My Life as a Blue Whale

My Life as a Blue Whale

By: Nachelle Torre



My early days as a Blue Whale

My life started in late June in the Gulf of St. Lawrence around a small group
of many that look like me.

Me and my older siblings swam with our mother everywhere she went.

She taught us how to catch Krill, small squids, and small schooling fishes so
we can learn how to feed ourselves. But we mainly eat Krill. My mom can eat
up to 6 tons of krill in 1 day. That’s crazy! To thrive in an environment there
has to be a great amount of Krill and a body of water to live in where there
are really cold temperatures such as -2 degrees Celsius.



The journey begins

We cold blooded mammals use our thick 6 inch layer blubber which is the fat
we have under our skin to help us be warm and maintain our energy when
we swim to cold water temperatures. But, on a cold morning in October, I
was starting to notice that my mother's skin started to become unhealthy and
the search of food as well as nursing areas started to become scarce. She told
us we needed to migrate in order to have the food and nursing homes we
need, so her skin can be healthier, and for us to have better lives. We would
also be living 1,640 feet under the Ocean near the Coral Reefs.

We began our journey of migrating to the summer waters of the Pacific
Ocean which was 5,575 miles away. We would arrive there by December. Did
you know that it takes us over 2 months to get to our destination and during
those 2 months we have to fast? By the time we get there, were going to be so
hungry!



The last 3 days before we arrived to our destination were difficult. We were
so weak and physically exhausted. We were starving and needed a long time
to rest. But, we knew we couldn’t give up, we were so close! We just needed to
hold on a little longer, so that in the end every sacrifice we made to get there
would be worth it.

I was sad we were leaving because the Gulf of St. Lawrence has been our
home for many months. But, we were migrating to a new home for the sake
of our lives, to take care of ourselves, and to stay healthy. We also knew
everything we did would be worth it in the end coming along with great
benefits.

THIS IS MY NEW HOME!!

Winter Vacation

By the time we stayed in our new home for a few days, my mother's skin got
healthier and healthier each day that passed by, there was plenty of Krill to
eat from, we all regained our energy by resting, and my family was as happy
as can be.



Our return journey

By April, our family has to return home. My family has a lot of young Blue
Whales that had to face a few challenges. They had to keep up with their
moms and not get lost. It was difficult for them to fast because they needed
the energy to keep swimming to their destination. My teen brothers and
sisters had to face the challenge of fasting too because they also needed the
energy to keep swimming. My mother had to face some challenges too. Her
skin was a little unhealthy, she was starving from fasting as well, she was
physically tired, and she needed to keep track of her kids so they wouldn't get
lost which made her exhausted.



Home at last

Some human actions that made it difficult for us to get home were the
collisions with ships, entanglements in fishing gear, and habitat impacts such
as noise pollution.



THE END