California Coastal Mammalwatching
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
Here’s my trip report about my December 2025 and February 2026 California trips viewing some of the state’s iconic marine mammals. Highlights include Northern Elephant Seal, Gray Whale, Fin Whale, and Eastern Pacific Long-Beaked Common Dolphin. Hope you enjoy!
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California Coastal Mammalwatching – Bryan Kao
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B. Kao
I am a naturalist who collects lifers from all animal taxa – mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, invertebrates – they all matter to me. Similarly, I count lifer species regardless of whether I saw them wild or captive; my main goal is to photograph them alive, and I’ve photographed over 10,000 animal species this way. My trips are primarily centered around zoos, aquariums, and other captive collections, of which I have visited over 170 thus far.
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blackwatch.
Wow the picture of the elephant seal looks so amazing. And just saying but if you are looking for a place where you are guaranteed to see grey whales I know the perfect place. The place is Depoe Bay Oregon. And you see before the year 2019 I had only seen cetaceans in captivity at sea world in Orlando Florida. However in 2019 I graduated from high school and became an Eagle Scout and as a reward. My paternal grandfather took me on a cross country road trip from where I live in New Jersey all the way out to Portland Oregon where my uncle lives. And while at my uncle’s place I asked him where’s the best place to see whales and he told me about depoe bay. And when me and my grandfather got to Depoe Bay I got out of the passenger side of my grandfathers car and went to this overlook over the bay. And it was then that I saw my first ever wild cetaceans which were grey whales and while i didn’t see the whales fully I could see the tails and the water coming out from their blowholes. And what I mean by guaranteed to see a whale at Depoe bay is. All year round you are guaranteed to see grey whales but in December the visiablity might not be good. But what was so interesting to me is that while grey whales migrate there is a resident pod of grey whales and this is the group of whales that i saw. And out of the 3 major groups of grey whales that you can see at Depoe Bay it’s the resident pod that comes closer to the shore. Like they are often within 1/2 mile of shore, feeding in shallow waters from mid may to October. And what I mean by 3 major groups of grey whales is besides the resident pod there are two other major groups of grey whales that can be seen at Depoe Bay and these other two groups are the ones that migrate from their feeding grounds in Alaska to their calving spots at the southern tip of Baja California in Mexico. And the other major group is the ones that migrate from their calving spots in Mexico to their feeding grounds in Alaska.