Bruce W. Nelson
- Kodiak Artist

March 2005 - June 2008

Greatly inspired by the artwork of the historic whalebone artists he saw on the East Coast museum tour in February 2005, Bruce launched into his own modern versions. The Kodiak Gray Whale Project commissioned him to create a series of graphite drawings of various individual bones, bone groups, whale anatomy, and whale behavior. This magnificent set of illustrations was done on heavy watercolor paper and required much research and attention to detail. We believe them to be the only collection of detailed gray whale anatomy illustrations in existence and hope that one day they will be made into prints or a publication that will be available to interested scientists and others who appreciate this specialized kind of scientific illustration.

Bruce W. Nelson is also a former commercial fisherman and a keen observer of nature. He strives to blend aesthetics with scientific detail and accuracy. He has lived on Kodiak Island since 1980 and now makes a living as an artist selling his artwork in Kodiak and in other coastal communities of Alaska. The rich natural ecosystems of Kodiak Island, in addition to Kodiak's fishing economy, continually inspire Bruce and provide him with endless subject matter to paint and illustrate.

"Migration Casualty at Three Saints Bay"
Kodiak Brown Bears Begin to Feast on a Dead Gray Whale
6' X 10' Oil Painting by Kodiak Artist Bruce W. Nelson
On display at the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center

The Kodiak Gray Whale Project also commissioned Bruce W. Nelson to do an oil painting for the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center. The subject matter illustrates the connection between the Kodiak brown bear and the gray whale and shows an interesting link between the terrestrial and marine ecosystems.

The scene in the painting is of a dead gray whale that has just washed up on a beach with the high tide and four curious Kodiak brown bears that have just discovered it. Before others arrive, they are staking out their claims. Glaucous-winged gulls are feeding on the parasites on the whale's skin, while another avian scavenger, the bald eagle, has also spotted the whale and is arriving at the scene.

Deaths may occur anywhere along the gray whale's long migratory route. If they don't sink, dead whales may be carried to a beach by the ocean tides and currents. Kodiak is home to one of the world's largest scavengers, the Kodiak brown bear. Any dead marine mammal that washes up on a beach is soon discovered by bears that follow their noses to the carcass. As many as a dozen bears may feed on a large dead whale like this one depending on where it is. They eat everything including the skin, blubber, muscle, and organs as well as chew on the bones.

Dead marine mammals are an important food source for bears and help to augment their diet of fish and plants. Other scavengers like gulls, eagles, foxes, ravens, and magpies also take part in the feast. Within a few months, only the bones are left.

The setting of the painting is Three Saints Bay and was chosen by the artist because it is not only a beautiful and historic spot, but also a likely place for a scene like this to occur within the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge. Gray whales migrate past Kodiak Island two times a year. In April-June they are headed northward as they pass along the east side of Kodiak Island headed for the productive cold ocean of the Bering Sea. In October-December they pass by Kodiak Island again on their way south to Baja where they mate and give birth to their young in the warm shallow lagoons on the west coast of the Baja Peninsula. A group of migrating whales is depicted on the ocean horizon at the top of the painting.

The Story Around the Border
Surrounding the main painting is a light blue border with a series of illustrations that depict the stages in the life cycle of a gray whale. Starting in the center at the top is the Earth showing the Western Hemisphere and eastern Pacific Ocean, home to the gray whale.

On the upper right side of the border is a baby gray whale with her mother only a few days after birth in a warm lagoon on the west coast of the Baja Peninsula. The right side of the border illustrates the southern Pacific Ocean ecosystem where gray whales spend their first few months. Warm water algae and other creatures that a young gray whale would encounter are shown. On the bottom right is an adolescent whale. An adult gray whale typically feeding in the mud on the bottom of the ocean is shown on the bottom left. The left side of the border depicts the northern Pacific Ocean and the plants and animals a gray whale would encounter there. Completing the life cycle is the old gray whale at the top left.

This awe inspiring painting hangs on a wall opposite the whale skeleton and certainly gives any viewer an unforgettable impression of a unique relationship between bears and whales that exists in coastal Alaska where both the marine and terrestrial habitats are still intact enough to support both of these large and magnificent mammals.