Whales: An Unforgettable Journey Page #3

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Their natures often seem as

diverse as human personalities.

Some barrel past

as if I'm not there.

Others will let me

approach freely.

This small calf we've named Echo.

Her mother's name is Misty.

Echo is always curious

about what's around her.

Young calves are often playful swimming

right up to get a closer look at me.

But their mothers

are always nearby.

Humpback mothers are

pregnant for about a year.

They give birth to a single calf

that weighs two to three tons.

While the baby is nursing

it's thought to gain

about a hundred pounds a day

in the first few weeks.

Like humans, whales

are air breathers.

When Echo was born her mother most

likely pushed her to the surface

for her first breath of air.

Often a male suitor will

accompany the mother and calf

and while the mothers and

escorts typically stay under

for about

a quarter of an hour

babies like Echo have to

come up for air every few minutes.

Humpbacks breed and give birth

here in Hawaii but they don't eat here.

To feed, they must undertake

an incredible journey

swimming more than 3,000 miles

to Alaskan waters.

During that long migration the calf will

rarely leave its mother's side.

A young whale would stand

very little chance

of surviving alone

in the open ocean.

When Misty and Echo leave for Alaska

I feel excited but worried for them.

Their trip across the ocean

and back is filled with hazards.

Some of the whales I've gotten

to know have never returned.

Ships plying modern sea lanes

cross migratory routes of whales.

Accidental encounters

are often fatal.

Through a gauntlet of dangers,

Misty and Echo will follow

ancient whale pathways

to Alaska.

Within the watery depths

are bones of their ancestors-

reminders of the days when whalers

waited along these migration routes

driving many species

to near extinction.

Though whaling is now much

reduced, it still continues

and some whalers kill

even endangered species.

How whales navigate the globe

is still a mystery to us.

They may be assisted

by the calls of distant whales

beacons to guide them

through the deep.

Though masters of navigation

there are some obstacles

they cannot avoid.

As whales approach the coast

some get caught

in fishermen's nets.

Even the strongest whale

struggling to free itself,

may drown.

But in faraway Newfoundland

a lucky few in this predicament

get to meet biologist Jon Lien

who has freed

more than a thousand whales.

In a hopeful change

of conscience

the human has turned

from hunter to helper.

One might expect

an entangled whale

dragging the boat of its

helpers, to be aggressive-

but Jon has never been hurt

while freeing them.

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