Our day was devoted to observing the wildlife of the Reserva Faunística Península Valdés (Valdes Peninsula Wildlife Reserve). This site is actually a large headland which has been nearly separated from the mainland by shallow water bays encroaching on both the north and the south sides. It is a very important breeding site for several species of marine mammals and birds. During the austral winter and spring, southern right whales breed here in both bays, as well as in the long narrow lagoon (Laguna Caleta) on the seaward side. Southern elephant seals (the largest pinnipeds in the world) and southern sea lions congregate by the hundreds on the exposed beaches.

We spent much of the morning on a local catamaran within Golfo Nuevo watching several mother right whales and their calves (photo at left: a Southern Right Whale tail off the bow of a catamaran). Those whales not involved with nursing babies had already left by this time and are on their way south to the Antarctic feeding grounds. We had no trouble finding whales and were happy to learn they seemed as interested in us as we were in them. Conditions were perfect as we watched the whales do all kinds of interesting behavior, including tail displays and surface rolls. The babies never left their mothers' side and we were fortunate to observe them suckle underwater. As if all this weren't enough, we later drove to some other coastal regions to observe elephant seals, sea lions, and Magellanic penguins. We also watched for killer whales here because they are known to sometimes come right up onto the beaches as they try to snatch an unwary seal or sea lion pup, but none was seen. We did, however, see more right whales off the beaches, including breaching calves.