Conjoined gray whale calves discovered in Baja California lagoon

Scientists in Mexico’s Laguna Ojo de Liebre, or Scammon’s Lagoon, on Sunday discovered conjoined gray whale calves, and it could be the first documented case of Siamese twin gray whales.

Conjoined twins have occurred in other species, notably fin, sei and minke whales. However, an online search and a search of the database at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County did not reveal published instances of conjoined gray whale twins.

Unfortunately, the twins discovered in Scammon’s Lagoon did not survive and most likely were miscarried. The the carcass is only about seven feet long, versus the normal 12 to 16 feet for newborn gray whales.

Alisa Schulman-Janiger, an American Cetacean Society researcher, pointed out that the twins were severely underdeveloped and wondered whether the birth or stillbirth might also have killed the mother.

According to NOAA, the Pacific gray whale population numbers about 21,000.

Most calves are born during the last week of December and the first two weeks of January.