USA: Whales remain in Port of Sacramento despite blandishments.

Two whales who wandered into California's Port of Sacramento have failed to respond to rescue attempts. Rescuers have played whale calls in an effort to lure the two animals back to sea. Two wounded humpback whales that swam 92 miles (148 km) up rivers and a man-made canal into California's Central Valley were not responding to recorded whale calls aimed at luring them back to sea on Thursday (May 17). The roughly 45-foot (13.7-metre) female and her 20-foot (6-metre) calf ignored rescue officials who played recorded sounds from a boat aimed at luring them downstream. Both whales were injured by boats during their journey upstream. The tale of the lost whales is attracting a growing number of visitors to the area near the California state capital and reviving memories of a humpback whale dubbed Humphrey that swam up the Sacramento River 69 miles (111 km) in 1985 before returning to the ocean in a 26-day saga. Experts say the current incident is the longest recorded inland U.S. journey for humpback whales. The scientists have been playing sounds of whales feeding rather than love songs. They say they may now try a new approach by blasting noise from boats on the upstream side in an effort to force them to move in the other direction. The whales are believed to belong to a group of humpbacks which migrated from Baja California, Mexico, to spend the summer near the Farallon Islands off the coast of California.

ITN Source | May 19, 2007

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