This is Big Mama’s eighth calf. She also has seven grand calves and four great-grand calves.
SEATTLE — The first humpback calf of the whale watching season was spotted in the Salish Sea earlier this week.
The baby, which is thought to be between four to five months old, was seen in the Haro Strait north of San Juan Island on Wednesday and again on Thursday.
The calf was seen alongside its mother, BCY0324, otherwise known as “Big Mama.” This is Big Mama’s eighth calf over the last three decades.
“We’re always eager to see who the first calf of the season will be,” said Pacific Whale Watch Association Executive Director Erin Gless, “and we’re always anxious waiting for Big Mama’s return. This year we got to celebrate both happy occasions at once.”
Humpback whale mothers typically give birth to their calves after they’ve headed south for the winter, either to Mexico, Hawai’i or Central America. Big Mama is part of the Hawaiian population.
After a few months have passed, mother and calf will journey thousands of miles north to their summer feeding grounds in the Salish Sea to feed on small fish and krill, dodging shipping traffic, fishing nets and killer whales along the way.
The Pacific Whale Watch Association said this is a trip Big Mama has made dozens of times over her life span.
Big Mama has been an important part of the humpback whale’s population rebound over the last three decades.
She was one of the first whales to return to the Salish Sea after commercial whaling was banned in 1996. She now has eight calves, seven grand-calves and four great-grand calves, according to researchers.
Humpbacks typically remain in the Salish Sea through the fall before migrating south for the winter.