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American Cetacean Society - Los Angeles Chapter (ACS/LA)
Founded in 1967, the American Cetacean Society protects whales, dolphins, porpoises, and their habitats through public education, research grants, and conservation actions.
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Commemorating 40 Years, Gray Whale Census
On Dec. 1st, 2024, Alisa Schulman-Janiger was recognized for her 40 years of dedication as Director and Coordinator of ACS-LA’s Gray Whale Census and Behavior Project by the Mayor of Rancho Palos Verdes, John Cruikshank. The ACS-LA Board was joined by Census citizen...
Gray Whale Census update March 2024
Gray Whale Census morning crew M'Liz Callender, Petrina Long, Joanne Kajiyama, and Caroline DeGraaf, 2024 February 29, Point Vicente Interpretie Center, by Alisa Schulman-Janiger. Southbound gray whale mom and calf, photographed from our Census station at the Point...
Gray Whale Census Summary 2014-2015
Photo by Alisa Schulman-JanigerACS/LA GRAY WHALE CENSUS AND BEHAVIOR PROJECT: 2014-2015 Census Project Director/Coordinator: Alisa Schulman-Janiger Email: janiger@cox.net For daily sighting details, please visit: www.acs-la.org Higher gray whale counts, record...
Gray Whale Census Summary 2017-2018
Photo by Nancy Rhodes ACS/LA GRAY WHALE CENSUS AND BEHAVIOR PROJECT: 2017-2018 Census Project Director/Coordinator: Alisa Schulman-Janiger Email: janiger@cox.net For daily sighting details, please visit: www.acs-la.org Our third highest southbound calf counts...
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ACS/LA Gray Whale Census and Behavior Project Update, Pt. Vicente Interpretive Center, 16 April 2025: 4 northbound GRAY WHALES! An early morning sub-adult came so close to shore that we could hear its blows! This somewhat skinny sub-adult milled. Our next sighting was likely two whales: we saw side by side prints multiple times, but only saw the blow, back, and flukes of one adult. Our last pair of whales were both skinny adults: one was dark, and one was much lighter. They also passed so close that we could hear their blows. We also watched foraging COMMON DOLPHINS and several small groups of coastal BOTTLENOSE DOLPHINS. (Summary by Census Director Alisa Schulman-Janiger).
Photos today: late afternoon clouds (by anchor Joyce Daniels); gray whale in sighting #2 surfaces; gray whale in sighting #1 flukes (by anchor Laurie Thomson).
Gray Whales Today:
Southbound: 0
Northbound: 4
Northbound calves: 0
Total: 4
Gray Whales to date (since 1 Dec)
Southbound: 125
Northbound: 429
Total: 554
Southbound calves: 0
Northbound calves: 3
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ACS/LA Gray Whale Census and Behavior Project Update, Pt. Vicente Interpretive Center, 15 April 2025: 1 southbound and 6 northbound GRAY WHALES! Our first 2 solo adult GRAY WHALES were very emaciated: each whale had a deep dip behind its head instead of a raised fat pad, protruding scapulas (shoulder blades), visible vertebral processes, and bulging rib case protruding from its side! Our pair included a skinny adult with a dip behind its head, with a healthy-looking juvenile. Another solo whale kept a low profile and was hard to track. Our southbound whale, a skinny large adult with protruding scapulas showed up as we were closing up for the day; it had lots of white on its back. This whale came so close that we could hear its blows, and could barely see it over the fence line; it milled just before our transect. We also watched at least 2 FIN WHALES, foraging COMMON DOLPHINS (1000+ in one group), offshore BOTTLENOSE DOLPHINS, and coastal BOTTLENOSE DOLPHINS. (Summary by Census Director Alisa Schulman-Janiger)
Photos today: skinny southbound gray whale with a dip behind its head and a protruding scapula in sighting 6 milled just over the fence line (by anchor Dee Whitehurst); emaciated gray whale in sighting 1 has a deep dip behind its head and a bulging rib cage; emaciated gray whale in sighting 1 has a prominent white patch before its first dorsal knuckle; emaciated gray whale in sighting 2 has a protruding rib cage and a white patch under its first knuckle (by Alisa Schulman-Janiger).
Gray Whales Today:
Southbound: 1
Northbound: 6
Northbound calves: 0
Total: 7
Gray Whales to date (since 1 Dec)
Southbound: 125
Northbound: 425
Total: 550
Southbound calves: 0
Northbound calves: 3
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ACS/LA Gray Whale Census and Behavior Project Update, Pt. Vicente Interpretive Center, 14 April 2025: 2 southbound and 6 northbound GRAY WHALES! Our skinny southbound pair surfaced several times before disappearing behind the Point Vicente cliff; one whale was very emaciated. Twenty minutes later, a trio of skinny whales - one very emaciated - came around the cliff; one whale's first knuckle was very large and pointed - looking more like a small triangular dorsal fin! A large raft of sea lions porpoised toward these whales, accompanied by plunging pelicans; the sea lions briefly interacted with the GRAY WHALES, then moved on. A solo whale passed close to shore. A juvenile traveling with an adult breached four times! We also watched foraging COMMON DOLPHINS (~600-800), and multiple groups of coastal BOTTLENOSE DOLPHINS. (Summary by Census Director Alisa Schulman-Janiger)
Photos today: Gray whale in sighting 2, ID image, with a large triangular first dorsal knuckle; gray whale in sighting 2, ID image (by Alisa Schulman-Janiger); Cirrus clouds, a nice change from our fog or overcast skies (by observer Patricia Vanover Indictor).
Gray Whales Today:
Southbound: 2
Northbound: 6
Northbound calves: 0
Total: 8
Gray Whales to date (since 1 Dec)
Southbound: 124
Northbound: 419
Total: 543
Southbound calves: 0
Northbound calves: 3
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ACS/LA Gray Whale Census and Behavior Project Update, Pt. Vicente Interpretive Center, 13 April 2025: 1 southbound and 6 northbound GRAY WHALES! Fog reduced visibility in the distance, sometimes down to 1-2 miles. Our first GRAY WHALE was a healthy-looking adult. A helicopter circled three times directly in front of us, right over the path of a pair of whales in a "Gender Reveal" stunt, releasing pink powder that fell towards the water in our Marine Protected area! These two adult whales surfaced, and then continued up the coast. We spotted our last pair of GRAY W HALES as we were closing down our station for the day. All GRAY WHALES passed within 1.5 miles of shore, and whales in all 5 sightings fluked. We also watched COMMON DOLPHINS, offshore BOTTLENOSE DOLPHINS, and coastal BOTTLENOSE DOLPHINS. (Summary by Census Director Alisa Schulman-Janiger).
Photos today: southbound gray whale, sighting #4 (by observer Gregg Gentry); spyhopping gray whale (statue, by observer Iva Maes); wishbone bush (by anchor Cynthia Woo).
Gray Whales Today:
Southbound: 1
Northbound: 6
Northbound calves: 0
Total: 7
Gray Whales to date (since 1 Dec)
Southbound: 122
Northbound: 413
Total: 535
Southbound calves: 0
Northbound calves: 3
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DEAD GRAY WHALE, HUNTINGTON BEACH on 11 April: no obvious cause of death for this 45-foot long adult female, who appeared to be in good body condition when she washed ashore. The Pacific Marine Mammal Center (PMMC) and the Ocean Animal Response & Research Alliance (@oarra_org) worked together the next morning to perform a necropsy (animal autopsy). PMMC’s necropsy team, led by veterinarian Dr. Alissa Deming, and OARRA’s necropsy team, led by Keith Matassa, collected samples for further analysis. According to NOAA Fisheries, this is the 10th known gray whale stranding this year: 8 in California, and 2 in Washington. The average number of West Coast gray whale strandings in a non-UME (Unusual Mortality Event) year is 35. The number of reported gray whale strandings in Mexico is quite high: at least 70... ... See MoreSee Less
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ACS/LA Gray Whale Census and Behavior Project Update, Pt. Vicente Interpretive Center, 12 April 2025, "Whale of a Day": 3 northbound GRAY WHALES! Fog reduced visibility early in the morning. Our first GRAY WHALE was an adult that kept a low profile. The whales in our pair were very white adults that were possibly skinny. All passed within a half mile of shore, in the late afternoon. We watched 2 solo HUMPBACK WHALES. The first humpback breached multiple times, and did a lot of lob-tailing, both right side up and upside down; its flukes were mostly white! We tracked a trio of FIN WHALES, COMMON DOLPHINS, offshore BOTTLENOSE DOLPHINS, and coastal BOTTLENOSE DOLPHINS. We also watched a huge raft of over 50 sea lions, a very rare sight that we have observed more often this season. (Summary by Census Director Alisa Schulman-Janiger)
Photos today: afternoon Gray Whale Census team (L to R) - anchor Chad Sprouse with spotting scope, and observers Carla Gagne, Stacie Patterson, Gina Lumbruno, and Ben Tyrrell (by Alisa Schulman-Janiger); Alisa Schulman-Janiger with long-time (39 years!) Census observer Jo Bonds (by Chad Sprouse); second humpback whale; California towhee (by Alisa Schulman-Janiger).
Gray Whales Today:
Southbound: 0
Northbound: 3
Northbound calves: 0
Total: 3
Gray Whales to date (since 1 Dec)
Southbound: 121
Northbound: 407
Total: 528
Southbound calves: 0
Northbound calves: 3
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