The other day I went on a trip to Kaikoura, the whale watching capital of New Zealand. In Maori, Kaikoura means ‘to eat crayfish.’ It is also known for its abundance of crayfish and sea life.
The resident sperm whales, seals, and crayfish are what draw tourists, local and international, here. It’s interesting how something as simple as spotting a sea creature in the wild can elicit so much awe and happiness in a human being.
The landscape is a whole other story. On a clear spring day, you can see the snow-capped Kaikoura ranges contrasting against lush, green hilltops and the turquoise blue sea. The view is postcard quality, and enough to write home about.
As luck would have it, I was fortunate to spot a migrating blue whale. The blue whale is the largest mammal to have ever existed. From afar, it’s hard to tell the size of these creatures. However, the fact that you can see them clearly from a couple of hundred metres away will have you believe that they can be up to 100 feet long and 200 tonnes.
Why was it so exciting seeing a blue whale?
I was expecting to see something that is common to the area: a male sperm whale. Instead, I saw something uncommon – a migratory animal and the largest animal on the planet.
With a tongue the weight of an elephant and a heart the weight of a car, I was yet again reminded of my tiny-ness and insignificance in this world. Blue whales live, on average, 80-90 years off a diet of krill. The tiny marine species has the power to fuel up an animal larger than the T-rex.
We don’t often think of krill when we think of exploring the sea and its creatures. We think of the large animals that captivate our attention, like the playful dolphin, the pods of orcas, and seals (puppies of the sea). These incredible and beautiful marine species are fueled by fish, krill, seaweed, and so on. It’s the little guy who makes these lives sustainable. (We have our part to play, too, of course.)
But in saying so, the simple experience of viewing sea creatures in their natural habitat can really make you think. About the ecosystem. The relationships between small and large organisms. And how we all co-exist on this planet, Earth.
Outbound Introvert 
I am so jealous, what an incredible experience! ❤️
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Hate to be a ‘Debbie downer’ but the seas are filled with plastic particles (and bigger parts) from co-existing humans. One of these days we’ll only be left with unlovely big balls and mats of floating plastic!
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We humans suck, don’t we? I imagine that, in the future, people will start taking tourists out to plastic-watch at sea. The draw? Looking at the historic plastics that killed all of the marine life.
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