White Rock的鯨魚壁畫

在White Rock，Johnson Rd.與Russell Ave.的交叉口處，有一面大壁畫，是本地的一個重要地標。

每次路過此處，只覺得它很大、很顯眼，但並不覺得有何特別之處。

上週日，再次經過此處，偶然發現在壁畫對面(Russell Ave.)有一座銘牌，仔細讀過，才瞭解到壁畫的來歷。

壁畫的作者是Wyland (Marine Wildlife Artist)，於Sep. 29, 1984捐贈給White Rock City。

至於本壁畫的意意何在？以下是銘牌上的原文，看過就知道了！

The Grey Whale Family (Whaling Wall IV)
By Wyland

Fourth in a Series of International Murals Dedicated to the Great Whales Forever

The only species of the family Eschrichtidae, this whale, hunted to the brink of exsticion has survived through an effort of by conservationists to protect it since 1946.

The death of seven Grey Whales in the White Rock area in 1984 illustrates the need to be vigilant protecting our fragile marine eco-systems from the ravages of pollution.

The mural depicts the passage of a mother and calf with a male escort as they pass by White Rock on their annual migration from Baja, Mexico to the Bering and Chukchi Sea off Siberia, a trip of 9,600Km (6,000 miles) which take six to eight weeks at a speed of 160Km (100 miles) per day.

以下則是Grey Whale的基本資料：

Family : Eschrichtius Robustus
Length : Up to 13.5 meters (45 Feet)
Weight : Up to 18,144 kilograms (40,000 pounds)
Lifespan : 40-60 years
Food : Copepods, sea cucumbers, and small fishes
Calves drink 50 gals. of milk daily
Habitat : Shallow Inlets, bays and inshore coastal waters
Populations : Approax:16,000 (1984) in the Pacific.
The North Atlantic Ocean population is extinct.