Black future for the gray whale

Mysteries and secrets are often revealed by the action of low tides.

At first glance, a mid-beach reef along Crystal Cove appeared to be laden with barnacles and shells, laid bare by the scouring action of recent storm waves. Hungry gulls feasted at the edges. On closer inspection, the reef was not a reef at all, but the carcass of a young gray whale calf.

Its tail defined the gelatinous shape, soft still and half coiled in its sandy grave. An eye turned skyward, blackened in the smokey haze of death. My mind searched the horizon for relatives, related water spouts, a mother longing for her calf. Causes of death could be numerous: disease, separation from mother, starvation, a ship’s propeller, sharks. Without toxicology, the mystery would remain, along with my own sadness.

For the better part of the year, whales are rare along the southern California coastline, but from November through April, we are gifted with sightings as the grays migrate from the cold waters of Alaska where their primary food source, krill, is abundant, to the warmer waters of Scammons’s Lagoon along the Baja California coast where their calves are born in protected bays. Their total round trip of travel: 12,400 miles.

Gray whales in the late 1800’s stood at the brink of extinction.

Their breeding grounds had been discovered by hunters, who decimated their populations. Once the numbers were so reduced, profitability ceased, and slowly the whale population recovered. In the early 1900’s factory ships were designed, with the capability of processing the whales directly on board. Once again, the population of this migrating species dropped precipitously to a number fewer than 2000.

In 1946 they were placed on the endangered species list, from which they were removed in 1994 after approximately 21,000 were counted, increasing to a peak number of 26,635 in 1998.

Then, in 1999 and 2000, hundreds of grays began to beach themselves or simply wash ashore as putrid carcasses. Eskimos reported harpooning ‘“stinky” whales that appeared to be rotting alive.

Scientists have been unable to exactly pinpoint the cause, but hunting for the first time could not be blamed. Possible sources considered included a flu virus, chemical pollutants, a cyanide-based florescent dye used to mark illegal narcotics drops in the ocean, or navy sonar experiments which have been shown to explode whale eardrums.

Ultimately, all of the above issues have been involved, with the center of debate on the whale’s food supply. Global warming and the related climate changes have reduced the number of cocktail-shrimp-sized sea-floor amphipods ? krill ? the primary food source of the grays. The whales have actually been starving to death, the result of simply not enough food.

The surface of the sea is deceptively sweet. Unless sewage foam, oil spills or excessive tossed garbage mar the water’s edge, the constancy belies what lives beneath. As if often true, what we don’t see, we simply disregard. Our actions disconnected from their effects, because we are not directly aware of their relationships.

Much like air pollution, the bulk of water pollution is not visible. Chemicals that choke or alter life forms are often silent killers.

We continue to heat our planet with ozone-destroying effluents from the consumption of fossil fuels. We dump poisons into the water and turn a blind eye. We demand clean-up from foulers, if and when they are caught, but the fines do little to mend the damages, and usually are little more than a slap on the hand to those who use the oceans to gain profit.

The death of the calf is a reminder of the effects of man on the waters, as a reflection of damage to the entire planet. Each of us is responsible, even as we claim innocence from the actions of a spill like Valdez, or the realization that the ice caps are melting at a rate that we had never anticipated.

But we are involved, and rather than feel helpless, we can take small steps, individual actions, that collectively have a large effect. We can voluntarily not drive our vehicles one day each week (or more).

We can pledge to use only biodegradable cleaning fluids in our homes and businesses. We can boycott restaurants that serve endangered species. We can demand that our cities implement green building standards into their codes and press for energy-efficient vehicles.

Baby steps can lead to greatness. Commit to one action and you can begin to create your own domino effect. The whales, fish, dolphin, polar bears, migrating waterfowl ? and your grandchildren ? will all thank you.