Australian Thoughts at the Weekend. 6th June, 2009.

Australian Thoughts at the Weekend. 6th June, 2009.

Going North for Winter

In this past week the media has been quick to remind us the whale watching season has begun. Television news showed us young whales playing in and above the water as they passed our coast. There was also a reminder of the fleet of boats which now happily take tourists out to see these huge creatures all for a fee, of course.

There was a sad event associated with the beginning of the season when an injured and sick young whale swam through the Seaway into the calm water of the Broadwater where it soon died. The City Council was preparing to move the animal to a garbage disposal landfill when the State Government wildlife department contacted local aboriginal elders to ask about disposal of the animal.

The elders said the animal should be given a ritual burial on their land. The City Council transported it to a beach on nearby South Stradbroke Island where council machinery soon dug a deep hole. Eventually the whale was buried as the aboriginal people carried out their appropriate ceremonies. They said this would ensure a good season of harvest from the sea.

A few days later a letter appeared in the local daily newspaper, claiming to be from an aboriginal man from south of the Nerang River. The letter stated that the writer was most interested in the ceremony carried out by the aboriginal people north of the Nerang River. He went on to say that south of the river, the traditional process was to build a number of fires around the animal and invite all and sundry for a great time of feasting.

Also, this week there has been discussion that the Gold Coast now has more tourists than Hervey Bay undertaking boat trips to watch migrating humpback whales. Sea World here on the Gold Coast now also has a boat which takes tourists off the coast to see whales in their migration to and from the cold Antarctic waters to the warm waters of the Great Barrier Reef. (http://seaworld.myfun.com.au/ and click on whale picture towards the bottom of the page under Attractions).

One of the real discussion points is whether Migaloo will visit us again this year. Migaloo is the only known pure white Humpback Whale. Last year Migaloo was accompanied by a normal coloured Humpback and it was thought that this other whale may be a female. [To see pictures of Migaloo, do a Google search for “Migaloo” but click on ‘images’ and not ‘web’ which is the default. Alternatively click on: http://www.migaloo.org or paste this address in your browser].

Migaloo (which in Australian Aboriginal language means “White Fella”) is one of about 13,000 Humpback Whales which will swim north past our Coast to the warm waters east of North Queensland’s Great Barrier Reef. Here in the warm waters the Humpbacks will mate and some will give birth as a result of last year’s mating.

Last year one whale watch tourist boat reported seeing about 30 Humpbacks off the Gold Coast during the morning when Migaloo passed us. It is interesting that those watching Migaloo and his mate playing off the coast reported that they were being escorted by a large group of dolphins.

Today these gentle giants passing up and down our coast and pausing to rest and play in Hervey Bay attract thousands of tourists. From World War 2 until the mid 1960s they were killed for their meat and oil. It was realised just in time that they were about to become extinct. There numbers in a few years of active hunting had been reduced from about 10,000 to about 100. The value of the dollars the tourists spend on accommodation, food and the whale watch boats is worth much more to Australia than the dollars lost by closing down the whaling stations as the processing plants were called.

It is a spectacular sight for tourists to see these huge mammals hurl themselves from the ocean exposing much of their nine to twelve metre length and their massive size. A full grown male can weigh up to 40 tons. In fact whales are born big. At birth the calf weighs approximately 680 kilograms (1500 pounds) and is just over 4 metres in length. A young suckling whale can consume up to 120 gallons (545 litres) of milk per day. So Mothers with young calves spend many hours feeding their young.

A whale bears young every two years. Mating takes place in the warm waters of the Barrier Reef and the whales then return to the waters of the Antarctic for the summer. Birth takes place the following winter and the young calf with the mother then return south. The next winter the mother will again mate.

One of the interesting facts is that the whales leave their feeding grounds where their main food item krill (small prawn/shrimp like creatures) swarm in huge masses and when they swim north for the summer they do not eat until they return to the krill filled seas of the Antarctic. During this time they exist of their body fats they have built up during the summer feeding.

One of the great concerns Australia has still is that Japan has declared its intention to hunt Humpback whales for scientific experimentation. The numbers of Minke Whales killed already for this research seem excessive and there is a huge suspicion that the scientific experimentation is being carried out with chopsticks in the dining rooms of Japan. The Humpback Whale has been protected in the Southern Hemisphere since 1963 and a worldwide moratorium on all whaling was declared in 1986. Japan hunts whales for scientific reasons in disregard for this moratorium. All marine mammals in Australia and Australian Waters are protected and the Humpback Whale is making a slow recovery. It is estimated the recovery rate is about 10% each year.

There is something special to stand and watch whales. I have been fortunate to see whales a number of times. I have seen Humpback, Southern Right and Minke Whales. Two years ago, I stood on a whale watch boat and watched a mother and calf asleep just under the surface of the water. When they woke they were slow to move but the baby eventually lifted itself out of the water for about half its length. The oohs and aahs and cheers of the fellow tourists said it all.

Psalm 104 (The Message)
1 O my soul, bless GOD!
GOD, my God, how great you are!
beautifully, gloriously robed,
2 Dressed up in sunshine,
and all heaven stretched out for your tent.
3 You built your palace on the ocean deeps,
made a chariot out of clouds and took off on wind--wings.
4 You commandeered winds as messengers,
appointed fire and flame as ambassadors.
5 You set earth on a firm foundation
so that nothing can shake it, ever.
6 You blanketed earth with ocean,
covered the mountains with deep waters;
7 Then you roared and the water ran away--
your thunder crash put it to flight.
8 Mountains pushed up, valleys spread out
in the places you assigned them.
9 You set boundaries between earth and sea;
never again will earth be flooded.
10 You started the springs and rivers,
sent them flowing among the hills.
11 All the wild animals now drink their fill,
wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 Along the riverbanks the birds build nests,
ravens make their voices heard.
13 You water the mountains from your heavenly cisterns;
earth is supplied with plenty of water.
14 You make grass grow for the livestock,
hay for the animals that plow the ground.
Oh yes, God brings grain from the land,
15 wine to make people happy,
Their faces glowing with health,
a people well-fed and hearty.
16 GOD's trees are well-watered--
the Lebanon cedars he planted.
17 Birds build their nests in those trees;
look--the stork at home in the treetop.
18 Mountain goats climb about the cliffs;
badgers burrow among the rocks.
19 The moon keeps track of the seasons,
the sun is in charge of each day.
20 When it's dark and night takes over,
all the forest creatures come out.
21 The young lions roar for their prey,
clamoring to God for their supper.
22 When the sun comes up, they vanish,
lazily stretched out in their dens.
23 Meanwhile, men and women go out to work,
busy at their jobs until evening.

24 What a wildly wonderful world, GOD!
You made it all, with Wisdom at your side,
made earth overflow with your wonderful creations.
25 Oh, look--the deep, wide sea,
brimming with fish past counting,
sardines and sharks and salmon.
26 Ships plow those waters,
and Leviathan, your pet dragon, romps in them.
27 All the creatures look expectantly to you
to give them their meals on time.
28 You come, and they gather around;
you open your hand and they eat from it.
29 If you turned your back,
they'd die in a minute--
Take back your Spirit and they die,
revert to original mud;
30 Send out your Spirit and they spring to life--
the whole countryside in bloom and blossom.

31 The glory of GOD-let it last forever!
Let GOD enjoy his creation!
32 He takes one look at earth and triggers an earthquake,
points a finger at the mountains, and volcanoes erupt.

33 Oh, let me sing to GOD all my life long,
sing hymns to my God as long as I live!
34 Oh, let my song please him;
I'm so pleased to be singing to GOD.
35 But clear the ground of sinners--
no more godless men and women!
O my soul, bless GOD!


[Listen: Band and congregation: http://www.salvoaudio.com/songsters/canadian_festival_1979.htm
or
Band and Songsters: http://www.salvoaudio.com/audio/music/mus_307.mp3 ]

All creatures of our God and King,
Lift up your voice and with us sing
Alleluia, alleluia!
Thou burning sun with golden beam,
Thou silver moon with softer gleam:

Chorus
O praise him, O praise him,
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

Thou rushing wind that art so strong,
Ye clouds that sail in heaven along,
O praise him, alleluia!
Thou rising morn, in praise rejoice,
Ye lights of evening, find a voice:

Thou flowing water, pure and clear,
Make music for thy Lord to hear,
Alleluia, alleluia!
Thou fire so masterful and bright,
That givest man both warmth and light:

Dear mother earth, who day by day
Unfoldest blessings on our way,
O praise him, alleluia!
The flowers and fruits that in thee grow,
Let them his glory also show:

Let all things their Creator bless,
And worship him in humbleness,
O praise him, alleluia!
Praise, praise the Father, praise the Son,
And praise the Spirit, Three in One:
Authors: Francis of Assisi (1182-1226),
Translation: William Henry Draper (1855-1933)
The Salvation Army Song Book: Song Number: 2

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