#whales #danapoint #captdaves
Beautiful drone video filmed near Dana Point, California, the Dolphin and Whale Watching Capital of the World®, during one of our daily whale watching cruises, of a mother and calf gray whale making their way south to Baja California, Mexico.
While many pregnant gray whales give birth in the warm and protected lagoons in Baja, some calves just can't wait and are born during the migration route.
The lagoons offer both safety from predators such as orcas as well as a warmth for calves who have not yet built up a thick layer of blubber to keep them warm.
Calves are about 15 feet long when they’re born and will gain over 50 pounds a day feeding on mother’s milk. Gray whale mothers can lose 30% of their body weight nursing one calf on milk that contains over 50% fat.
Gray whale adults average between 40 to 50 feet in length and weigh 30 to 40 tons. Each fall they depart the cold waters of the Bering and Chukchi seas, near Alaska, where they spend the summer bottom feeding on small crustaceans called amphipods. The whales travel about 6,000 miles south along the U.S. West Coast to the mating and birth lagoons in Baja. Gray whales spend several weeks in these warmer waters, with new mothers lingering the longest to give the calves time to increase their layer of blubber. In the spring gray whales will make another 6,000-mile journey back up the coast with new their calves. Gray whales make one of the longest migrations of any mammal.
Gray whales can be seen off Dana Point from late November through mid-May. With a variety of year-round whales, more dolphins per square mile than anywhere in the world, pristine coastline, calm seas, the first and longest-running annual Festival of Whales, and a captivating harbor minutes from the open ocean, Dana Point, California, is the Dolphin and Whale Watching Capital of the World®.
➡️ Learn more about gray whales: www.dolphinsaf...
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🐳 Captain Dave's Dolphin and Whale Watching Safari offers five-star, eco-friendly, Dana Point dolphin & whale watching experiences with award-winning customer service.
Located in Dana Point, the Dolphin and Whale Watching Capital of the World®. Multiple unique and uncrowded vessels include a Catamaran Sailboat with 2 Eye-to-Eye Underwater Viewing Pods and an intimate, high-speed Zodiac.
📱 Tel: (949) 488-2828
🌐 Web: www.dolphinsaf...
Facebook: / captdaveswhalewatching
Instagram: / captdaveswhalewatching
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Dolphin and whale footage is copyright David Anderson/DolphinSafari.com and may not be used without permission.
📹 Video filmed by licensed drone operator Grayden Fanning
🎵 Music by Kevin Graham