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| Gray Whale (Eschrichtius robustus) |
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| Where do gray whales live?
The eastern North Pacific stock of gray whales prefers shallow, coastal waters and feeds over oceanic continental shelves around the northern Bering and southern Chukchi seas between Alaska and Russia during the summer. In the winter, many of these gray whales migrate to the warm waters of Mexico's Baja California. They migrate each year along the entire West Coast of the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. How many gray whales are there? The eastern North Pacific stock of gray whales was recently taken off the U.S. List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife. Although the Atlantic stock of gray whales is basically extinct, the Eastern Pacific stock is doing well. How can I identify a gray whale? Gray whales are mottled gray and grow to 40-50 feet (12.2-15.2 meters) in length. Gray whales carry whale lice and parasitic barnacles that look like crabs. These parasites create yellow and white patches on the whales. Instead of a dorsal fin, gray whales have 9-13 bumps along their dorsal ridges. How well can a gray whale see or hear? It is thought that baleen whales (including gray whales) have excellent hearing, which is valuable in the dark ocean environment. It is thought that gray whales probably have excellent hearing, especially at low frequencies, which is valuable in the dark ocean environment where vision is less useful. What do gray whales eat? Gray whales filter their food through coarse baleen plates. Gray whales are unique in that they prefer prey that live near or on the sea floor. They suck sediment and prey from the sea floor by rolling on their sides and swimming slowly along sucking sediment and prey from the sea floor. How do gray whales have their young? Gray whales are probably old enough to mate around 8 years old. Females are pregnant for about 13 months approximately every two to four years. Calves are born able to swim and are known to double their weight in about three months, and double their length in about two years. A mother and calf form a very close attachment, with the calf spending the majority of its time swimming close to its mother. How long do gray whales live? How do they die? Because of an absence of teeth (which can be used to estimate age in other mammals), it is difficult to tell the age of a gray whale. Gray whales do die of natural causes and are sometimes preyed upon by killer whales. Pods of killer whales have been known to attack gray whales throughout their range, especially young animals during migration. Humans commercially hunted gray whales for oil, meat, and apparel materials (for corset stays, umbrella ribs, buggy whips etc.) from the 17th to early 20th centuries. Today, indigenous hunters practice subsistence whaling on a small-scale. Gray whales may also be harmed by pollution, ship strikes, or entanglement in fishing gear. Source: National Marine Mammal Laboratory |
| This fact sheet
provides information about the appearance, behavior, and diet of the gray whale.
It also describes its geographic range and the habitats in which it lives.
To see what a gray whale looks like, just click on the picture link at
the bottom of this page. |
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