My Friend Salt

Book excerpt: This book is about Salt, the most famous humpback whale that lives and feeds in the waters off Cape Cod. Through the eyes of Salt, readers learn about the biology of humpback whales and the other baleen whales that come to feed in the waters of New England. Salt is a baleen whale that filters over 1 ton of large krill or small baitfish out of the water each day. This book describes how baleen, made from a protein called keratin, grows down from the gum line of the upper jaw and creates a hairy mat inside the whale's mouth. As a whale lunges mouth open, engulfing seawater and small baitfish, the whale will then close its mouth and begin to strain or push the water back out. Saltwater can pass through the hairy mat inside the mouth, but the fish become trapped inside. Next the whale swallows its food whole. Readers also learn about Salt's life and her 13 calves. Each have received a name in honor of their famous mom. By watching Salt and her offspring, scientists have learned that humpback moms have a single calf every few years. The calf stays with mom for a year, but it will return to the same feeding area when a juvenile and then as an adult. Also discussed are current research techniques being conducted on humpback whales. Much of the research is focused on a benign technique called photo-identification, where natural body markings and features are photographed and used to create catalogs of known individuals. Known individual humpbacks are then tracked over the course of a season or from one season to the next. Readers also learn about the many hazards facing our oceans and all marine wildlife that call the ocean home. Marine hazards include, overfishing, climate change, marine debris, and collisions with vessels. Positive actions that people can take to help protect the oceans, whales, and all marine animals includes, reducing, reusing, and recycling, as well as reading about marine wildlife and participating in conservation activities like beach cleanups.