On Saturday, November 16 at 4 p.m. Shari Goforth will present “Hungry, Hungry Giants: Gray Whale Survival Strategies in the Changing Ocean Conditions of the Pacific Northwest Coast” at the Point Arena Lighthouse.  Gray whales, Eschrichtius robustus, were nearly forced into extinction by whaling. With the ban on whaling and marine mammal protections, Pacific Northwest Coast gray whales made a strong comeback. E. robustus’ numbers rose to nearly 27,000 individuals and they were, as their name suggests, robust. Since 2019, though, the number of dead gray whales washing up along the west coast has been elevated. Scientists at NOAA, the agency who monitors the gray whale population, declared an end to the Unusual Mortality Event, but the gray whales are still in troubled waters.