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Tour #1 (Jan 23-Feb 3, 2018) – Islas San Benito

Howdy whalewatchers:

We had a fantastic day at San Benito island today! The weather was perfect and there was lots to see. The group saw northern elephant seals, Guadalupe fur seals, and California sea lions. For plants, there was San Benito tarweed, cholla, island mallow, and agave.

Here is a picture of the island before we anchored.  We are still also seeing lots of southbound gray whales in our travel south. We’re headed to be in Laguna San Ignacio tomorrow.

Capt Aaron and Team Searcher

2020-07-15T16:34:28-07:00January 27th, 2018|Trip Reports|
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UK’s “The Telegraph” gets touched by Baja

Journalist Mike Unwin travelled aboard Searcher to Baja California last year. His article was just published and we think it’s pretty awesome! Treat yourself to a read about the whales, cacti, night sky, personalities and more Baja “touches.”

(Photo courtesy of Mike Unwin and Getty Images)

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/cruises/articles/cruising-mexico-baja-california-whale-watching/

2020-07-15T16:34:28-07:00January 26th, 2018|News|
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Tour #1 (Jan 23-Feb 3, 2018) – Offshore Ensenada, heading south

Howdy whalewatchers,

After our required immigration stop in Ensenda, we went to Islas Todo Santos for a brief look at elephant seals hauled out on the beach, and soon we saw our first whale!

Bull elephant seal and his harem, Islas San Benito

It was a southbound gray whale, and there were many more gray whales to be seen throughout the afternoon, all headed south. We’re also headed south in hopes of seeing some more life. The weather is great and we’re excited about what’s ahead.

Afternoon report

Common dolphins @ Sally Walton

We’ve seen lots of southbound gray whales this afternoon, and we had a brief look at a pair of Bryde’s whales. The finishing touch for the day was a large herd of short-beaked common dolphins that rode off into the sunset alongside Searcher.  We’re headed south for tomorrow’s activities.

Capt Aaron and Team Searcher

Passengers resting up for the next exhausting whale sighting!

Editor’s note: We received the gray whale census in Laguna San Ignacio for January 18: There were 11 mother/calf pairs and 8 singles, for a total of 30 whales. The next census will be completed this week. Then numbers should grow as we are seeing large groups of gray whales migrating past southern California now.

2020-07-15T16:34:28-07:00January 25th, 2018|Trip Reports|
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Tour #1 (Jan 23-Feb 3, 2018) – Depart San Diego

Passengers arrived throughout the day, greeted by our San Diego sunshine. After meeting fellow passengers and naturalists, sharing a cup of tea aboard Searcher, and maybe enjoying a beer and fish taco at Mitch’s Seafoods, the boat departed for Mexican waters and a wildlife adventure to remember!

Library is ready for whalewatchers.

We are pleased to be hosting Jo Ruxton (director, A Plastic Ocean) and Bonnie Monteleone (executive director at Plastic Ocean Project), both experts in the field of plastics in the ocean and education, as special guests for this tour.

Stay tuned to this space for all the wildlife highlights and photos sent in by the crew.

Mugs are ready for morning coffee.

2020-07-15T16:34:28-07:00January 24th, 2018|News, Tours|
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Rob-servations #13: Harbor Seals

The harbor seal (Phoca vitulina) is one of four species of pinnipeds regularly found in the waters around Baja California (for a discussion of pinnipeds in general, please see my Rob-servations Blog #10). Harbor seals are members of the pinniped family Phocidae, as is the northern elephant seal, another Baja pinniped species. All members of this family share various traits that help distinguish them from the other major group of pinnipeds, the family Otariidae (which includes the California sea lion and Guadalupe fur seal, also found in Baja. See photos below for comparison).

Guadalupe fur seal

California sea lions

Harbor seals (and other phocids) lack an external ear flap, have relatively small front flippers (compared to otariids), cannot rotate their hind flippers forward, hunch along awkwardly when on land, and primarily use their hind flippers and bodies when swimming underwater (see Blog #10 for more details).

As a general rule, phocids tend to have little to no sexual dimorphism, while otariids are characterized by having sexual dimorphism. The term “sexual dimorphism” refers to the differences between male and female members of a species. Many people equate the term with differences in body size, but the term also encompasses other differences, such as the bright colors in some male birds, or the antlers in male deer. Harbor seals fit the typical model for phocids, in that male and female harbor seals are generally indistinguishable by size. (The BIG exception to the lack of sexual dimorphism in phocids is the elephant seal.) When examining dead harbor seals on the beach, I can tell male from female by the relative positions of the genital aperture and anus. When viewing live harbor seals in the wild, however, we rarely get that close a look and consequently cannot distinguish male from female. Harbor seals in the Pacific Ocean can sometimes get a bit larger than six feet (1.82 meters) but are usually less than 300 pounds (136 kilograms) in weight.

Harbor seals are the most widely distributed of all 33 pinniped species. They inhabit both the North Atlantic and North Pacific oceans, and are typically found along both coasts of North America, northeastern Asia, and northern Europe (including the United Kingdom). Ironically, of the four species of pinniped seen on our Baja trips, the harbor seal is among the least likely to be seen. The reason for this is that the Baja peninsula is the southernmost range limit of eastern Pacific harbor seals. Much of our tour takes us south of and beyond the range of harbor seals.

The best chance to see harbor seals during our Searcher Natural History Tours is during the first two full days of the trip. On the morning of the first full day, after clearing Customs in Ensenada, Mexico, we sail past a group of islands called Todos Santos. From the Searcher, we can see many species of birds, as well as any pinnipeds associated with the islands. We sometimes see harbor seals hauled out on the beach or bobbing in the water.

The second full day of the trip is spent at the San Benito Islands, specifically at West San Benito Island. We sometimes see harbor seals here. However, because the San Benito Islands are close to the southern limit of eastern Pacific harbor seals, we see harbor seals here less frequently than we do at the Todos Santos islands. Once we depart the San Benito Islands and continue even further south, we almost never see harbor seals again. The southernmost haul-out site for eastern Pacific harbor seals along the Baja peninsula is San Roque Island, about 110 miles (176 km) southeast of the San Benito Islands. However, our cruise track does not take us close to this island.

Much of the haul-out behavior of harbor seals in Baja is related to the annual molt, in which old hair is shed. Loss of body heat is high during the molt, so seals mitigate some of this heat loss by hauling out on land, rather than remaining in water (the rate of heat loss is greater in water). The annual molt cycle is triggered by photoperiod. Thus, seals at more southerly locations start molting first, and the timing of molting then progresses northward. For example, molting occurs at San Roque Island from February to June, while molting occurs at Todos Santos Island from April to July. Because seals are more likely to be hauled out while molting, researchers use the peak of the molting season to conduct population census counts of seal numbers. Harbor seals also haul out for pupping and nursing. Pupping season provides another opportunity for researchers to make population counts. Most pupping by harbor seals in Baja occurs in February and March.

All four species of Baja pinnipeds were subject to commercial exploitation during the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. Now, with the cessation of hunting, and with legal protections, these species, including the harbor seal, are recovering in numbers and are repopulating their historical range. Although harbor seals may not be a “target species” for many eco-tourists to Baja, it’s always wonderful to see them, especially considering their recovery from exploitation.

–Rob Nawojchik, marine biologist and Searcher naturalist

2020-07-15T16:34:28-07:00January 18th, 2018|Rob-servations|
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New year, new babies, new counts for San Ignacio!

Our colleagues at Ecoturismo Kuyima in Laguna San Ignacio in Baja California have released their very first census results of the brand new start to the season!

Photo by Val Guarin

On 13 January, 2018, 24 gray whales were counted: 3 mother/calf pairs and 18 singles.

As the season progresses, gray whales will continue to migrate south, fill in the lagoons, and females will give birth to their calves and care for them in the lagoons. We’ll up with them in Laguna San Ignacio during out 2018 tours.

 

2020-07-15T16:34:29-07:00January 15th, 2018|News|
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‘Tis the season…for gray whales!

They’re heading south and the good volunteers with American Cetacean Society in Los Angeles, California are watching and counting them every day.

Check here for the Daily Gray Whale Census to keep updated on how many gray whales are streaming south,

Come aboard with us and meet the gray whales in Laguna San Ignacio!

on their way to Baja California and the calving lagoons, including Laguna San Ignacio.

2020-07-15T16:34:29-07:00December 22nd, 2017|News|
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2017 Pelagic Birding Sightings List just published!

Take a look at all the fantastic sightings from the 2017 5-day pelagic birding trip which we offer every year in early September: SIGHTINGS LIST

Many thanks to our guides Todd McGrath, Dave Pereksta, Dave Povey and Paul Guris!

2017-12-13T15:23:59-08:00December 13th, 2017|Trip Reports|
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Make room for baby…lots of them!

We’re awaiting news of many blessed events–hundreds of gray whale babies are due to make their appearances over the next few weeks/months! We’ll see mothers and their newborns along the southbound migration as well as in one of our favorite places on earth: Laguna San Ignacio!

Join us in 2018 and we’ll take you there, but for now you can enjoy seeing them here: GRAY WHALE BABIES IN LAGUNA SAN IGNACIO

Many thanks to Chris Earley and Robyn Carmel for use of their lovely underwater footage!

2017-11-29T11:56:11-08:00November 29th, 2017|News, Videos|
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SAVE THE DATE-Join webinar about Baja Whales and Wildlife tour!

You won’t want to miss this informative and fun webinar about a Baja Whales and Wildlife expedition aboard Searcher! Hosted by Worldwide Quest in Toronto and Chris Earley (a Baja expedition leader in 2019 aboard Searcher), this will be an exciting opportunity to see photos, discuss the perfect itinerary for wildlife in Baja, and get your questions answered by an expert. It’s a great way to plan your Baja adventure right from your office or home computer.

Elephant seals @ Chris Earley

Join us! Check for the exact time in your time zone and register by clicking here: WEBINAR

2020-07-15T16:34:29-07:00November 9th, 2017|News|
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