2008 Life at Campo Cortez
By Adrienne DeLiso
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March 5, 2008
Naturalist report 4
Greetings from San Igancio Lagoon! We have had some crazy north winds that prevented up from going out for a whole day. The lagoon was officially closed to whale watching which is for the safety of both the whales and the people. The next few days that followed have been wonderful, less windy than normal, warm, beautiful. We are seeing more friendly whales this past week. I have seen a new Cow/calf pair that I had not seen this season. They are possibly friendly, very interested in the boat, yet would not come close enough to touch. Sometimes, I prefer these encounters as the whales circle and the baby plays with the boat, tossing its head up out of the water and checking us out. Then abruptly swimming back to mom, and then repeating. This mom was very skinny and has scars from her dorsal hump back into her knuckles. These are most likely tooth rake marks from an Orca (see photo). She looked too thin but this is often par for the course as mom’s end up loosing up to 30% of their fat from the time she travels pregnant from the feeding grounds in the Bering Sea back to the breeding and calving lagoons. Then calving and feeding the baby also takes its toll on mom who has not eaten a significant amount since summer. This whale has also been seen in the lagoon before according to the local Panga drivers. I will send to Cascadia Research in Washington for a proper ID.
Still seeing lots of mating and courting, and like every thing else it began a little later and is carrying into March.
Lots of dolphins in the lagoon as well. Daily bow riding from these highly intelligent and curious creatures! (See photo).
All for now!~Adrienne DeLiso~
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