[CINC] FW: Whale Labor

[Keith Grey Hale]

Valerie Olson forwarded me this answer from Jason Wood On Whale labor.  It seems that this is the best I have heard so far. I also have looked into several sources. I guess that it's a very hard thing to study in the wild and who would want to disturb some one in that condition any way. A little respect may be a good thing. (This is just me) I don't think I would like a bunch of researchers in on my child's birth. (But again that's me).

I am not done with this yet, I shall keep looking.

I also wanted to pass on a story that Matt shared with me. About a gray whale giving birth down south. I guess that a researcher saw this??? Any way this mother Gray was in labor and seemed to be having a hard time. The calf ended up being breached head first. They saw her do a head stand holding her breath for 40 minutes. Matt said that the calf survived. That's all I know about it???

Thanks every one.

Thanks Valerie

Keith
To: greywhalejewelry at hotmail.com
From: vfo at mindspring.com
Subject: Fwd: Whale Labor
Date: Sun, 28 Sep 2008 23:01:36 -0700

Hi Keith,
Here is the answer I received from Jason Wood at the Whale Museum in Friday Harbor at San Juan Island.  Since it was your question, you might want to pass this info on to the rest of the CINC corps.
Valerie Olson

Begin forwarded message:From: Jason Wood <jasonw at whalemuseum.org>Date: September 26, 2008 9:47:30 AM PDTTo: Valerie Olson <vfo at mindspring.com>Subject: Re: Whale Labor
 Hi Valerie,
That is an interesting question, and a hard one to answer when it comes to wild whales.  The best information out there is probably from whales held in captivity.  As far as I know, no one has tried to study this question in wild killer whales.  A quick google search for 'labor length in killer whales birth' comes up with times in the region of 2 to 4 hours of labor.  My guess is that, as with most species, there is going to be a fair deal of variability, with complicated births taking much longer.
Hope that helps,
Jason

At 12:07 PM 9/23/2008, you wrote: Hi Jason,
I am a member of the Whale Museum, but live in Santa Barbara.  I amalso a member of the Channel Islands Naturalist Marine SanctuaryNaturalist Corps. Recently, one of our naturalists was asked aquestion that is really interesting.
The question is, 'How long does it take a whale to deliver a calf,i.e., how long is the labor?'
I have checked several books and not found anything yet.  I thoughtyou might have some insight into this question.  Specifically, do youhave any idea where we could find information on time involved forthe delivery?  (I thought that there might be more data for Orcasince they are so heavily studied.)
Thanks,
Valerie OlsonChannel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Corps 
Jason Wood, PhDResearch CuratorThe Whale MuseumP.O. Box 945Friday Harbor, WA 98250office: (360) 378-4710 ext. 25fax: (360) 378-5790website: www.whalemuseum.org
 

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