Whales

I find that I am fascinated by whales recently. I find baleen whales in particular to be the most fascinating. I think the size of whales is what drew me to them, but the more I learn about them, the more I want to learn. They are beautiful and intelligent and we have only scratched the surface of their mental capabilities.

I think that baleen whales are one of the true wonders of the world. Many are coming back from the brink of extinction, but slowly. Like humans, large species large whale species take many years to mature and they don't give birth every year. My concern is that whaling nations will continue to hunt them to render them for oil and meat before they can catch up. Some are still hunting under the ridiculously transparent excuse of studying them for science.

The fact that endangered animals are being hunted by technologically advanced western and far eastern nations baffles me. They want to turn the largest creatures on earth into steak. Think about it. If we use my standard of them being one of the wonders of the world, hunting them should seem akin to knocking down the Sphinx to put up a strip mall, or turning the Grand Canyon into a landfill. It just seems like a frivolous waste to hunt them for food.

I encourage anyone who reads this to check do some research on whales. They are genuinely fascinating and can offer this world more than meat an oil. Also, check out the website of photographer Bryant Austin. He takes amazing close up pictures of whales with a portrait camera and lens. His work is absolutely stunning!