dolphins – Chronicles of a Blogaholic

“Every fish and invertebrate contacting the oil is probably dying.
I have no doubt about that.”
Prosanta Chakrabarty

Hazmat teams clean up Redondo Beach as beachgoers sit and watch.

It saddens me to post this, but for the last few days, our beautiful Redondo Beach coastline has no sign of dolphins and no sign of whales. Even the pelicans and seagulls have disappeared.

Why? Because globs of tar and oil like substance washed ashore on Wednesday and impacted a 6.8-mile stretch of our beautiful California coastline.

Numerous agencies are working together cleaning up the mess as well as collecting samples to determine if it is a result of an oil spill or a natural occurrence.

This oil slick comes about a week after a ruptured 24-inch pipeline spilled oil into the ocean off Refugio State Beach, about 20 miles west of Santa Barbara. The pipeline, owned by Santa Maria-based Plains All-American Pipeline, was on land, and the oil flowed from a culvert into the waters.

Redondo Beach officials are asking residents to avoid contact with the water, wet sand and any materials that have washed ashore. Officials warn that the oil may cause skin irritation and long-term health effects.

Meanwhile on my walk this morning, there were flashing digital signs everywhere advising people to stay away from the beach. If you look at the photo I shot above, you can see two adults sitting in their beach chairs watching men in hazmat suits pick up toxic waste from the beach. A few yards away young children are in the water, while their parents sit on the sand. How stupid do you have to be to not follow blinking/flashing signs telling you to stay away from the beach? The wild life has more sense than humans and they can’t even read all the signs posted.

Most likely we will never know who and where these globs of oil came from. The oil companies will never fess up, because of the fines involved, unless of course we find them holding a smoking gun. Either way, it will take a half a century to recover from this sticky situation.

Shine On

“Most whale photos you see
show whales in this beautiful blue water
– it’s almost like space.”
Brian Skerry

Living on the Esplanade in Redondo Beach the past decade has not only been amazing and beautiful, but it allows you to experience the miracles of marine life. It’s mind-blowing to be able to watch the most spectacular sunsets 365 days a year. Without the use of binoculars, see dolphins playing daily along with seals and sea lions. Watch soaring seagulls and pelicans diving for their daily catch. Yet, with all of Redondo Beach’s beauty, the most breathtaking sight the past few weeks has been watching several baby gray whales swimming just 30 feet from the ocean breakwaters.

Witnessing from ones balcony, the longest migration known to man, raises curiosity about gray whales and what brought them to the shores of Redondo Beach.

The gray whale feed on shrimp, which is abundant this time of year in Redondo Beach. Baby gray whales are called calves and can be as long as a large SUV and weigh as much as a ton. The mother gray whales bring their calves to lagoons to feed for a few months, so that the calves can build up blubber for their yearly migration from Southern California to Alaska. A record-setting number of gray whales were born in Baja California this year.

It is great news that there has been an increase in the gray whale population, since it was listed as endangered in the 1970’s. However, with the increase in gray whales there has also been an increase in the number of whales becoming entangled in fishing lines and colliding with large ships. The other conundrum for these magnificent mammals is their predator the Orcas. These Orcas breed and live in the waters off Catalina Island and this may explain why the baby grays are feeding so close to the shore on the Esplanade. Could it be that these highly intelligent whales were hiding from the Orcas?

Whatever the reason, it’s a great opportunity to watch baby grays up close and personal. If you’d like to witness the gray whale spring migration from Baja California to Alaska this year, you don’t have to travel far. Just come down to the Esplanade in Redondo Beach and may be, with a little luck and timing, you too can catch a glimpse of these prehistoric mammals make their massive migration and witness whale watching at its finest.

Shine On