The Minke Whale: The Other Whale in the Salish Sea

The Whale Museum is pleased to welcome Frances Robertson as part of the 2014 Summer Lecture Series. Frances will discuss “The Minke Whale: the Other Whale in the Salish Sea” on Tuesday, July 29 at 6:30 p.m.

Minke whales are one of the smallest baleen whales, growing up to 30 feet in length. In the Northeast Pacific this little whale appears to be rare, found in only small numbers, in a few places at certain times of year – despite being the world’s most common baleen whale. Here in the Salish Sea Minke whales are seen regularly from April to September, however fewer than 600 whales are thought to occur off the coasts of California, Oregon and Washington with fewer still in British Columbian waters. Such rarity remains a mystery to us as Minke whales have never been hunted off this coast – commercially or for subsistence purposes. But Minke whales face other threats, including entanglement, ship strike, noise pollution, habitat disturbance and prey availability.

Very little is known about how these threats may impact Minke whales. Since 1980 the NE Pacific Minke Whale Project has learned much about this other whale of the Salish Sea. In this talk Frances Robertson will delve into the fascinating life history of the Minke whale. She will also introduce the work of the Northeast Pacific Minke Whale Project sharing the project’s early findings, their current work and ideas for future research.

Frances Robertson is a marine wildlife biologist with over a decade of marine mammal research experience. She recently completed her doctorate at the University of British Columbia where she studied the effects of oil & gas exploration on bowhead whale behavior and distribution in the Beaufort Sea. She has conducted research in the Northeast Pacific, North Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico and the Arctic, and has spent months at sea on seismic survey ships observing and monitoring for marine mammals. Most recently she has flown the coast of northern Alaska monitoring the effects of oil and gas activities on bowhead whales and other Arctic marine mammals. Frances has been involved in the Northeast Pacific Minke Whale Project since 2005. Currently, she works as an environmental consultant and divides her time between Vancouver, BC and San Juan Island.

The July 29th lecture event is free and open to the public. For more information, call (360) 378-4710 ext. 30. The Whale Museum is located in Friday Harbor at 62 First Street N. Founded in 1976, The Whale Museum’s mission is to promote stewardship of whales and the Salish Sea ecosystem through education and research. In addition to providing exhibits, the Museum also provides programs including the Marine Naturalist Training, Orca Adoption Program, Soundwatch Boater Education, San Juan Islands Marine Mammal Stranding Network, and the Whale Hotline. The Whale Museum can be found on-line at www.whalemuseum.org.

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