Scientists find conjoined gray whale calves in Baja California lagoon

Scientists in Mexico's Laguna Ojo de Liebre, or Scammon's Lagoon, on Sunday discovered conjoined gray whale calves.

It might be the first documented case of conjoined twin gray whales, Petethomasoutdoors.com reported.

Unfortunately, the twins discovered in Scammon's Lagoon did not survive. Most likely, they were miscarried because the carcass is only about seven feet long, versus the normal 12-16 feet for newborn gray whales.


 

 Alisa Schulman-Janiger, an American Cetacean Society researcher, pointed out that the twins were underdeveloped and said that pointed to a premature birth. She also wondered about the fate of the mother.

The twins' carcass has been collected for study.

The top photo is courtesy of Jesus Gomez. The bottom photo was among three posted Sunday to the Guerrero Negro Verde Facebook page, with the translated statement, "Unfortunately, the specimen died. [Its] survival was very difficult."

Gray whales are arriving in Scammon's Lagoon and other lagoons along the Baja California peninsula, after a nearly 6,000-mile journey from Arctic home waters. They give birth during the southbound journey, or in the lagoons, and nurse their calves for several weeks before migrating back to the Bering and Chukchi seas.

NOAA estimates the Pacific gray whale population to number about 21,000 animals.