Whale of a Crop Swims South

It was not the stirring, long-drawn cry of “Thar she blows.” It was only a rather quiet “We’ve got one.”

But it made the day late Tuesday afternoon for Colette Walsh and her brother, Joe, on their last day before returning home to Philadelphia.

The two were among passengers aboard the 65-foot Sea Horse out of Dana Point Harbor to watch the early arrivals of what may be one of the largest California gray whale migrations in many years.

The great mammals began moving past the Southern California coast in recent days on their way from the icy Bering Sea to the warm lagoons in Baja California.

As late as 1978, marine biologists believed there were only about 8,000 of the leviathans left, and that was considered a good sign because by 1947, hunters had reduced their numbers to fewer than 500.

Since the whales were put on the endangered species list, however, things have been looking up.

“A year ago, we figured there were a little more than 17,000,” Dr. Stephen Reilly, marine biologist for the National Marine Fishery Service in La Jolla, said Tuesday. “This year, the estimate is 18,000 plus.”

Whale-watching boats out of Dana Point, Newport Beach and other Southern California harbors have reported sighting unusual numbers of new-born calves, thought to be only one or two days old, among this year’s migratory herd.

Reilly said it is not certain if this is related to the suspected increase in the whale population or whether it is “just that more people are out there watching them go by.”

He said the 18,000-plus estimate was arrived at during a meticulous count near Big Sur in Central California.

‘One Big Question’

“There is still one big question, the answer to which could have a major impact on our population estimates,” he said. “That is, what happens at night? What are their swimming habits in the dark? Do they slow down or keep their regular three to four miles per hour?”

He said attempts are being made to affix radio transmitters to some whales to track their movements at night.

Meanwhile, the ponderous, leisurely parade of the gentle monsters, who reach lengths of 45 feet or more, goes on as it has for thousands of years. It is a 12,000-mile round trip from their summer feeding grounds in the north to their mating and birthing lagoons in the south.

The traveler sighted Tuesday by Colette and Joe Walsh and other passengers aboard the Sea Horse appeared to be a full-grown male.

The brother and sister were visiting their mother, Mrs. Renee Walsh of Laguna Niguel, and were to fly back to Philadelphia today.

On their first two-hour cruise, no whales were sighted and Colette amused herself by watching the small rainbow that glowed in the spray of the vessel’s bow wave on a windy, sunny afternoon.

Sailed on ‘Rain Check’

Then, since this was their last day in California, she and Joe and their mother took advantage of the “rain check” offered to passengers who didn’t get to see a whale. They went out for another two hours.

Near the end of the allotted time, when they had fed popcorn to hovering gulls and then found warm spots to doze in, the word came: “We’ve got one.”

For half an hour, the boat followed the huge animal, watching it blow, roll its back out of the water and wave its flukes.

“It was just neat,” Colette said. “I only wish I could have seen his face.”