Watching out for whales

Suzie Harrison

Friends of the Sea Lion Marine Mammal Center has been dedicated to

the rescue, rehabilitation and release of sick and injured seals and

sea lions for more than 33 years. In addition to helping its pinniped

friends, the group thinks it’s important to keep other marine mammals

safe, and it has some tips for responsible whale watching, which is

in season until the end of March.

“We felt that there was a need to get information out to the

general public on how to whale-watch that minimizes any type of

disturbance on these animals, especially after learning there’s

11,000 private boats just between Dana Point and Newport Harbor,”

education director Beate Litz said.

She said that commercial whale-watching vessels know the rules and

are knowledgeable -- it’s the people with private boats who aren’t

armed with the rules.

“These well-meaning boaters could potentially cause the whales to

shift their natural migratory path, cause mother-and-calf separation

or disrupt diving behavior, among many other types of disturbances,”

Litz said.

Rick Baker, senior program director of the Ocean Institute in Dana

Point, is promoting safe whale watching as well.

“We actually have a program here,” Baker said. “We send fliers out

around the harbor every year, asking boaters to be responsible.”

Baker said their captain, Mike Bursk, who is a marine biologist,

did a study on whale migration. He watched their breathing and looked

for other signs of stress. He came to the conclusion that the whales

don’t show any signs of stress or change until there are more than

three boats trailing them.

* Should boaters find themselves in the path of a gray whale, they

should avoid approaching closer than 100 yards. “If you are

unexpectedly within 100 yards, stop immediately and allow the whales

to pass,” Litz said.

* Avoid approaching the whales from the front or behind. Always

approach in a direction that is parallel to the movement of the

whale. “Limit your viewing time to a maximum of 30 minutes, thus

minimizing the cumulative impact of many vessels,” Litz said.

* Do not swim with or feed the whales.

The migration of the gray whale is one of the longest mammalian

migrations, Litz said.

“Gray whales travel between arctic seas and the shallow lagoons of

Baja California, a journey averaging 10,000 to 14,000 miles

round-trip with a travel time of two to three months each way,” Litz

said.

The whales travel south to give birth and mate in the warm lagoons

of Baja and then return to their feeding area in the arctic seas.

The Friends of the Sea Lion wants to be known as a valuable

education source in the community. The staff members said they are

happy to field questions from the public.

Friends of the Sea Lion is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. every day.

Admission is free, but donations are welcome. The marine mammal

center is at 20612 Laguna Canyon Road. For information, call (949)

494-3050 or go to https://www.fslmmc.org.