Wednesday, March 18, 2009

The Right Choices for Conservation


We have been blessed with sightings of whales on many occasions during the years. We have lived in Atlantic Canada for two periods of time and returned for visits often. Among the cetaceans we have seen are humpback, fin, minke, beluga, and pilot whales. A few years ago we camped on Grand Manan Island in the Bay of Fundy where we added another to our list -- the North Atlantic right whale. We were on a whale-watching outing where we followed (at a safe distance) a momma and her calf. These whales are rather boring because they swim around slowly, and without the gymnastics of humpbacks or the cuteness of belugas. They were considered the "right" whales for hunting because they were easy to track down and floated when harpooned. As a result they became an endangered species, with only 300 or so still alive.

The good news is that conservation efforts appear to be working. The Canadian and US governments have agreed on restricted areas and speed limits in the Bay of Fundy so these massive mammals won't be hit by ships, an ongoing problem. Some scientists figure the number of right whales should be adjusted up toward four hundred. It's not exactly time to dance in the streets, but it is movement in the correct (right?) direction.

One of my favourite psalms is 104, which creates a picture of creation where creatures exist because God wants them here, not because they are useful for humans. It speaks of Leviathan cavorting in the seas, and theologians speculate that this is a reference to whales. Even though right whales are a little short when it comes to cavorting, they are God's creation and deserve to exist.

Have any of you had close encounters of the whale kind?

3 comments:

Lynnof60 said...

I have been whale watching a number of times. Well, not exactly watching. It never failed the people that went before me saw 'hundreds' the people that went after saw' thousands' ... they obviously needed a rest between those two groups. I did have a friend who said she was standing at the side of the boat when a whale breeched and she was eye to eye with it. She said it was a spiritual connection. Listening to her story (and your story of Grand Manann) was ALMOST as good as seeing/hearing it for myself!

David Mundy said...

So, Lynn, you have actually been whale seeking, rather than whale watching. That's just wrong! We have been close enough to humpbacks on two occasions that when they spouted, we got wet. Just so you know, it was very fishy smelling, so you were better off. Right?

Lynnof60 said...

May I just say that one of the times was in ST. Johns, Nfld, the second week in July and it was 3 degrees...so with what you're saying and with what I have experiences the old National Geographic fits the bill!