"Staked Whale"

On 28 February 2003 in Laguna San Ignacio, Baja California Sur, Mexico, we observed an adult Pacific gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus) that had a piece of wood protruding from its left blowhole.

We first sighted the whale at approximately 08:30 near the mouth of the lagoon and observed it for approximately the next hour. It was associating with three other whales of similar size. All four whales were swimming against the outgoing tide and were slowly moving further into the lagoon. The affected whale spyhopped frequently, as did at least one of the other whales. The behavior of the affected whale did not differ in any apparent way from that of the other whales.

A piece of wood that appears to be part of a tree branch protruded approximately 45 cm from the whale's left blowhole. It was obviously not thick enough to seal the blowhole by itself, but the whale kept it tightly shut every time we could see it. The piece of wood was heavily weathered, having the smooth appearance of a piece of driftwood. The whale had an unusually high number of whale lice on its head. The lice formed a thick orange patch from the tip of the rostrum to about 50 cm posterior of the blowhole.

Two of the local fishermen who take visitors whale watching throughout the season told me that on 28 February the whale had been sighted in the lagoon for 15 days. They had not sighted this individual without the stick, nor did they recognize it as one of the "friendlies." The fishermen who conduct the whale encounter trips aboard their skiffs in the lagoon have an intimate knowledge of the whales and recognize many individuals.

We were in the lagoon from the morning of 28 February to late afternoon on 2 March aboard the MV "Royal Polaris" out of San Diego on a trip organized by the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium in San Pedro, CA.

I think that the branch most likely lodged in the whale's blowhole by accident and that the whale has kept it in place by keeping the blowhole closed ever since.

We invite reports of further sightings of this animal as well as any information that might help shed light on what might have happened to this whale.