Marine Connection is delighted to report that gray whales are being seen in good numbers as the females head south from Alaska to give birth in the warm waters of Mexico. The mammals named after their colour were first classified by 19th-century British zoologist John Edward Gray.

Over the years there has been concerns when their numbers have been down so it's great to see the seaon getting off to an excellent start, since early December over 264 gray whales and 14 calves have been sighted. Every year pregnant female grays travel from the icy northern waters off Alaska to the famous lagoons of Baja California in Mexico, to give birth to and make sure their calves are protected in the warm waters. They are then followed by single females and younger whales who have a less urgent need to get south, but still swim a respectable 100 miles a day before arriving at the lagoons. The whales spend their summer months, approximately June through October, up in the Arctic in the Bering and the Chukchi seas, basically trying to get as fat as they can for their mammoth migration, passing along the coast of San Diego. Whale-watching excursions are offered in most areas along the Pacific Coast including Monterey Bay, during this time.

In all the gray whales make a round trip of 10,000 to 14,000 miles, starting with a two to three-month trip south from October, two to three months in the lagoons, then two to three months heading back north. On the northbound journey however researchers see newly pregnant females first, then the singles and juveniles, then lastly the new mothers with their young. The gray whale has been close to extinction twice during its existence on Earth. Both times occurred when whaling was allowed - in the 1850s and between 1915 and 1920.