A date with the gray whales

ToOjo de Liebre lagoon, located 450 miles south of the border between Mexico and the United States, dozens ofgray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) ready to mate. This cetacean travels every year from the Arctic to thewarm mexican waters, starring in the longest known migration carried out by a mammal. The end of his trip has become a true annual spectacle.

Gray whales reach between 11 and 15 meters in length and can weigh a maximum of 30 tons.

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Although the gray whale was on the brink of extinction more than a century ago, its situation changed dramatically with the creation of the International Whaling Commission in 1947. Since that date, thanks to international efforts, its population in the Pacific has recovered to reach between 19,000 and 23,000 individuals.

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This cetacean does not have a dorsal fin. Instead, it has low, round humps on the back of its back.

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During their migration they can swim non-stop for periods of 20 hours at a speed of 7 kilometers per hour.

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National tourists from the United States and Canada attend each year in Mexico when the whales arrive at the lagoons of Ojo de Liebre, San Ignacio and Magdalena. as a souvenir they take some of these souvenirs

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The gray whale is the most primitive living cetacean that exists today. It is a direct descendant of Oligocene marine mammals that, 30 million years ago, also filtered water from the oceans for food.

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