Sightings of the fin whale - the second largest marine mammal used to be a rarity in the Santa Monica Bay but not anymore and researchers are having excellent sightings at the moment.

Marine biologists started tracking the fin whale for a census just over a month ago and are seeing the animals on a daily basis,this is very unusual compared to previous years. In 2005-06 season, fin whales were seen on four days, the 2007-08 season, they were sighted on 41 days and in the 2008-09 season, fin whales were seen on 91 days. The number of blue whales and humpbacks seen has also risen, the reason possibly being the unexplained population explosion of krill in the area. In 2007, marine biologists noticed a large number of whales had taken up residence off Southern California shores instead of migrating past as they usually did.

Once a highly polluted coastal area, the Southern California coast has gone through a number of clean-up efforts scientists believe have worked. Some marine life is re-populating, creating new patterns of migration, however whatever the reason, let us hope it continues for these whales because it been a strange year for other large marine animals along the California coast including the California sea lion colony in San Francisco who have disappeared from Pier 39.