"La Boca", as it is known by the local fisherman, is a wild and windy place where the Pacific ocean meets Magdalena Bay in a wall of foamy white breakers. Sand dunes and mangrove forests protect the inner waters of the Boca de Soldedad (mouth of solitude) and here is where we commonly see adult female gray whales with newborn calves. This morning we encountered a female with a calf yet to be born and the time was near. She was rolling at the surface and sometimes stretched out on her back with her pectoral flippers raised to the sky. A small group of about six bottlenose dolphins gathered around as though midwives. We suspected she was in labor as we noticed her swollen belly and ripples of contractions.
Then a different type of surface activity further out in the boca attracted our attention and we departed from this soon to be mother whale. Three adult whales were creating quite a ruckus at the surface with lots of white water and splashing as flukes and pectoral flippers were alternately appearing and disappearing. In disbelief we realized we were watching courting whales here in the heart of a cow and calf nursery. Any doubts we may have had as to the intent of these three adults were vanquished when we witnessed the appearance of a gray whale penis, also known as the "pink floyd". To witness these two parts of the gray whale's life cycle in such a short period of time and space seemed fitting to the spirit of our expedition.
