Tag Archives: Gray Whales

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Gray Whales have been seen most days this past week. It looks like the southward migration has already begun. On Thursday Rick and I took a hike at Gualala Point Regional Park and were rewarded with the sighting of a pod of perhaps six whales. They were just west of Gualala Point Island, the rocky island you can see in the left side of this photo. There are two spouts on the right side.

And then we found our first Boletus edulis, a King Bolete, yesterday.

One of the most delicious edible mushrooms on the Mendonoma Coast, they are always a treat to find.

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You have to look closely at Adrian's photo. The Gray Whale's back looks like a small rock out in the Pacific Ocean.

As you can see from Adrian's photograph, the grasses are lush now, with plenty of feed for our wildlife.

And here's a closer look at two Gray Whales seen off of The Sea Ranch several weeks ago and photographed by John Batchelder.

Thanks to Adrian and John for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

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It seems like everyone with a camera on the Mendonoma Coast tries to photograph the perfect wave. Since there are so many correct answers for this test, we'll just call this photo by Ron LeValley one of many perfect waves.

Ron took this photo off the Little River Headlands in Mendocino County. That is also a great spot for spotting Gray Whales. Thanks to Ron for allowing me to share his photo with you here.

To see much more of Ron's beautiful photographs, here's the link to his website: http://www.levalleyphoto.com/home/

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Gray Whales, mostly mothers with their calves, have been spotted every day this week. On Thursday Rick and I saw spouts from Highway One.

This is what you look for - two spouts seen on the calm ocean.

 As we drove into Gualala we saw more spouts just off the mouth of the Gualala River. Here is a big spout (behind the rock) of the mother and a little spout of the calf.

 Below the calf has spouted again and you can see the back of the mother Gray Whale

 And here is the tail of the calf.

Clouds may obscure our view for a while as several storms are headed towards the Mendonoma Coast. But we know the whales continue on their long journey, the longest migration of any creature on Earth.

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Emily Nelson photographed a Mantid, or Praying Mantis as we call them. It's such a unique insect and always a treat to see.

It's no fun for the male who mates with a female. Yes, with most Mantis species, she eats him after the deed is done! This is to provide her and her developing young nutrients. Other than mating males, this insect eats other insects and very small mammals. It is able to camouflage itself by changing its color to the surroundings.

Here's a link to two other photos of this unusual critter: http://www.mendonomasightings.com/2011/10/07/two-photos-of-a-praying-mantis-from-coastal-photographer-siegfried-matull/

The weather over the weekend was calm and Gray Whale sightings poured in. Saturday and Sunday there were numerous sightings of mother Gray Whales and their Calves headed north. One person saw ten whales in a short period from Point Arena. On Sunday I saw a mom with a calf, always a heartwarming site - big spout, little spout. Today fog obscures much of the ocean and the portion that can be seen has white caps. Gray Whale sightings will have to wait another day!