Mating Season (for Gray Whales, that is)

Well, that got your attention. The Audubon Guide to Marine Mammals of the World states that the California stock of Gray Whales migrates from its summer feeding grounds in the Bering Sea to its winter mating and calving areas off the coast of Baja California between November and March. So this is prime time to catch sight of the Grays on their amorous way south.


Gray Whales are notoriously curious - the old whalers invented the term “spyhopping” to describe the whales' practice of poking their heads out of the water for a look around. Spyhopping is a funny thing to observe because it seems so deliberate, like a “periscope up” command, not the joyous abandon of a full breach (leap).


I’ve heard lots of anecdotes especially about the curiosity that baby Gray Whales have shown regarding boaters - swimming alongside whale watching boats, allowing themselves to be petted even. It’s hard to imagine that whalers actually referred to Grays as “devil fish” because of their ferocity (once again, according to Audubon). (I wish I had a photo of one of those curious baby Grays but I don't so I offer you a photo Ed took of some cute and very curious Harbor Seals hauled out near Point Bonita Light House that we saw on the way to the Grays.)



Female Gray Whales will have a baby every 2 to 3 years, carrying the fetus for 12 to 13 months. Once the Grays get to Baja competitive groups of males will form, all seeking the attention of a single female. A similar phenomenon is described regarding the mating of Humpback Whales in the just released February, 2008 issue of Smithsonian Magazine (www.smithsonian.com).


It might be winter, but the whales are thinking spring break, so come aboard an SFBay Whale Watching trip and wish a Gray Whale safe passage to Baja (and come see the Farallon Islands in winter - they are especially beautiful).

Photos by Ed Estes and Suphanni Jacques. Text by Kathleen Jacques.