ML Interest Tag: breeding

Where to See Sea Lions, Elephant Seals & Whales

by Kate Loweth

The winter is a perfect time to visit some of the marine mammals that make the Bay Area coast their vacation home. Scroll through for all our recs on where to see sea lions, elephant seals, sea otters and even whales in the Bay Area!

San Francisco

PIER 39

Kate Loweth

Coined the Pier's "Sea Lebrites", these boisterous barking pinnipeds came sparingly at first after the Loma Prieta earthquake hit San Francisco in October 1989. With a protected environment and plentiful supply of food from the Bay, the sea lions quickly decided to make PIER 39’s K-Dock their new home, with each winter bringing in up to 900 sea lions. Check out our guide to PIER 39 here. 

Online: pier39.com

San Francisco Zoo

Head to the San Francisco Zoo across from Penguin Island to see the playful Northern American river otters. These excellent swimmers are super playful, often seen practicing their underwater skills, wrestling with friends and sliding down slippery banks. 

Online: sfzoo.org

Peninsula/South Bay

Año Nuevo State Park, Davenport

Año Nuevo State Park is one of the largest mainland breeding colonies in the world for the Northern Elephant Seal, giving families an up-close view of these awesome creatures. Up to 10,000 of them pack the beaches of Año Nuevo for breeding season, which begins in December when the first males arrive. From Dec. 15-Mar. 31 you'll need to book a guided tour to see the elephant seals in their native habitat. The park is partially open due to COVID and face masks are required. 

Online: parks.ca.gov

Whale Watching with the Oceanic Society, Half Moon Bay/San Francisco

From January-March, you can head out on a three-hour whale watching tour in search of migrating gray whales. Tours leave from Half Moon Bay and you have the chance to see whales, seals and sea lions, dolphins and porpoises and seabirds. From April-November you can take a day trip from San Francisco to the Farallon Islands for an unforgettable experience. 

Online: oceanicsociety.org

Santa Cruz Wharf

Kate Loweth

The Santa Cruz Wharf juts out into the Pacific right between the Boardwalk and The Dream Inn. Along with a number of great restaurants (we like Woodies Cafe for its good food and laid-back vibe), there are spots to go fishing and souvenir shops aplenty. Kids will love checking out the sea lions that make their home there. You can check out the viewing holes at the end of the wharf or head to the lower deck area across from Bonnie's for some up-close viewing. Nearby is the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, a free marine education center. 

Online: cityofsantacruz.com

Elkhorn Slough, Moss Landing

If you are looking to see some sea otters up close, this is the activity for you. This spot is perfect for kayaking even for beginners as the waters are calm and you’ll get the opportunity to view tons of wildlife. Kayak Connection will take you out on a family adventure tour where paddlers as young as 3 can get some water time. Or, book your rental to explore on your own. You can read our kayaking with kids guide here. 

Online: kayakconnection.com

North Bay/Marin

Point Reyes

Northern Elephant Seals Point Reyes

Point Reyes and Chimney Rock are great spots to view elephant seals and migrating whales. Bring your binoculars and head to the Elephant Seal Overlook to check out the animals that haul out there. Check out this page for additional info on the animals there and closures that are taking place to protect the animals. 

Farther South

Monterey Bay Aquarium

Monterey Bay Aquarium

The Monterey Bay has been a center of activity throughout the central coast’s history. Now home to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, at the site of historical Hovden Cannery, the Aquarium welcomes close to two million visitors per year. You and your mini aquarists will be captivated by the natural exhibits, marine life and daily educational programs. Dip into our insider’s guide and be submerged in everything this ocean conservation facility has to offer.

Online: montereybayaquarium.org

Piedras Blancas Elephant Seal Rookery, San Simeon

Kate Loweth

The Piedras Blancas Elephant Seal Rookery is a must-visit spot in San Simeon (just north of Cambria). Pretty much any time of year you can walk along the pier and see these massive animals up close. The pier is open every day and there are no fees or reservations required. Volunteer docents are often available to answer questions. Read our guide to the central coast here. 

Online: elephantseal.org

Sub Sea Tours Whale Watching, Morro Bay

Kate Loweth

Reserve a spot on a three-hour whale-watching tour and go past the calm harbor waters to see if you can spot gray or humpback whales that come to feed on the abundant sea life offshore. The 45-minute sub tours are especially fun for little ones wanting to see schools of fish and jellyfish, as well as the local sea otters and harbor seals. You can also rent kayaks and stand-up paddleboards from this location. Check out our Morro Bay guide for more info. 

Online: subseatours.com

 

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Shedd Aquarium Welcomes Four New Magellanic Chicks

by Jennifer Swartvagher

Even though the Shedd Aquarium temporarily shut its doors, the Magellanic and rockhopper penguins still prepared for breeding season. Animal care experts helped facilitate by shifting the light cycle and scattering nesting materials in the Polar Play Zone exhibit. During quarantine, between building nests and taking field trips around the aquarium, the penguins welcomed four Magellanic chicks. 

Penguin

The first chicks hatched on May 18, and the final chick joined on May 21, with all the new arrivals weighing in around 66-85 grams upon hatch. All of the chicks are being raised by adults who feed and incubate the baby birds. With four new arrivals, this is the most Magellanic penguins born and bred at the aquarium following the annual breeding season.

Penguin

The animal care team conducts quick daily check-ups with the hatchlings to monitor growth and ensure all four chicks continue to hit critical milestones. Since hatching, the birds now weigh between 1200 and 2000 grams showing that they are receiving the proper nutrients to help them grow. The penguins will be at their full size after two to three months.  Until then caretakers will monitor the hatchlings for additional milestones, as well as tracking vocalizations, hydration levels, grooming and more. 

The chicks have become more mobile. While they are not ready to take field trips around the aquarium, they have been socializing with their caretakers and each other. 

Penguin

In the coming months, the animal care team will determine the sex of the chicks. The hatchlings will get named before making a public debut in the exhibit.

While Shedd Aquarium has been closed to the public since mid-March, their animal care efforts have not slowed down. To mitigate the financial impacts of the closure, the public can support Shedd Aquarium’s mission and dedication to top-quality animal care by symbolically adopting a penguin. All adopters will receive a plush penguin, a photo of the animal and regular updates on the birds. The public can also support the aquarium by donating to its reopening campaign, It’s Time, or by signing up to become a member.

—Jennifer Swartvagher

All photos courtesy of Shedd Aquarium/Brenna Hernandez

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Westmoreland State Park: Where Shark Teeth are the Main Attraction

by Meghan Yudes Meyers

Editor’s note: We’re making every effort to provide you with the most up-to-date information. However, there may be last minute closures due to Covid-19. We highly recommend that you call ahead or check a park’s website before you pack your kids  (and all those snacks, and diapers…) and haul them across town. Stay safe!

Looking for a day trip that combines fun, nature, and a whole lot of learning? Then point your compass south to Westmoreland State Park in Colonial Beach, Va. Just a 2-hour drive from DC, this gorgeous park features 1200 acres on the Potomac River’s Northern Neck.  It’s a beautiful spot to take the kids for a day (or weekend) of hiking, camping, fishing, boating, swimming and–the best part–hunting for ancient shark teeth.

photo: Virginia State Parks via Flickr

So. Many. Teeth.
Millions of years ago, Westmoreland County, VA was under water and a breeding ground for sharks, including the Megalodon, which is said to be the ancestor of today’s Great White shark. If you scoop up some sand at the water’s edge and sift through the pebbles, beach glass and mollusk shells, you’ll soon catch a glimpse of a pointy triangular-shaped shark tooth that is most likely millions of years old. You’ll find teeth from sharks such as mako, cow, sand and tiger, and if you’re lucky you might even find the tooth of a Megalodon (some are the size of a human hand!). But the coolness doesn’t stop there; you’ll also come across other artifacts, such as whale vertebra, stingray dental plates and crocodile teeth.

photo: Virginia State Parks via Flickr

Know Before You Go
But why so many shark teeth? If your shark-loving lad asks you this question, you can remind him that sharks have an unlimited supply of teeth, which are not firmly set in their jaws but in their gums, where they appear in layered rows. If a tooth falls out, another one simply moves forward to take its place. That means lots of fun fossil finds for the rest of us!

photo: Virginia State Parks via Flickr

Mark Your Calendar
Combine your trip with the free public event Music on the Cliffs which takes place on July 18  and Sept. 19. Grab a lawn chair and enjoy the sounds of summer while taking in a spectacular view of the Potomac River. Pets are welcome at these events!


145 Cliff Rd.
Colonial Beach, VA
800-933-7275
Online: dcr.virginia.gov

—Meghan Yudes Meyers and Jamy Bond

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How to Do the Metro Richmond Zoo with Kids (in Just Two Hours)

by rtjamybond

Yes, D.C.’s Smithsonian Zoo is free and awesome and if you haven’t paid a visit you must go (Pandas!). But if you’ve been there, done that, and you need a unique animal-loving fix, consider a visit to the Metro Richmond Zoo, one of the largest and most unique in our area that’s just a quick two-hour drive south of the city. With more than 2,000 animals spread across 70 acres of land, answering the call of the wild can feel a bit overwhelming. Here are five places to get started. 

#1 The Feeding Giraffes
One feature that makes this zoo so popular and fun is the ample opportunity you’ll have to interact with a variety of animals. In the African Plains section, which features addax, impala, zebra, and kudu, along with storks, cranes, ostriches, cheetahs and elephants, you can actually feed the giraffes from a special platform. The zoo houses a herd of nine reticulated giraffe and they are all too happy to nibble some pre-purchased treats from your hand. You can also feed deer, goats, sheep, donkeys and antelope in the children’s farm area.

#2 Monkey Business
Primates are a favorite here and you’ll find rows of lemurs, marmosets, tamarins, New and Old World monkeys, as well as quite a few apes, including siamangs, orangutans, and chimpanzees. You can get up-close-and-personal (but maintain a modicum of safety) through a glass window with Farley and Zoe, two goofy orangutans.

#3 Birds of a Feather…
If birds are your thing, you’ll marvel at the Chilean flamingos and African penguins, and a walk-through aviary of ducks, pheasants, ibises, and spoonbills. The kids will love being able to enter the budgie exhibit and feed the brightly-colored budgerigars, aka parakeets, from feed sticks.

#4 Cats Steal the Show
Favor cute things with whiskers? You’ll enjoy the fact that Metro Richmond Zoo is a Cheetah Breeding Center and has gained worldwide attention for facilitating multiple births of adorable cheetah cubs.

#5 Hitch a Ride
Perhaps the ultimate interactive element at Metro Richmond Zoo is the newly added Treetop Zoofari zip line adventure, where you can zip from tree to tree like Tarzan and get a bird’s eye view of the animals. But if zip lining requires a little too much adrenaline for you, take advantage of the zoo’s Safari Sky Ride, which will give you a similar view, but from the comfort of a moving seat. Or if you prefer to stay closer to the ground, you can take the safari train for a special view of India and Chinese natives, such as blackbuck, mouflon, Himalayan tahr and takin. Impress your little ones by mentioning that the takin is considered a national treasure in China, much like the giant pandas.

Metro Richmond Zoo
8300 Beaver Bridge Rd. (Moseley, Va)
Open: Monday-Saturday, 9:30 a.m.–5 p.m.
Cost: $17.25; kids ages 2-11/$11.25
804-739-5666
Online: metrorichmondzoo.com

Have you visited this zoo yet? Tell us about your favorite part in the comments below. 

–Jamy Bond

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10 Things You Should Know About the Civil War

by Ayren Jackson-Cannady

If you’ve heard about the Civil War in news of late, you might be getting questions from the kiddos. Arm them (and yourself) with knowledge by teaching them the basic facts about this significant event in our country’s past. The Civil War, which began on April 12, 1861, when Confederate forces attacked a U.S. Union military installation at Fort Sumter in South Carolina, was the first “modern war.” The war lasted from 1861-1865, and during its run the world saw many firsts—it was the first time generals communicated via telegraph, the first time iron-clad ships sailed the waters, and the first time trains were used by soldiers for transport. Scroll down for 10 more zingers you should know about this ground-breaking conflict.

1. The election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 was one of the triggers for the start of the Civil War.
He and the North wanted to end slavery, but the South–which depended on the work of slaves to do the farming, its main industry–was very opposed to that idea.

2. The camera was a new invention during the Civil War. 
The Civil War was one of the first wars that had photographers and journalists follow troops and publish images alongside written stories.

Photo: Lynn (Gracie’s mom) via Flickr

3. Robert E. Lee (pictured above), the famous leader of the Confederate Army was first offered command of the Union forces.
He gracefully declined because he didn’t want to fight against his home state of Virginia. So, the Confederacy was led by Jefferson Davis, Lee was the most well known Southern generals of the Confederate Army, the Union was led by Abraham Lincoln (aka the president of the United States), and Ulysses S. Grant was the overall commander of the Union Army.

4. There were way more Union soldiers than Confederate soldiers.
With roughly 2,100,000 soldiers, the Union Army was nearly twice the size of the Confederate Army of 1,064,000.

Photo: amr255 via Flickr

5. During the first few battles of the Civil War soldiers didn’t have uniforms (!!).
It was like they were fighting in street clothes, so it was hard to tell each other apart. Eventually, the Union wore dark blue uniforms and the Confederates wore gray coats and pants.

6. More men died in the Civil War than any other American conflict, but the kicker is that nearly two-thirds of those deaths were a result of disease.
An estimated 650,000 to 850,000 Americans lost their lives in the Civil War (that’s more than WWI, WWII, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War combined!). The high death toll, however, was a result of camps becoming breeding grounds for diseases like typhoid, pneumonia, and measles. For every three soldiers killed in battle, five more died from disease.

Photo: amr255 via Flickr

7. Lincoln’s famous Gettysburg Address was only 272 words long.
Seemed longer, right? It starts with: “Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.” And 242 words later…

8. The Union army had a minimum age of 18 to join, but that didn’t stop some.
Nearly 10,000 soldiers were below the minimum age limit, with the youngest reportedly being nine years old. No wonder the Civil War is often referred to as “The Boy’s War.”

Photo: American Red Cross Cascades Region via Flickr

9. Clara Barton (pictured above), the most famous Civil War medical worker, was self taught.
She was so good, though, that she was given the nickname “Angel of the Battlefields,” and she would later go on to create the American Red Cross.

10. Women were not allowed to join the Union or Confederate armies.
But that didn’t stop some majorly brave 250 to 400 women from sneaking in by disguising themselves as men and fighting anyways.

Do you know any other interesting facts about the Civil War? Share them in the comments below.

—Ayren Jackson-Cannady

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Baby’s Best Friend? Study Shows Dogs React to Baby Cries in the Same Way People Do

by Melissa Heckscher

You know that feeling you get when you hear your baby cry — the discomfort, the worry, the need to help? It turns out, dogs feel it, too.

A growing body of research is proving what dog owners have known forever: Our pooches feel emotions — and, more specifically, they can feel empathy towards other people’s pain. To prove it, University of New Zealand researchers exposed 75 pet dogs and 74 people to 10 minutes of the following sounds: a baby babbling, a baby crying and radio static. Then, researchers checked their cortisol levels for indicators of stress. Neither human nor dog responded much to the sound of a baby babbling or the radio static. But the sound of the baby crying caused a dramatic rise in cortisol levels in both species. It’s a reaction that lead author Ted Ruffman to describe it as low-level empathy.

“Emotional contagion is a primitive form of empathy,” Ruffman told the New York Times. “It is plausible that when breeding dogs, humans would have selected for qualities that facilitated emotional links between dogs and humans.”

Want to see some canine empathy in action? Watch the YouTube video below of a boxer stressing over a newborn baby’s cries—a video that has since racked up more than 5 million views!

Featured image and video courtesy of ElectricNoodleSoup on YouTube

Do your pets love your babies? Tell us how in the comments below! 

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