Dana Point whale makes wrong kind of comeback
It seemed as if it would be a happy ending for the gray whale of Dana Point.
Rescuers, after all, had just succeeded in cutting the whale free from a tangle of netting in the shallow waters of Dana Point Harbor. They watched as it took off into the Pacific, seemingly full of renewed vigor.
The creature’s fortunes reversed Thursday, however, after the whale dubbed “Lilly” reappeared close to shore, leading marine scientists to worry that it isn’t healthy or strong enough to survive.
An offshore vessel first reported seeing Lilly pop up at the entrance to Dana Point Harbor about 7:15 a.m. Thursday, harbor officials said. Observers on the shore spotted the whale several times throughout the day, watching as it surfaced within a stone’s throw of stand-up paddle boarders and showed its fins as it floated several hundred yards off Doheny State Beach.
“He was out in the open water and he decided, ‘Nah, think I’ll go back in to shore,” said Deputy David Martin of the Dana Point Harbor Patrol, who spotted the emaciated cetacean several times through binoculars.
The sex and age of the whale are unknown, but rescuers tentatively named it Lilly. Others, however, gave it a unisex nickname: Dana.
What is clear is that the whale is not well; it is underweight, its spine is unnaturally curved, and parasites cover much of its body.
It is also alone and lagging far behind its fellow gray whales on their migratory path toward Alaska. Most others left Southern California waters a month or two ago, experts said.
The 30-ton creature’s lethargic behavior and the fact that it insists on lingering close to shore suggest it is weak and malnourished and may not have the strength to continue its migration north, where the crustaceans it eats are larger and more plentiful.
“Everything this whale is doing leads to the same conclusion: Either the whale is really old or it’s not healthy,” said Rick Baker, vice president of education at the Ocean Institute. “We don’t know, because you can’t ask a whale, ‘How do you feel? What’s wrong? Why are you doing this?’”
For now, the whale continues to attract spectators. Boaters and paddlers are being instructed to stay at least 100 yards away and exercise caution in and out of the harbor.
Dean Gomersall, one of the rescuers, said that freeing the whale from the snarl of nets and rope that had ensnared it gave it a better chance of survival. But its weak condition could make it vulnerable to predators, such as orcas and sharks.
“He’s an easy target, but we hope he squeaks through the cracks,” said Gomersall, animal care supervisor at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach.
Wildlife officials said they would let nature take its course and instructed no one to interfere with the whale as long as it can swim on its own.
