During Fort Bragg’s 30th Annual Whale Festival (March 17 and 18) the town will welcome hundreds of visitors excited to catch a glimpse of some of the 20,000 gray whales migrating north from birthing grounds in Mexico to their winter home in Alaska.

To help us all understand these wonderful creatures a little better, over the next few weeks we’re offering a few choice facts, courtesy of the American Cetacean Society.

Size, Feeding, Mating and Breeding:

Length and Weight: Adult males measure 45-46 feet (13.7-14 m) and adult females measure slightly more. Both sexes weigh 30-40 tons (27,200-36,300 kg).

Feeding: Gray whales feed on small crustaceans such as amphipods, and tubeworms found in bottom sediments. They feed primarily during the summer months of long daylight hours in the cold Arctic waters of the Bering and Chukchi seas. To feed, a whale dives to the bottom, rolls on its side and draws bottom sediments and water into its mouth. As it closes its mouth, water and sediments are expelled through the baleen plates, which trap the food on the inside near the tongue to be swallowed.

Mating and Breeding: Gray whales reach sexual maturity at 5-11 years of age, or when they reach 36-39 feet (11-12 m) in length. Gestation is 12-13 months. The calf weighs 1,100-1,500 pounds (500-680 kg) and is about 15 feet (4.5 m) at birth. Calves nurse 7-8 months on milk that is 53% fat (human milk is 2% fat). Females bear a single calf, at intervals of 2 or more years.

Mating and calving both occur primarily in the lagoons of Baja California, Mexico, although both have been observed during the migration. More to come ….