Reader\'s Digest Australia - 06.2019

14 | June• 2019

MY STORY

would reconnect for the calf’s much

needed breast-feed and reassuring

mother-love.

The feeling of togetherness, love

and protection will stay with me

forever. For the calf, navigating

was like negotiating a spaghetti

junction in a

major city. Yet this

youngster had all the

equipment to ensure

its survival, including

a sonar auditory

system and the

ability to recognise

its mother’s ‘voice’. It

soon linked up with

its mother, despite

the chaos and trauma

for the pod.

The human team

joined hands to stop

the whales from

turning back and

restranding, forcing

them to move into

deeper water to

regroup. As the number of rescued

whales grew, we could see water

spouting and increasing activity from

the pod. We all watched with huge

satisfaction as this group slowly swam

into the middle of the Golden Bay

before heading out to the open sea.

dozens of other rescuers. We were a
mix of men and women, teens and
seniors, and from a wide variety of
backgrounds.
Golden Bay roughly doubles its
population in summer and there
are hundreds of people who are
happy to help out in
an emergency. The
whales were starting
to make deep throaty
noises as the water
began to envelop
them and make their
huge bodies buoyant
again. The excited
anticipation of both
parties was palpable.
I will never forget
the squeaking sound

• known as a whistle
  and pulse call – of
  a young whale that
  was trying to find its
  mother.
  No doubt there
  was an element
  of panic in the calf’s frantic
  swimming to and fro. We were told
  by the trainers, who were there
  directing the rescue, not to touch
  this youngster as it desperately
  searched for its mother among the
  mayhem.
  Its mother couldn’t move as
  there was a log-jam of humans and
  whales. We were assured that the
  young whale would recognise its
  mother’s call and eventually they

Do you have a tale to tell? We’ll pay

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story we print. See page 5 for details

on how to contribute.

The feeling of

togetherness, love

and protection will

stay with me

forever

PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES