Whale watching business on the up as species continue to thrive
At the Fishermen’s Wharf this 4th of July, folks are taking in some tunes, seeing rare birds and, of course, whale watching.
“It was a great experience out there,” Rene Rodriguez said after he finished a tour with Princess Monterey Whale Watching. “The weather was nice we saw a few Humpback Whales out there, it was really great.”
Business has been good for a few different tour companies on the wharf. At Chris’ Whale Watching Trips, owner Chris Arcoleo says it’s because there is a lot to see even on a slower day like Tuesday.
“There are very few times we don’t see any whales,” said Arcoleo. “Yesterday, we had Humpback Whales, Blue Whales and there was even a couple of Orcas.”
Tours lately aren’t seeing the huge groups of whales feeding in the Monterey Bay like what made national news a few years back but across the last several decades the population has certainly been growing. According to marine biologist Nancy Black across last 30 years the Humpback population has gone from approximately 400 to now more than 2,500.
“It’s the anchovies, the krill and they haven’t harpooned them over the last 40 or 50 years,” said Arcoleo. “They are taking most everything off the endangered list.”
Every day on the Monterey Bay is different though so some days are busier than others.
“It’s like a human fingerprint, no two fingerprints are the same and no two trips are the same,” said Jeff Shindell with Princess Monterey Whale Watching.
