The Blue Whale at the ROM

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address:  100 Queens Park
Date: July 2017
Website: www.rom.on.ca

  Did you know the blue whale is the largest animal on earth?  It is and during August 2017 the Royal Ontario Museum is running a blue whale exhibit.  Back in 2014 there were nine blue whales that became trapped in ice and died.  Two of these whales washed up on the shores of Newfoundland.  Scientists quickly jumped at the rare opportunity to closely examine these mammals.  The exhibit at the ROM is a direct result of this work.

  A team of scientists had the difficult and smelly job of taking the whale apart in order to preserve the 80 foot long skeleton.  The exhibit included a watch from one of the scientists that will never smell clean again.  After 2 years the bones were finally ready to be on display in Toronto.

  Nothing about a blue whale is small.  It weighs 90,000 kg which is the same as 15 elephants.  Elephants are the heaviest land mammal.

  In terms of humans it would take 1200 to equal the weight of the blue whale.  That was quite a few more than the amount of people crowding the exhibit hall with us.

 
  The heart of the whale had been plastinated and was on display.  It was almost the same size as the car parked across from it.  This is the first and only blue whale heart to ever be preserved.  A human heart usually beats somewhere between 60 to 100 bpm.  A blue whale heart beats at a rate of 10 to 30 bpm even when the whale is active.

  Whales eat a small crustacean called krill and can eat up to 40 million krill per day.  Krill eat plankton.  Plankton eats some of the nutrients found in whale feces.  Plankton can also perform photosynthesis which removes carbon dioxide from the air.   This cycle makes the planet better for all of us.

  Blue whale feces, like the orange stain above is large enough to be seen from an aircraft.

 Blue whales eat krill by using the baleen in their mouths.  They do not have teeth.   A blue whale takes a giant mouthful of water.  It then pushes the water out through the baleen.  Krill is trapped inside its mouth as it can not pass through the baleen filters.  Dinner is served.

  The first whale is believed to be derived from Pakicetus (above).  The fossil above shows the Pakicetus and eventually it would evolve into the whales that we see swimming in the oceans of today.

  People used to hunt whales to make whale bone products like those pictured above.  More needs to be done to protect these endangered animals.  The blue whale at the ROM is here to help educate and amaze us.  Scientists are working hard to make sure that we do not see the last blue whale in our lifetime.  We hope to see our very first blue whale when we visit the Saguenay River in Quebec later this year.

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This location is near Museum subway. Visit other Toronto TTC stations.

Map of Our World
Royal Ontario Museum

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Post # 186

Banff

Location: Banff, Alberta, Canada
Address:  405 Spray Avenue
Date: June 2005
Website: www.banff.ca

  Banff, Alberta is located in the Rocky Mountains on the west coast of Canada.  The Rocky Mountains are filled with beautiful views.  As long as a mountain is in your shot, it is impossible to take a bad photo.

  We started with a meal at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel.  The hotel has been on this spot since 1888.

  Behind the hotel runs the Bow River.  This river starts further north in the Rockies and then runs down through Banff.  It is best known for the portion that wraps around the capital city of Calgary.

  The section of the river in Banff contains a small waterfall.  Standing beside the waterfall we could see the Bow River wind through the mountains in one direction and in the other direction we could see the back of the hotel through the trees.

  After being down by the river's edge, we headed to the nearby Banff Gondola for a completely different view.  The gondola slowly lifted us towards the top of Sulphur Mountain.

  As we rose to the top of the mountain, we could see the Banff Springs Hotel and Bow River behind us.

  At the top of the mountain is a series of stairs and wooden platforms to make it easier to climb and take in the panoramic view.

  As you get higher up a mountain you reach a point called the tree line.  After this point the ground and climate make it impossible for a tree to grow.  We could see the changes from the denser forest below.

  This tree had its roots wrapped around a rock searching for some soil to keep it alive.

  This lonely tree looked as if it had lost its battle with the elements while its nearby neighbours were all growing strong and tall.

  Banff is filled with large creatures like grizzly bears and big horn sheep.  Up here at the top of the mountain we only encountered a few smaller creatures.  A pair of Clark's nutcrackers sat on the railing near the gondola station.

  A golden-mantled ground squirrel checked us out from amongst the rocks and then just as quickly ran away again.

  We were in awe of the mountain scene that greeted us in every direction.  We would never tire of this mountain view.  The small creatures seemed to agree with us as a Clark's nutcracker flew into the branches of a tree to admire a snowy peak in the distance.

  The golden-mantled squirrel reappeared again and stared out into the wilderness.  As we descended the mountain once more we were jealous that the animals get that experience every day of their lives.

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Map of Our World
Banff Gondola , Bow Falls
Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel

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Post # 185

Hopewell Rocks

Location: Hopewell Cape, New Brunswick, Canada
Address:  131 Discovery Road
Date: July 2006
Website: www.thehopewellrocks.ca

    Hopewell Rocks in New Brunswick experience some of the highest tides in the world.  There is only a 6 hour gap between high and low tide. You can walk on the ocean floor during low tide and then come back later in the day and see the water fill back in.  You can see the difference between the two photos (above and below).

The resulting erosion from the tides has created the unusually shaped flowerpot rocks.  These rocks experience higher erosion at their base and therefore appear to defy gravity.

  Most recently in 2016 one of the more popular rock formations lost its battle with erosion and collapsed.  This is just how erosion works and eventually all of the rocks will lose their fight against the water.

 

  The erosion is accelerated by these high tides.  Being immersed in water is not as damaging as having all that water push in and pull out again several times a day.

  When the tide goes out, seaweed clings to the rock waiting to be happily submerged in water yet again.

  We visited the Hopewell Rocks on two different days in order to see both high and low tides.  There are tide timetables on their website that can help you plan your trip.

  Most people want the experience of walking on the ocean floor when the tide is low.  Later you can see the same area where the water level would be up over your head.

   Some people rented kayaks in order to explore the rocks during hide tide.  If you have good eyes you may be able to spot a kayak on the right hand side of the photo above.

  We stayed in Moncton, New Brunswick where you can also experience the Tidal Bore.  The river was dry.  We then sat in the bleachers of Bore View Park and waited for the river to return.  Sure enough it started to make its way back along the riverbed.   It traveled sort of like how an overturned glass spills its contents across a counter top.  A tidal bore is the name for the little wave that is created as the water is pushed back up the river by the tides.  It has nothing to do with how exciting it is.  While not a particularly dramatic event, it is a great example of how gravity, the moon, the sun and the earth affect the water on our planet. 

  The Bay of Fundy and the Hopewell Rocks area in general is a great spot to see what the tide brought in....and what it left behind.

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Map of Our World
Hopewell Rocks Park , Bore View Park

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Post # 184