniel@reddit
yeah thats peak normal for whale watching spots
My_2Cents_666@reddit
They are often seen in the surf like that. However, with the way things are going lately, it is a bit worrisome.
coyotemidnight@reddit
No, this is not normal. Please call the West Coast Region Stranding Hotline: (866) 767-6114
LuckyBook1538@reddit
Yeah, try to get help. This seems worrying. Good luck & please let us know if there's any update.
VicVicVicBC@reddit
🙁