The Pacific Whale Watch Association (PWWA) says 21 calves have been photographed or tallied by watchers and researchers in the Salish Sea this feeding season. That's almost double the 11 spotted in 2020.
It marks a significant rebound for a species that was endangered just a couple of decades ago.
Nobody is sure exactly why there's been such a humpback baby boom.
PWWA executive director Erin Gless says it might be due to an abundance of food in their feeding grounds off Alaska and B.C.'s north coast, or simply an increase in adult whales since whaling was banned in the 1970s.
The first documented humpback to return to the Salish Sea area after commercial whaling was halted was known as Big Mama. She was spotted in 1997, then returned in 2003 with a calf.
The water's probably getting cooler; happier times for both the whales and the species upon which they feed
ReplyDeleteMaybe the government put them on welfare. That's been known to increase population.
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