Nature & Wildlife
Spying on Monarchs and Catching Whales “Kelping”
If you’re a whale in a playful mood, things might be a little difficult for you. It’s hard to locate handy toys when you’re in deep ocean waters.
Good Nature Travel Blog
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Nature & Wildlife
Among the World’s Animals, We’re Not That Exceptional
Growing up, you probably learned some version of the following: in the animal kingdom, humans are exceptional and unique. Among the one-of-a-kind qualities that we possess are a higher intelligence than all the other creatures on the planet, the ability to use tools and empathy.
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Canada & the North
Hiking in Quebec’s National Parks
One of the highlights of our Whales & Nature Trails of Quebec adventure? The opportunity to hike in four diverse national parks: Saguenay Fjord, Hautes-Gorges-de-la-Riviere-Malbaie, Grands-Jardins and Jacques-Cartier. Exploring these different regions by foot, you’ll pass through glacial valleys and stop to admire dramatic mountains and gorges.
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Canada & the North
6 Whale Species You Can See on a Quebec Nature Tour
Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park is one of French Canada’s best-kept secrets. Home to more than 2,200 species, this National Marine Conservation Area offers some of the best whale watching in the world. From May through October, these giant marine mammals congregate where the Saguenay River meets the St. Lawrence Estuary.
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Nature & Wildlife
A Story of Blue Whales and a “Book” of Baleen
A pod of orcas grabbed the headlines in late March 2019. Researchers performing their annual dolphin and whale surveys off the southwestern coast of Australia stumbled across an orca attack on a healthy, adult blue whale. They recorded the event, which had never been documented before.
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Canada & the North
Causes for Hope: Whale Conservation in Quebec
Ask most nature travelers to name the world’s top destinations to see whales in the wild and you’re likely to hear Hawaii, South Africa, Mexico’s Baja Peninsula, British Columbia and Antarctica.
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Canada & the North
Ethical Whale Watching in Quebec
The Whale Makes Us Human “The whale makes us human,” proclaim the Iñupiat (a group of Alaska Natives whose traditional territory spans to the northernmost part of the Canada-United States border). The Iñupiat identity is formed and transformed through intimate encounters with whales.
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Nature & Wildlife
A Sense of Rhythm: Birds, Lemurs, Whales and Us
You probably do it in the car. Some of us do it in the shower. And when no one else is home, a good number of us might even do it in front of the mirror with an imaginary microphone.
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Nature & Wildlife
Drones: Weighing Whales and Assessing Associations
Baleen whales, which include species such as blue and gray whales, are the largest animals on Earth. Their hefty body masses, in fact, are central to their success as an animal group. Because of their large sizes and aquatic life, however, whales are hard to weigh.
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News & More
A New Whale Species Is Found Living in the Gulf of Mexico
Whales are fascinating beings. After living on the land for a while, their ancestors chose to go back to the sea; they have their own, complicated cultures; they help us and our planet by sequestering carbon dioxide; and they seem to have forgiven us for the many horrific crimes that we’ve committed against them.
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Nature & Wildlife
Assessing the Beliefs of Animals
If you asked any wildlife fan or pet owner if animals have beliefs, I’m guessing their answers would almost all fall within the “yes” category, based on observations and anecdotal evidence. Science, however, is always held to a higher standard: proof is required.
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Latin America
Post-Pandemic, Learning to Trust Again from a Gray Whale
The longest recorded migration by a mammal was made by a gray whale. In 2015, a female made a journey of nearly 14,000 miles from Russia to Mexico and back. (Zebras hold the longest linear—endpoint to endpoint—land mammal migration at 300 miles round trip.)