Few days of catch up. Hundreds to a thousand Pacific White Sided Dolphins have been active from Marina / Cortez Island into the various channels and inlets. Humpback Whales are slowly working their way down the coast taking time to munch on some food along along the way. A few Transient Orca have been sighted locally, but as of today's post, they have been up around the top end of Johnstone Strait. It seems like the Whales and Dolphins sightings along the Sunshine Coast and Powell River are slower or later, isn't everything, this year.
'Whale Encounters'
Tuesday, November 1, 2011 7 pm I will be speaking as part of the Lecture Series, open to the public, at the Powell River campus of the Vancouver Island University.
This multimedia presentation of photos, video and audio, will delve into cetacean identification, species interactions and behaviours with other marine species, their food, and humans. Listen to their “talk” as they socialize, echo-locate and forage for food.
Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC
Transient Killer Whales
October 15:
8:45 – 9 am 3 Transient Orca 1 big male and two females by Copper Bluff, Campbell River, possibly Northbound.
Elvis
11:40 am Orca – could only confirm 1 whale, but looks like a large female heading South down Malaspina Strait, by Grief Point, Powell River.
John Treen, Powell River
October 11:
3:20 pm 3 Transients look like all females by Separation Head, Discovery Passage Southbound. Went as far as Ripple Rock, right in the Narrows then turned back North. At 4:15 pm they were at Brown's Bay slowly headed North-West.
Scholar Holler
8 pm Possibly T20 and T21 Northbound right in Seymour Narrows.
Humpback Whales
October 19:
10 am 2 Humpback Whales by Chatham Point in a North-West direction. Looked like a Mom and calf.
Ivan, Western Explorer
2 pm 2 Humpback Whales by Chatham Point back and forth, possibly feeding. These are both large whales, doesn't look like a Mom and calf.
October 17:
3:45 pm 2 Humpback Whales just off Cape Mudge. No Direction.
Ivan, Western Explorer
October 15:
9:45 am Humpback mid-strait by Painter's Lodge, Campbell River, Discovery Passage heading South.
Commercial Fisherman
Hi Susan thanks for the call this morning. We got some fluke shots of the HB (Humpback) I will send on and I will send a couple of the mob of Lags squalling across the water it was awesome! (Photos not received – SM) The HB was all docile doing the odd fluke him then poof he full breached 40ft from us!! So close all our Jaws were hanging on the ground and no one got a pic! What a way to end the season!
October 14:
12 pm 5 to 600 Lags foraging by and into Deep Water Bay, Discovery Passage.
Great day. Had all the lags at Separation Head, Deepwater Bay on the way in. Couldn't take the time to look for the HB (Humpback) anywhere though as we were headed for a Grizzly. Great viewing at Orford with 7 different Griz. Cold though, made it home just as the sun was setting :) tugboat trip next week to Bella Coola, hoping to see lots on that trip!
Fin or Humpback Whales
October 14:
9:30 am Possibly 3 Fin or Humpback Whales in Okisollo Channel by Howe Island.
Fisherman Report
Pacific White Sided Dolphins
October 19:
11:15 am 800 to 1000 Pacific White Sided Dolphins were spread out then grouped up in Nodales Channel by Thurston Bay.
Ivan, Western Explorer
October 17:
2:20 pm 50 or so Pacific White Sided Dolphins at the South end of Marina Reef (by Cortez Island).
Ivan, Western Explorer
4 pm 400-500 Lags by Chatham Point, milling about.
October 16:
9:40 am 300 or so Dolphins by Cinque Islands, Discovery Passage headed North by Okisollo Channel. By 3 pm they were by Rock Bay, they hadn't moved too far, based on a report from a fisherman friend.
October 15:
1 pm Around 600 Pacific White Sided Dolphins in Seymour Narrows to Brown's Bay, Northbound.
Nick Templeman & Garry Henkel
October 14:
9:15 am Around 500 Dolphins Southbound by Deep Water Bay, Discovery Passage.
October 13:
10:50 am Hundreds and Hundreds of Pacific White Sided Dolphins Southbound by Kelsey Bay – from Fishing friend. At 12:50 pm Jen, CRWW figured there were more like 1000 Dolphins Eastbound by Camp Point, Johnstone Strait.
Dall's Porpoise
October 14:
End of day report: Great Grizzly tour. 9 Grizzlies up at Orford River. Saw 6 Dall's Porpoise in Bute Inlet, foraging.
October 12:
11:30 am Some Dall's Porpoise by Fawn Bluff.
AJ
Probable Dall's Porpoise
October 14:
8:45 am Radio call announced 10 Orca at Brown's Bay headed North-West. Garry headed that way and found 10 Dall's Porpoise at Brown's Bay soon after the radio call came in.
This is something that happens ocassionally due to the black and white markings of the Dall's. They can look like mini-Killer Whales. - SM
Southern Vancouver Island and Puget Sound Reports
submitted by: Susan Berta and Howard Garrett, Orca Network, Whidbey Isl., WAOctober 16
Big surprise today! (Southern Residents) J pod with the K7s and L87 came south through Trincomali Channel today at approximately 13:00. They were in a very relaxed and social mood, displaying a range of behavior from spyhopping (three at once!), breaching, porpoising, logging, sharking, cartwheeling, "blowing raspberries", and even some mating/sexual play going on. At one point, the J4s, J7s, most of the J9s, and K7s came together in what I can only call an "orca soup" or orca dog pile, as they stopped swimming and simply rolled over each other, all the while vocalizing which could be heard above the water. Speaking of which, the hydrophones revealed VERY chatty whales! LOTS of amazing and near constant vocalizing. Incredible day, I will never forget it. Tasli Shaw
I was out on the water and a group of 11 transients were found out west of Sooke and 4 transients who turned out to be the T18s off Victoria water front. When we arrived the transients could not be Identified. Later that night with the help of Ron Bates the transients were transients from California. Final Identification on the California transient killer whales: The male was CA 166 and the main female with the black spot on the saddle patch is CA 172. They have only been seen in BC waters a couple of times and also only seen in California waters a couple of times. Final IDs: Josh McInnes, Ron Bates and Alisa Schulman
October 15
No news for the last couple of days regarding the Southern Resident Orcas but we had 2 groups of Transient Orcas off Victoria. In the morning 7 Transients were spotted south of Race Rocks heading west. In the afternoon 4 Transients were first spotted on one of the local web camera's near Cook St and when boats arrived scene they id the T's as the T18's. We also had one report of a Humpback Whale at the top end of Haro Strait! The day before there were at least 8 Humpback Whales sighted off Victoria and one off San Juan Island:) Andrew Lees
We have at least 6 humpbacks off Victoria today :) Andrew Lees
October 17
A Minke Whale has been in Discovery Bay, near Cape George, (west of Port Townsend on the Olympic Peninsula) for several days. It seems to be going after the herring balls which also attract seals and lots of gulls and loons. Richard Isherwood, Port Townsend WA
October 14
Thursday Kath and I saw 30-40 Lags (Lagenorhynchus obliquidens) off Java Rocks (near Saturna and South Pender Islands BC). Brad Armstrong