My colleague and I are pleased to announce the publication of a new paper on the maternal behaviour of gray whales in a foraging area on Canada's west coast Burnham, R.E., Duffus, D.A. Maternal behaviors of gray whales (_Eschrichtius robustus_) on a summer foraging site Mar Mam Sci. 2020;1-19. https://doi.org/10.1111/mms.12710 Abstract: The weaning period for gray whale (_Eschrichtius robustus_) calves is important for maternal instruction and learning. We examined observational and acoustic data from a foraging site for evidence of calf development and mother-young information transfer. Site survey data demonstrated an initial prioritization of calf protection by using shallow shoreline areas. Foraging in more open water was only noted in late summer, perhaps an indicator of the maturation of the calf. Other indicators of development were found in acoustic recordings made over two summers. Motherese call types have been reported from recordings made in breeding lagoons, but have not before been described outside of calving regions. They were present in recordings from this study site, predominantly in the early summer and not heard past late July. We suggest vocal repertoire may evolve as the calf ages, and more adult calling behaviors eventually replace motherese. Long-term mark-recapture analyses demonstrated a high return of calves to the area to forage in summers subsequent to weaning, suggesting maternally inherited prey preference and site use behaviors. From our findings we suggest a calf's first summer is a highly critical period for development and may be formative in shaping future behaviors and habitat use patterns. The paper can be found here: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/mms.12710 or email me for a PDF Best, Rianna Burnham, PhD