Monterey Bay Whale Watch Map of Marine Mammal
Sightings in the Monterey Bay Region
May 1 - May 31, 2000
compiled by Richard Ternullo
Note: Gray Whales are not plotted on the chart. Numerous California Sea Lions, Harbor Seals, and Southern Sea Otters are seen on all trips, and also are not plotted.
The big news is the concentration of Humpback Whales within Monterey
Bay feeding on fish. They have been mostly on shelf waters and are sometimes seen
from shore near Pacific Grove. There have been times when feeding groups have
combined with other marine mammals to form spectacular foraging events. Look for
increased sightings of Blue Whale and a shift of Humpbacks to the canyon edges
to feed on krill during early summer. See our May
2000 Feature for more about humpback whale feeding activity in the Bay.
Among toothed whales, the continued presence of dolphin schools in large numbers is contrary to past behavior when school size decreases during spring and early summer. Strong NW winds during the past month may influence sight rate and school size for the next reporting period.
The sightings plotted above were compiled by Richard Ternullo for the period 5/1/00 to 5/31/00.
Sightings reported by M. Baxter, D. Davi, D. Lemon, N. Lemon, Louie, L. Oliver, R/V John H. Martin, Monterey Bay Whale Watch, National Geographic, Shearwater Journeys, R. Ternullo.