Another Ecoloigcal Success Story: The Southern Right Whale

The eighteenth through the twentieth centuries were dark times in whale history. When whale oil was the currency of the western industrial world, many species of whale were hunted to local extinction; essentially, the species were hunted until the remaining adults simply didn’t know where their breeding rounds were anymore. A famous American example is the east coast island of Nantucket, whose population of right whales has only recently begun to recover from a centuries-long local extinction.

Dubbed the right whale because it was the “right” whale to kill, the right whales were an easy target due to their habits of breeding close to shore and general playfulness. They could be taken down in a longboat launched from shore and brought back in, floating, to the mainland to harvest their blubber. The southern right whales, which spawned in New Zealand, were driven to local extinction that was all but complete by the middle of the twentieth century.

But the more we research marine biology, the clearer it becomes that, given some time and some help, the ocean has a way of recovering from even our most complete efforts to destroy the life within it. A small number of southern right whales have once again moved back to their ancestral breeding ground off the coast of New Zealand and have begun to birth and raise their calves there.

One of the amazing things this demonstrates is that whales have the ability to maintain and pass down vital cultural information from mother to calf, in this case migration and breeding information. This implies that right whales maintain a cultural memory. In much the same way we (often unconsciously) teach our children to recognize and respect the most important aspects of our culture through our behavior, marine mammals also pass vital information to their calves by following the patterns they themselves were taught. When this species was hunted to local extinction, the remaining animals essentially “forgot” where they were born and how to return because they stopped migrating there. Now, it seems that the establishment of their breeding grounds as a protected area has brought them back.

Even though there are only a handful of animals returning this year, they expect the numbers to grow as the whales recognize the area as a safe place to give birth to and raise their young. This also benefits New Zealand tourism; right whales are playful and very visible, often leaping out of the water. If anything, this should serve as a positive message: ocean conservation works! Protected species do recover. However, steps do need to be taken in order to protect the animals that are being hunted to extinction. The recovery of humpback, right, and sperm whales has been slow but steady since the banning of whaling. Take action for your oceans; continue to support whale protection and ocean conservation legislation.

For more information or to read the complete report, check it out at sciencedaily.com.

If you’re interested in learning about the history of whaling in the United States, there is a fascinating book called In the Heart of the Sea: The Wreck of the Whaleship Essex by Nathaniel Philbrick. It’s primary focus is on the shipwreck that inspired the climax of Herman Mellville’s Moby Dick, (namely, a sperm whale ramming and sinking the boat) but there is a lot to learn from it about the culture of whaling in that time period.

Mexico is very safe

I just came back from Cancun. I am sorry I have not been there for ten years. I am also sorry that we hear so many bad things about our Mexican friends. I had forgotten how wonderful the people were and now they bend over back wards to please us. Looking for a great trip? My wife sells Apple Vacations and we had a fantastic trip, we flew direct to Mexico. I did not miss the three hours in Miami. We stayed at a wondeful hotel called Dreams. The dives were with the best operation in Cancun or so I think it was, Solo Buceo, they are on the property. If you have not been to Mexico in a while you need to go. It was a wonderful trip. And a very safe place to be.

PADI SELF - RELIANT DIVER

We are glad to offer a new program to those divers looking to do SOLO dives. This is a great program and details safe ways to dive SOLO. For more information contact, Patrick Hammer at patrick@scubaemporium.com. Patrick started his SCUBA life over 45 years ago solo diving, he has a vast knowledge of being a Self-Reliant diver and will teach you the safe ways to solo dive.

DUI DEMO DAYS

This is great you can join us at PEARL LAKE, and try a DUI DRY suit. What a nice thing they do (DUI) and this offers you a chance to try a Dry Suit before you buy one.

Join us for a weekend in the country and Pearl Lake Resort, June 6 and 7. Stop in or call(708) 226-1614 to purchase your tickets.

Teaching Instructors

They all passed and were so happy they dived into the 58 degree water. What a great group. My next week long IDC in Illinois is July 23

Working Hard at the Jamaica IDC

What more could I say about this IDC other than I dig class! I am having so much fun here in Jamaica and the candidates are loving the course. Though I do feel a bit guilty calling this “Hard Work”. The weather is amazing, the water temperature is the perfect, and I have a great group; all of which I believe will pass.



And when they do pass, I’m celebrating by teaching them our new Invasive Lionfish Specialty! This will be unbelievable fun, and then it will be time for the cook out. I can’t wait to find out what the Lionfish tastes like. What do you think should I offer them my Gourmet Diver Specialty?

Have a Great Day Diving
Patrick Hammer

I have a new entry for the Coolest Fish Ever Award. The Barreleye!

This Barreleye usually lives at between 2,000 to 2,600 feet, is only a few inches long, and is thought to eat smaller fish and jellyfish. The best observations scientists have made of this little guy have been with remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), and attempts to bring intact specimens to the surface have often been thwarted by the fragile structure of its head. Oh, have I mentioned that its head is TRANSPARENT!

 That’s right. As you can see in this photo, the Barreleye has a transparent forehead and its large green eyes are actually inside its head. The eyes are often found looking up through its forehead scanning for prey, but they have found that the eyes can look forward; usually when feeding. Above the mouth it looks as though the Barreleye does have squinty eyes, but those are actually its olfactory organs; much like our nostrils.

Check out this awesome ROV shot video footage of the Barreleye from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI)