recovered sufficiently to be removed from the List in 1994. At that time, the population was estimated at 23,000, which Gray ( robustus) is thought to be close to the prewhaling popula- tion. A quota of 176 whales a year is harvested GrayGray he gray is the most common large the growth of the marine food web, including along the Siberian coast. That number was whale seen from shore along the west coast bottom-dwelling amphipods, the primary prey determined by the average number that had Tof North America. Gray whales are found off of gray whales. been taken throughout the last 20 years of the the coast all year. They feed in shallow wa- There are two basic types of whales: toothed recovery period, during which the population ter near shore during the summer and fall, migrate and . The gray whale is a . continued to grow. WhalesWhales south for breeding and calving during the winter, Instead of true teeth, a row of 138–180 baleen Gray whales are protected under the Marine and migrate north in the spring. plates grows along each side of the upper gum Protection Act by National Marine The gray whale gets its name from its blotchy line. The baleen is made of material like a Fisheries Service guidelines that require boaters color pattern. Some of this pattern is present at birth, human fingernail. not to approach within 100 yards of the . but most of it is caused by barnacles growing in the Appearing quite stiff and solid at its outer Inappropriate tourism can be a harassment that skin or by depigmented areas where barnacles have edge, each piece of baleen is “fringed” inside affects the ’s use of important habitats. been. the mouth and tapers from 3 inches wide at the Industrial development in some of the breeding, Gray whales reach 45 feet (14 meters) in length gum line to nearly a point at its bottom. These calving, and migration areas may be the greatest and weigh 35 tons (31.5 metric tons). For compari- plates are separated by approximately 1 threat to the gray whales’ future. son, a cross-country bus is 40 feet (12 meters) long. /3 inch (6 to 10 mm) inside the mouth, where The only natural predators of gray whales are Adult females on average are larger than males. their fringes overlap to form an effective killer whales and large . Killer whales Whales are . They are warm blooded, screen. tend to show up along the during breathe air, have hair (single hairs around the front Gray whales feed primarily on benthic late April and May and may target females and of the head that are visible on calves), and give birth (bottom-dwelling) amphipods (shrimplike calves migrating north. to live young that suckle on milk from their mothers. animals). They go to the seafloor and suck up an area of the bottom about the size of a desktop and a foot deep. Sometimes this makes Feeding conspicuous pits on the bottom. idspring to midfall is the gray whales’ The amphipods are trapped on the baleen feeding season. Most of the population filter inside the mouth, while mud, sand, and spends this time in the Bering and Chuk- M water pass between the baleen plates. This is chi Seas off , although every summer some the way the whale washes the amphipods clear whales are observed feeding from of sand and mud. It then uses its tongue to This publication was funded in part by the National Sea Grant to . The summer population off the Oregon College Program of the U.S. Department of Commerceʼs National Gray whale facts suck the amphipods off the inside of the baleen coast often numbers 200 to 400 animals, with many Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, under NOAA grant num- Length: 45 feet fringe, much the way you might suck peanut ber NA76RG0476 (project number A/ESG-4), and by appropriations : 35 tons of the same individuals returning year after year. made by the Oregon State legislature. Weight butter off the roof of your mouth. : to Baja , Mex- Summer feeding is better at higher latitudes be- Migration Since gray whales filter animals Additional funding is from the Or- ico, and back, up to 10,000 miles. Southbound cause the long days produce lots of phyto-plankton egon Parks and Recreation Depart- from mud and water, their ment, through its volunteer program, migrating whales move past the Oregon coast (small marine plants), which are eaten by zoo- Dec. through early Feb. Northbound whales pass baleen is stiffer and has Spoken Here®. For plankton (small marine animals). Together, these information about the program, phone by in late Feb. through early June. Whales may coarser fringes than (541) 765-3304 or see be seen off the Oregon coast any time. are the basic food for all ocean life, stimulating http://whalespoken.org. that of other Time of round trip: approximately 3 months baleen whales, Oregon State Universityʼs whale research, based at the Hatfield Ma- Bruce R. Mate, Extension Sea Grant marine biologist, rine Science Center in Newport, is supported in large part by private ORESU-G-05-002 Oregon State University. which filter and corporate donations to the OSU Foundationʼs Endowed Program. See http://marinemammalprogram.org. Oregon Sea Grant Revised April 2005 Illustrations by Pieter Arend Folkens animals from water only. Sometimes you can presumably helps the newborn whales conserve their mothers. Mothers and calves are the last see muddy water near the gray whale’s head Southern migration body heat. Whales may favor because they to leave the lagoons and move somewhat more fter feeding during the summer and fall, when it surfaces from a feeding dive. are protected areas of calm, warm water. Mexican slowly, passing Oregon and from the entire gray whale population heads From time to time, gray whales feed along fishers also report that there are very few sharks in late April through June. south. Early December is the beginning of rocky headlands on swarming mycids, swim- A the lagoons when the whales are present. During the spring migration, if the weather is 3 the southward migration in the Pacific Northwest. ming shrimplike animals about /4 inch long. The 15-foot (4.5 meter) calf is born tail first and good, you can see whales within a few hundred Along the Oregon coast, the migration usually Sometimes their feeding takes them into very weighs approximately 1 ton (0.9 metric ton). The yards of coastal headlands. reaches a peak during the first week of January at a shallow water just outside breaking waves calf’s breathing is awkward at birth, but within The full round-trip migration from the Baja rate of 30 animals per hour. By mid-February, most along shallow, sloping, sandy beaches. This several hours the animal is making smooth dives. It calving lagoons to the Bering Sea and back is of the whales have left Oregon waters. often results in false stranding calls from people breathes about twice as frequently as its mother for 10,000 miles (16,000 km), the longest known Pregnant females are the first to migrate, who assume the animals are in trouble. In fact, the first several weeks. for any mammal. Other whales also are known followed by mature adults of both sexes and then they are feeding in the furrows you sometimes The male takes none of the responsibility for to migrate between summer high-latitude feed- by juveniles. Whales travel at a rate of up to five can see in these areas during low tide. newborns. Calves nurse from their mothers for ing grounds and more temperate low-latitude miles per hour during the southbound migration. It approximately six to eight months, acquiring more breeding and calving areas. However, research- takes them about three weeks to get to Mexico. independence during the last third of the suckling ers know more about the gray whale because it Examinations of the stomachs of whales during period. Females have two teats, one on either side moves so close to shore. This nearshore move- the days indicated that gray whales eat of the genital slit. Their milk is 50 percent fat. This ment has led to speculation that gray whales very little while migrating and while in calving conserves water for the mother and makes the milk navigate by staying in shallow water or keeping areas. Thus, many whales may go without food for a compact “glob” that sticks to the calves’ baleen. the surf noises to one side or the other, depend- three to five months. ing upon their direction of travel. The animals travel south to the three major breeding and calving lagoons on the west coast Breeding of , Mexico: Laguna Ojo de Libre, t is not unusual to see more than one male Exploitation and conservation adjacent to Laguna San Ignacio; vying for the attention of an estrous (receptive) he regularity of the gray whales’ (also known as Scammon’s Lagoon); and Ifemale. There are no long-term bonds between movements made it possible for whalers Magdalena Bay. Captain Charles Scammon charted males and females. Females have been seen breed- Tto exploit them heavily along the migration many of these areas in the mid-1800s as he hunted ing with three males in 45 minutes. route and in the calving lagoons. Around 1855, gray whales. His book, Marine Mammals of the shore processing stations were set up in San Northwest Coast, has been reprinted in paperback Northern migration Diego. At that time, navigation inside the bay and makes interesting reading. was judged hazardous because of the abundance y March, whales already are returning of breeding whales. northward along the Oregon coast. The By 1873, gray whales had been so reduced in Calving Bnorthbound migration begins with immature number that these shore stations closed. Whal- hen the whales arrive in Mexico, births animals (some of which may not have gone all the ing continued within the Mexican lagoons, and take place in lagoons as well as way to Mexico), adult males, and females without the gray whale population was further depleted Woffshore. Births begin around Christmas calves. These animals pass the Oregon coast from until the lagoons were closed to whaling by the and peak in early February. Females give birth to a early March through April. Breeding sometimes is Mexican government in the early 1900s. Full single calf once every two years after they become observed at this time. protection was extended to gray whales in 1937 sexually mature (at about eight years old). They Calves usually are rambunctious but stay close by the League of Nations, and in 1946 by the The outer surface of baleen (top) is stiff. The fringes on the mate in years when they are not bearing a calf. to their mothers as they become more coordinated International Whaling Commission. inner surface (bottom) trap small, bottom-dwelling animals, Going south into temperate or subtropical waters and develop an insulating blubber layer. Calves are which are the primary food of gray whales. After 57 years of protection from commer- to calve is typical of most baleen whales and at least a month old before they migrate north with cial hunting, the gray whale population had