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Lasting legacies

Lasting Legacies: Orca Action Month 2023

Each June we celebrate Orca Month and the unique community of Southern Resident orcas, and this...
North Atlantic right whale - Peter Flood

Whale AID 2023: A Night of Music and Hope for North Atlantic Right Whales

The inaugural Whale AID concert to support Whale and Dolphin Conservation's (WDC's) work to protect...
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Meet the 2023 Interns: Thomas Zoutis

I'm happy to introduce WDC's first Marine Mammal Conservation Intern of the year, Thomas Zoutis!...
MicrosoftTeams-image (9)

Double Your Impact for Marine Animal Rescue & Response

On a chilly day this past December, the WDC North America team celebrated the first...
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WDC’s Education Wishlist = Cleared!

To the WDC Community, I want to thank you so much for your support of...
Hysazu Photography

Looking forward for Southern Resident orcas in 2023

Hysazu Photography 2022 was a big year for Southern Resident orcas - 2022 brought the...
Credit: Seacoast Science Center

The Unlikely Adventure of Shoebert, a Young Grey Seal Who Visited an Industrial Park Pond

Credit: Seacoast Science Center In mid-September, our stranding partners in northern Massachusetts were inundated with...
Leaping harbour porpoise

The power of harbour porpoise poo

We know we need to save the whale to save the world. Now we are...

Gray’s Anatomy

Scientists in Mexico’s Scammon’s Lagoon have discovered possibly the first ever case of Siamese twin gray whales. Although known to occur in other species, notably fin, sei and minke whales, never before have conjoined twins been documented for gray whales. Apparently the calves were severely underdeveloped  – only approximately 7ft long as opposed to the the normal 12 – 16ft for the average newborn gray whale calf – and they were most likely miscarried. Unfortunately the mother was nowhere to be seen and there is concern that the birth may have had adverse effects on her health. (Once you see the photos I’m sure you’ll agree – there is no chance for a cesarean section in the ocean so it would have been a painful ordeal for the mother!)

At this time of year, gray whales are arriving in Scammon’s Lagoon and other lagoons along the Baja California peninsula, after undertaking a mammoth 6,000-mile journey from the cold Arctic waters in the north. Typically, they give birth during the southbound journey, or once they’ve arrived in the lagoons. They’ll then stay in the warm, quiet waters for several weeks, nursing their calves and resting before embarking on the return journey, back to their feeding grounds in the Arctic.

One little calf who was luckier than the conjoined twins and is currently en route to one of Mexico’s lagoons is baby Floppy, a gray whale calf photographed off of Redondo Beach in California within one hour of being born. Researchers noted the floppy fins (hence the name), the pits in its face and foetal folds in its head and estimated that it was a very new newborn!!