Conjoined Gray Whale Calves Found in Baja California Lagoon
Source: Las Vegas Guardian Express
The conjoined calves were found Sunday by fisherman in the Laguna Ojo de Liebre, or Scammon’s Lagoon in Baja California, 533 miles from the San Diego border. A database search at the Natural History Museum in Los Angeles turned up no results for previously recorded instances of Siamese gray whale twins.
The calves are believed to have been miscarried prior to the normal 13-and-a-half month gestation period of gray whales, or Eschrichtius robustus, as the carcass is only seven feet long. The normal range for newborn calves of this cetaceous species is between 12 and 16 feet. Together they weighed a half-ton. American Cetacean Society researcher Alisa Schulman-Janiger said that the underdeveloped twins sparked questions about the fate of their mother. The mottled gray baleen whales had two heads as well as two tails and were joined at the midsection. Conjoined twins have been documented in other whale species, namely fin, sei and minke whales.
Gray whales, who as shallow water feeders like to stay near coastlines, usually give birth during the 6,000-mile journey south from the Arctic’s Bering and Chukchi seas, or in southern lagoons during the last week of December and first two weeks of January. They then nurse their young for several weeks prior to migrating back to Arctic seas.
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Benito Bermudez, marine biologist and the National Natural Protected Areas Commission (CONANP) described the finding as being “exceptionally rare – without any precedent.” The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association estimate the Pacific gray whale population to be about 21 000.
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Read more: http://guardianlv.com/2014/01/conjoined-gray-whale-calves-found-in-baja-california-lagoon/
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Scientists Discover Conjoined Gray Whale Calves Dying Near West Coast
Following continued news of disturbing sea life occurrences off the West Coast, scientists in Mexico’s Scammon’s Lagoon, also known as Laguna Ojo de Liebre, have discovered what appears to be the first ever documented case of conjoined gray whale calves.
Discovered last Sunday, the calves, which did not survive, measured in just under seven feet long, much smaller than the average newborn length of 12 to 16 feet.
“Unfortunately the specimen died, his survival was difficult,” a translated comment from the Guerrero Negro Verde Facebook page reads.
Shockingly underdeveloped, American Cetacean Society researcher Alisa Schulman-Janiger believes the calves were the result of a miscarriage. Later collecting the carcass for further analysis, scientists made no comments regarding a possible cause.
While conjoined twins have been found in several other whale species, a search of the database at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County produced no records of conjoined gray whales.
Although no information has yet been released, concerns over the ongoing Fukushima disaster has many asking questions, especially in light of rare animal deaths spreading along the West Coast.
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