Fifty-six gray whales, including five females with calves, have been recorded in the Kronotsky Gulf off the coast of Kamchatka ahead of World Whale and Dolphin Day on July 23. Field observations of this rare Okhotsk Sea population are being conducted as part of a dedicated study and conservation project.
Researchers have been monitoring the whales in the Kronotsky Gulf since April. The fieldwork involves photographing the animals for identification purposes, collecting biopsy samples for genetic research, and analyzing the local food supply.
Eleven juvenile whales born in recent years are currently feeding in the gulf. Alongside these younger individuals, five cow-calf pairs have been identified. Three of these females are reproducing at the shortest possible biological interval, bringing new calves to the feeding grounds every two years.
In addition to the Kamchatka research, scientific monitoring of gray whales has continued for three decades off the coast of Sakhalin – destinations where the marine mammals return annually after migrating thousands of kilometers. These locations serve as the primary foraging areas for the Okhotsk Sea population, as the whales arrive at the Far Eastern shores each summer to rebuild their energy reserves and rear their young.
While the western population of gray whales was long considered extinct due to historical commercial whaling, a small number of animals survived. The population remains highly vulnerable, with current estimates indicating a total of just 250–300 individuals. The primary observation site for these rearing whales in Kamchatka is located in Olga Bay within the Kronotsky Gulf on the eastern coast of the peninsula.