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Listening to Whales: What the Orcas Have Taught Us
In Listening to Whales, Alexandra Morton shares spellbinding stories about her career in whale and dolphin research and what she has learned from and about these magnificent mammals. In the late 1970s, while working at Marineland in California, Alexandra pioneered the recording of orca sounds by dropping a hydrophone into the tank of two killer whales. She recorded the var...more
Paperback, 328 pages
Published
June 1st 2004
by Ballantine Books
(first published 2002)
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This is the autobiography of a woman researching killer whales. I am not a great fan of biographies, and didn't enjoy reading about her childhood.....it got more interesting once she got into whales, and I found the romance of her life on the coast of British Columbia attractive. She relished her life on the edge of the ocean, and her enthusiasm is catching. Most of all I was interested to learn about the whales, and her final chapters on salmon farming were fascinating too, if rather repulsive....more
"Listening to Whales" is a carefully observed, delightful, and heartbreaking work of research, science essays, and memoir braided into one. As a whale nut, this book introduced me to a deeper level of cetacean education (classification and observational methods, behavior & communication, relationships between & within a variety of species, and a history of research findings and individuals).
Morton also shares a shocking-- albeit emotionally restrained-- insight into the intelligence and...more
Morton also shares a shocking-- albeit emotionally restrained-- insight into the intelligence and...more
لم أكن مهتمة بالعالم البحري ، و رغم ذلك وجدت الكتاب ممتعا و مؤنسا جميلا في ساعات الانتظار في المؤتمر .
سيرة ذاتية ، لكن لا تستعرض فيه جوانب حياتها الشخصية إلا فيما يتعلق بالحيتان و الحياة البحرية التي درستها عن كثب و قرب . تعلمت الكثير من الأشياء المثيرة للاهتمام عن الحيتان ، عن الإصرار ، عن التفاني في العمل .
كتابتها سلسلة ، تجذب انتباه القارئ .
لعلي أحاول الاستزادة فيما بعد عن الحيتان ، يبدو عالما ممتعا .
سيرة ذاتية ، لكن لا تستعرض فيه جوانب حياتها الشخصية إلا فيما يتعلق بالحيتان و الحياة البحرية التي درستها عن كثب و قرب . تعلمت الكثير من الأشياء المثيرة للاهتمام عن الحيتان ، عن الإصرار ، عن التفاني في العمل .
كتابتها سلسلة ، تجذب انتباه القارئ .
لعلي أحاول الاستزادة فيما بعد عن الحيتان ، يبدو عالما ممتعا .
This book contains three narratives: Alexandra Morton's memoir, a wonderfully detailed description of her studies and interactions with orcas, and an account of her battles against corporate ecological abuses in British Columbia.
While I purchased the book primarily to read about the whales I must admit I was even more touched by Morton's personal experiences and moved by her fight against the salmon farms that threatened to ruin the coastal ecology of the region she called home. I was not disap...more
While I purchased the book primarily to read about the whales I must admit I was even more touched by Morton's personal experiences and moved by her fight against the salmon farms that threatened to ruin the coastal ecology of the region she called home. I was not disap...more
Alexandra Morton is firstly a scientist, not a writer. Given that, at times her writing is beautiful. This is a compelling account of her life, how she came to study whales on the west coast of British Columbia, and of the whales themselves. This book spoke to me personally because I lived through much of the story she is telling. I lived in Echo Bay, have traveled to many of the locales she speaks of. I remember seeing Skanna as a kid, and Miracle as a young adult. Their stories are real to me....more
Sep 24, 2011
Angela
added it
I loved this book! It's basically the life story of Alexandra Morton, how she came to be a killer whale (orca) researcher, the difficult life of living in the wild on the British Columbia coast, and the environmental concerns as fish farms and forestry services began to invade the area.
Really this book is so much more than just about whale research.
Reading this inspired me in a different kind of way than when reading Jane Goodall's books because different environmental nightmares are brought t...more
Really this book is so much more than just about whale research.
Reading this inspired me in a different kind of way than when reading Jane Goodall's books because different environmental nightmares are brought t...more
Listening to Whales is insightful account of orcas along the coast of British Columbia, along with some of Morton's personal experiences. Morton also includes information on dolphins and salmon, amongst some other species. Overall I enjoyed Listening to Whales, but at times I felt it needed a better editor and a tighter focus on orcas.
The personal stories and some of the specific details of orca life were new to me but not the evils of SeaWorld and other places like it. Nor was the tragedy that...more
The personal stories and some of the specific details of orca life were new to me but not the evils of SeaWorld and other places like it. Nor was the tragedy that...more
Apr 04, 2010
Anila
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Everyone- especially those who are interested in marine biology.
Recommended to Anila by:
Mom
Shelves:
nonfiction,
reviewed
Currently re-reading this book, partly because, well, I want to, and partly because I have an English project and it has to be on something nonfiction.
I remember why I love this memoir. It's scientific nonfiction written with a novelist's flair. Morton has talent. 'Course, her descriptions of incredibly difficult fieldwork make me wonder if I'll ever be up to doing the same kind of research- because marine mammal communication is what I want to study- but at the same time, her obvious reverence...more
I remember why I love this memoir. It's scientific nonfiction written with a novelist's flair. Morton has talent. 'Course, her descriptions of incredibly difficult fieldwork make me wonder if I'll ever be up to doing the same kind of research- because marine mammal communication is what I want to study- but at the same time, her obvious reverence...more
Utterly fascinating. Listening to Whales is part personal memoir of a life far removed from what most of us will ever experience, part natural history of the areas around British Columbia, and part disquisition on the relationship between human beings and the ecosystems with which we share the planet. All of these various stories are vastly interesting in their own right. But most of all, this is the story of cetaceans - especially the orcas. And this story is amazing.
In 1995 I had the opportuni...more
In 1995 I had the opportuni...more
I picked up this book right before spending a week camping and kayaking off Vancouver Island. Alexandra Morton has spent decades studying the vocalizations of Killer Whales. Her research has provided scientists with many insights on the behavior of Orcas. The book is filled with information on Orca behavior and society. Her stories about Killer Whales in captivity are heart wrenching and made me embarrassed for the way humans have treated these animals. The timing for reading this book was perfe...more
Fascinating and must-know history, science, and environmental issues, but with a focus on animals.
It is also, incidentally, an engrossing memoir with such a shocking event in the author’s life that I had to stop reading to absorb it.
Chapters 19 and 20, in particular, are MUST-READS. Everybody in this country, without exception, should carefully read and ponder these two chapters--they contain crucial information about salmon that everybody must be made aware of as soon as possible.
It is also, incidentally, an engrossing memoir with such a shocking event in the author’s life that I had to stop reading to absorb it.
Chapters 19 and 20, in particular, are MUST-READS. Everybody in this country, without exception, should carefully read and ponder these two chapters--they contain crucial information about salmon that everybody must be made aware of as soon as possible.
i read this on a rubbing beach at the Johnstone Straight, BC, while taking a break from kaying with orcas. We had a hydrophone with us and could hear the ecolocation clicks...stunning. Reading this book and studying them up close proves how intelligent and social these mammals are, and how misunderstood. Awesome book to learn about Orcas with photos identifying the resident Orca families that migrate to the Johnstone Straight every summer.
Excellent!! A thoughtful account with a good mixture of heart and humility that makes for a fascinating story. The author introduces the reader to an unfamiliar species in an unfamiliar environment that has evolved to a place at the top of world's oceans. Highly recommended.
My only gibe is that Morton refers to "Gulls" - of which there are many species - as "Seagulls" of which there are None!! Could it be like me referring to her orcas as fish?? I guess that's just the Birder in me.
My only gibe is that Morton refers to "Gulls" - of which there are many species - as "Seagulls" of which there are None!! Could it be like me referring to her orcas as fish?? I guess that's just the Birder in me.
I read this six years ago and I loved it then. It is a fascinating, attention grabbing, well written book filled with facts that have emotion behind them. I would recommend this book to anyone who has a love for marine mammals, specifically Killer Whales.
Aug 28, 2011
Linda
rated it
1 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
borrowed,
life_is_too_short
Every author has 50 pages to hook me but I only managed to get to page 18 on this one. I thought I would be reading about whales; instead I've got an autobiography of a privileged child. Next!
Great book on whales to read on a cruise when you are going on a whale watching excursion. Interesting and informative. Oh, I love those whales!
Beautifully told, and her tales of time spent among the killer whales of Vancouver Island are fascinating!
Brings me back to my adolescence and my love of marine biology. This is what I based my dreams on.
A memoir from the 1970s and later of the wild and woolly days of behavioral and lingustic research into cetaceans and other large marine mammals, when the pioneers included a painter and an Esalen devotee and when knowledge lay with theme park employees as much as anyone else. Morton raises many interesting questions but provides few answers; her speculations often verge on anthropomorphism. She doesn't devote much space to the natural history of killer whales -- for that is not her interest. He...more
Just read it. True story. Amazing.
Autobiography of a researcher of Orcas and their underwater language, a very good book that teaches you a bit about the Pacific Northwest Orca pods (residents, transients and the ones in captivity).
Alexandra Morton does an excellent job relaying the knowledge she has gained on orca's through the telling of her life's story. This book is an easy read and continues to reveal knew information through out the whole book instead of pounding in the same information and stories over and over. I higly recommend this book to any whale lover, and anyone looking for information on the effects of salmon farming in Canadian waters.
May 31, 2010
Kristin
marked it as to-read
A woman from Connecticut becomes a pioneering whale researcher and vilified activist on a remote BC island - and eventually a single mom too. Morton's is a great and inspiring story.
Wonderful account about the whale population, their behaviors and how humans still know so little about these amazing, intelligent planet sharers.
I am obsessed with Orcas so I loved this book, very informative...
May 18, 2013
Rachel
marked it as to-read
May 14, 2013
Shana
marked it as to-read
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May 19, 2013 10:21pm
May 19, 2013 10:25pm