Lagoon Time is an extraordinary first-hand account of the experiences and discoveries made by Dr. Steven Swartz and his colleagues in San Ignacio Lagoon, Baja California Sur, Mexico, that provides visitors a look into the human and natural history of Laguna San Ignacio. It is also a field guide to gray whale behavior and the diverse botanical and avian wildlife in the area. All of the net proceeds will support the Laguna San Ignacio Ecosystem Science Program, a project of The Ocean Foundation. No one knows more about Laguna San Ignacio and its gray whales than Steven Swartz. This is the one book to take with you on a visit to the magical lagoon, or to read with longing to caress a whale if you haven't made the trip yet. - Homero Aridjis, Founder of Mexico’s “Group of 100” conservation organization. "There are few places as magical as Laguna San Ignacio. Lagoon Time lets us experience this unique ecosystem through the eyes of the researchers that have studied it for decades and the hearts of the residents who protect it now and in the future." -- Bernardo Alps, Research Associate, Cabrillo Marine Aquarium."The 'friendly gray whale' phenomenon is unlike any other interspecies communication in the world, and marine scientist Steven Swartz, Mary Lou Jones, and their colleagues have been documenting it for more than a generation. Follow his words and pictures into the lagoon, and be prepared for a mysterious and astonishing experience." -- Dick Russell, author of Eye of the Whale. Along with his wife and research partner, Mary Lou Jones, Steven conducted the first systematic studies of gray whales in Laguna San Ignacio from 1977 to 1982. He earned his Ph.D. in marine science in 1986 from the University of California at Santa Cruz. He has researched and published widely on gray whales and their breeding lagoons in Baja California throughout his career. Steven edited and contributed to the classic Academic Press treatise “The Gray Whale” with Mary Lou Jones and J. Stephen Leatherwood. He has been active in the Society for Marine Mammalogy as a Charter Member and elected officer. Steven has served as a consultant to the Mexican government’s Ministry for the Environment, Natural Resources, and Fisheries (SEMARNAP), and worked for the U.S. Marine Mammal Commission and the National Marine Fisheries Service. He continues to work with non-government organizations (NGOs) on various marine protected area conservation projects. With his colleague, Jorge Urban R., they established and co-directs the Laguna San Ignacio Ecosystem Science Program in Baja California, Sur, Mexico, to ensure that science-based information continues to be available to those responsible for conserving these unique marine protected areas, and to train future generations of marine wildlife scientists.