The San Ignacio lagoon which cuts into the Baja peninsula of Mexico is one of the main winter
homes of the grey whales. These amazing creatures are actually quite friendly. They allow
people to touch, stroke and even kiss them ! Most grey whales spend the summer months in
the Polar seas off the coast of Alaska. In the autumn they migrate southwards, travelling
10,000 kilometres to the warm shallow lagoons of Mexico's Pacific coast. In these waters,
the female whales give birth to their young ones. In the late winter or spring, they begin
their long journey back to the northern seas.
When whales come up to the surface of the water to breathe, their warm and moist breath shoots
up, condensing into a cloud of mist. Grey whales are 4 to 5 metres long when they are born. At
this time they weigh 500 to 900 kilograms. A mother whale may be 10 to 15 metres and weigh
around 18 to 36 tonnes !
Grey whales were discovered in 1846 in the San Ignacio lagoons by whale hunters. During the
next 20 to 30 years, they were hunted almost to the point of extinction. Since 1937 these
whales have been considered as endangered species and have been protected. Today their
population has grown to nearly twenty-six thousand !
The Sharp Nose of the Shark
Sharks have an exceptionally sharp sense of smell. Their chemically sensitive nerve
endings connect to a special part of the brain called the olfactory area. A special feature of
sharks is that their olfactory areas take up a very large portion of their brains. They can
smell blood underwater too. Sharks are sometimes described as 'swimming noses.'
Dogs Can Be Vegetarian Too !
It is not necessary to feed dogs meat; they can do without milk too ! To make sure that dogs
live long, stay healthy and happy, a vegetarian mixture containing the following ingredients can
be made and fed to them. This mixture may be cooked with sufficient water and made into a porridge.
Better still, it can be baked as biscuits. Let's check out this fantastic recipe and prepare it for
our best friend - our pet dog!
