Our first mother-calf for 2023
Late in the day on Saturday, January 7th, the Florida Fish & Wildlife Team reported a sighting just north of the St. Augustine Inlet, traveling south. It was Right Whale #3370, Archipelago. This is a whale known to us, we sighted her in several previous seasons. We were optimistic. We alerted the teams.
Early the next day, our FWC colleagues called to report a public sighting in Sector One (St. Augustine and Crescent Beach). We alerted Team One. They called back shortly thereafter - whales north of the Crescent Beach Park walkover. Sara flew the drone. Kim Jacomo took photos from shore with our new Nikon Coolpix P1000 24-3000mm camera. We used our One-Call-Now (robo-call) system, and many folks came out to have a look. This is calf #3 for Archipelago. When last sighted today, the pair was just north of the Matanzas Inlet. Here's hoping for additional sightings this season.
#3370, Archipelago, from Crescent Beach Park, 8 January 2023.
Image: Sara Ellis
Image: Kim Jacomo
The 23rd Season
The 23rd season of the Marineland Right Whale Project had its kick-off meeting in the afternoon of Tuesday, January 3rd. It was held in the customary location - the auditorium at the University of Florida's Whitney Laboratory in Marineland. We had a good turnout, with 130 both returnees and new volunteers. The dedicated surveys began the following day, on Wednesday the 4th.
Pilgrim, Right Whale #4340
She got by us! On December 30th, staff from the Marine Resources Council (partners in the Volunteer Sighting Network) responded to a call and documented the 9th mother-calf pair for the season. They photographed the pair to the south, near the Apollo Beach ramp, Canaveral National Seashore, in fading light around sunset. Interestingly, the pair (or perhaps in some cases, the female alone prior to birth) went past North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Northeast Florida without being reported. It happens! It reminds us of the nature of our work and the elusive nature of at least some whales. BTW, this is Pilgrim's first calf, she is a first-time mother!
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