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Community Corner

Coming in for the Krill

Cooler weather has drawn blue whales closer to the Hermosa Beach coast in search of food.

Cooler than usual temperatures might not have thrilled beach-goers this summer but it appears to have brought dozens of blue whales closer to shore than at any time anyone can remember.

"We've never had the blue whales come into Santa Monica Bay like they are now," said Natalie Massey, a longtime whale naturalist and volunteer with the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium. "This is the first time we've had the blue whales come in such great numbers. It's been just amazing."

The blue whales are feeding on their main source of food, krill, next door in Redondo Canyon, just south of Redondo Pier about a mile off the coast.

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It's not unusual for blue whales to be seen off the coast of Santa Barbara near the Channel Islands, or between Long Beach and Catalina Island during the summer. But what is unusual is for blue whales to congregate so close to the South Bay shores.

Although fin whales are often seen feeding on krill in Redondo Canyon, dozens of the largest animal on the planet just a mile off the shore is unprecedented, whale watchers say. The whales are close enough to shore for adventuresome stand up paddleboarders to reach out and nearly touch them as they surface.

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Massey said a few blue whales ventured this close to the shores in 2004, but nothing near the 20 to 30 that can routinely be seen these days near the South Bay.

"This is the first time we've been able to come out of Redondo Beach and get on whales right away, like as soon as we get out of the harbor," Massey said, who volunteers as a guide aboard a local pleasure cruise boat.

Members of a local outrigger canoe team said when they paddled outside the harbor to practice last week, blue whales surfaced right next to their boat, which has never happened before — and the canoe club has been around for 40 years.

Cindy Day, who lives in the South Bay and has been going on whale watching tours every year for the past decade, said this summer's tour was totally different than the others she has taken over the years.

"There are so many more whales," Day said. And people want to see them.

Craig Stanton, of Voyager Nature Cruises, said some of this weekend's tours are already booked solid and so he is considering adding more boat tours because of the demand.

Massey said the most common theory as to why the whales are here is that the water is so cold that the krill, shrimp-like invertebrates, are staying close to the surface. The windy weather may have pushed the krill further into the Santa Monica Bay than usual, she said.

The whales, which feed nearly exclusively on krill, are expected to continue feeding through October and possibly November. After that, they will head south to warmer waters near Costa Rica, where they mate.

After harpoon advances nearly wiped out the species, the International Whaling Commission banned all hunting of blue whales in 1966. Only within the last few years has there been evidence that the numbers of the blue whales may be increasing. There are between 7,000 and 14,000 blue whales in the world, according to the American Cetacean Society.

Blue whales can grow up to 100 feet long and weigh as much as 150 tons.

Although the whales are now in Redondo Canyon, they can still be found near Santa Barbara and even Monterey, Massey said.

Will they return next year? Who knows. In past years, the tour boats have had to travel for an hour out to sea before spotting blue whales, and never encountered them in the numbers they have seen this year, whale naturalists said.

"We love having them here," Massey said. "They're such beautiful animals and they're so much fun to watch."

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