Whalefest Monterey keeps kids entertained at Fisherman’s Wharf
The ninth annual Whalefest Monterey took over Fisherman’s Wharf on Saturday (and will again Sunday) as hundreds of people stopped by to check out the exhibits. But none was more attractive, and smelly, than the big Humboldt squid on display.
MONTEREY — The ninth annual Whalefest Monterey took over Fisherman’s Wharf on Saturday (and will again Sunday) as hundreds of people stopped by to check out the exhibits. But none was more attractive, and smelly, than the big Humboldt squid on display.
“You put a dead squid out and you see, everybody wants to poke it. It’s the easy way to get kids interested,” said John Gregg, head of the Western Flyer Foundation.
Gregg said the goal was just to get kids interested in science at an early age and to inspire a little curiosity. Dr. William Gilly, head of Squid 4 Kids, was leading the charge and answered any questions people had, especially from the kids.
“Kids are natural scientists, they want to know ‘why’ about things,” Gregg said. “If you feed that curiosity than that’s all you have to do.”
Gregg said the Humboldt squid was around the Monterey Bay in 2010 but have slowly disappeared. He said one of the reasons is because in the Gulf of California, where they’re born, the water is getting too warm.
“They’re breeding at a younger age,” Gregg said. “And to be able to come up this far, they have to be bigger and more robust. They’re just not living long enough mainly because the water is too warm in the Gulf.”
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