Plenty of activity
with Orca, Humpback, Dolphins and Porpoise appearing, disappearing,
and reappearing along the Sunshine Coast and Georgia Strait. A
reminder to all to keep an eye open and please report your sightings.
We'd rather hear about it twenty times than not at all. The Humpback
sighting is assumed Humpback rather than Grey based on description
only. Does anyone have a photo to confirm, please? We may even be
able to identify the individual from a photo. Also, some more
information on branded Sea Lions below.
Susan MacKay, Whales
and Dolphins BC
Have you seen a whale,
dolphin or porpoise?
Call 1-877-323-9776
or Email
your report.
Every sighting report is
valuable!
Transient
Bigg's Killer Whales
Young Bigg's Breaching
Grief Point, April 25,
2013
Steve Grover, Powell
River
April 25:
11 am 4 Orca Northbound at Brown's Bay,
above Campbell River. All small fins.
Jos Krojnen, Eagle Eye Adventures
April 25:
1:45 pm Orca, saw one for sure, right
out in front of Westview.
Sherri Wretham,
Powell River
April 25:
1:45 pm The call from Sherri (above)
came in just as I picked up binoculars to scan the water after seeing
something out of the corner of my eye. There were 4 Orca – they
looked like the same 4 as last night's (I have not had enough time to
review the photo's). A few breaches and a brief glimpse of the sea
lion they were on, they continued towards Grief Point.
Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC
April 25:
Transient Orca. Thanks for the heads up
about the pod out front today. I drove down to Grief Point as they
picked up the pace since we spoke and got a few shots from the shore.
At 2:30 pm. The small one was splashing around quite a bit,
porpoising, tail lobbing with the occasional breach thrown in because
it felt like it. Always a treat to see these beautiful animals.
Steve Grover, Powell River
April 24:
8 am 4 Orca including one calf
Northbound in front of Powell River fuel dock.
Pam Iwasiuk, Powell River
April 24:
You've probably already been flooded
with sightings but... (photo) Taken from my deck around 08:25 this
morning at least two individuals heading north between Westview and
Harwood. Wish I'd grabbed my camera sooner!
(Thanks very much Peter and no, I
wasn't inundated with calls. Like you, it seems everyone figures I
already know....that's why it's so important to report. Every
sightings report is important! - SM)
Peter Harvey, Powell River
Orca off Powell River
April 24, 2013
Peter Harvey, Powell
River
April 24:
5:10 pm 2 Orca including one large male
and a small calf off Whalen Road (Myrtle Point area) heading NW
towards Myrtle Rocks.
Perk Percy, Persea's Dive Services
April 24:
5:45 pm Headed out to see about the
above noted whales and found them at 6:20 pm just off Grief Point.
They were travelling at an easy steady pace Northbound and continued
past the Powell River mill angling towards Savary Island. Left them
around 7:20 pm mid-channel.
Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC
April 24:
2 pm 5-6 Orca right
now off North side of Savary, mid-Island, working their way slowly
towards Mace Point. Orcas at Savary.....Make it 8 at least..........
There were a couple of large fins and
couple of really small ones with a total of close to 12 Orca! They
headed towards Mace Point till a prawn boat ran right into the middle
of the group. They turned towards Hernando and I lost sight of them.
Grant Rainsley, Powell River /
Savary Island
April 23:
5:30 – 6 pm There were around 11 Orca
including one very large male Southbound past Albion (Black) Point.
Bill Taylor, Powell River
Humpback
Whale
(Unconfirmed but assumed
rather than Grey Whale,
based on descriptions –
SM)
April 23:
Sitting on the beach at Grief Pt. at
sunset and a whale (grey?) surged by very close to shore. I think we
were within 30 ft. of it! Saw a small dorsal fin when we first heard
it, but after that he stayed just under the surface. How amazing! A
student staying with us also saw it from the seawalk. Apparently,
lots of people saw it. Our student also thought he saw a small dorsal
fin. I really only got a flash of it. We were sitting on a log
looking out at the water and we heard it first. I knew from the sound
it was a whale, not a big blow but a powerful noise. We turned in
time to see what I took to be a shallow hump of the back with a small
dorsal fin. He was very close to shore. He moved powerfully past us
but didn't completely break the surface again. From the glimpse I
caught of him, my impression was of a smooth grey colour, but as I
say, it was just a flash and I didn't get another chance to take
note.
Madeleine Field, Powell River
April 23:
7:30 pm Noticed a huge blow tight to
the breakwater at Westview's South Harbour. Possibly a Grey Whale? It
headed South then angled towards the Texada side.
Pam Iwasiuk, Powell River
Pacific
White Sided Dolphins
April 25:
5:50 pm 25 to 30 PWS Dolphins are
leaping and cavorting back and forth just of Grief Point, Powell
River
John & Joan Treen, Powell River
April 24:
6 am 15 to 20 PWS Dolphins were headed
South past Albion (Black) Point, South of Powell River. They weren't
in a hurry.
Bill Taylor, Powell River
Harbour
and Dall's Porpoise
April 25:
Two porpoises were sighted heading
south just off Myrtle Rocks in the Malaspina Strait at 8:15 this
morning.
Holly Roy, Powell River
April 24:
Some friends and I went to lighthouse
park today in West Vancouver. We were hanging out on the rocks
looking out at the water and I noticed something in the water to the
left of us. At first I thought it was a seal but then we got a better
look and it was a group of porpoises! There were about three or four.
Very dark grey almost black. They seemed pretty small and we saw
their fins pop up a few times. About 75 feet off shore. We were so
surprised they were pretty close. This was today the 22nd at about
6-630 pm. Then we saw them again but they were further to the left
about 150 feet away. So amazing!
The fins were triangle, and the color
seemed very dark charcoal (on first glance I thought it was a seal
until we saw their fins and more of them). I'm almost positive they
were Harbor Porpoises based on the pics I checked out, there
was no white like the Dall's porpoise... Was very magical! So
surprised to see them so close to the city.
Kleah Marie Michnik
April 23:
4:20 pm 9-10 Dall's Porpoise in
Lewis Channel off Teakerne Arm, Desolation Sound, foraging at the entrance.
Nick Templeman, Campbell River Whale
& Bear Excursions
Transient Bigg's off
Powell River
April 22, 2013
Susan MacKay, SG Images
Branded
Sea Lion Information
Questions arose after my request for
sightings reports and the photo of a branded Steller Sealion number
998R. Branding of sea lions for long term research and monitoring
first started in Russia in 1989. Researchers found that the tags they
used at the time would fall off and were difficult to read. Today,
Stellers, California and many other sea lions and seals are being
both branded and/or tagged for the purposes of tracking.
The majority of branding to date has
taken place in Oregon, California and Alaska. Each location uses
specific letter and number combinations indicating exactly where they
were first branded or tagged, frequently as pups. With the
information available, the location they were first branded and
sometimes the age, sex and birthplace can be determined. 998R was
branded at Rogue Reef, Oregon and the photo was taken at Mitlenatch
Island, Northern Georgia Strait. Since these animals have already
been branded and/or tagged, it's useful and interesting to note where
they are from and their survival rate after branding. There are some
reports that indicate that some branding was done while the sea lions
were under anaesthetic, but not all. Some brands appear much deeper
than others.
The most recent branding took place
March 25, 2013 in Oregon, at the Port of Astoria, where they branded
30 sea lions by trapping adults and pups in a trap. Both Oregon and
California have, over many years, branded “nuisance” sea lions
that were to be destroyed if they returned to certain areas where
they are considered trouble makers. It's unknown if this recent sea
lion branding in Oregon is their standard method of branding, but if
it is, it strikes me and many of you as cruel. Here's a link to this
recent branding uproar:
http://www.seashepherd.org/news-and-media/2013/03/25/more-than-30-sea-lions-captured-and-branded-at-port-of-astoria-by-oregon-dept-of-fish-and-wildlife-1492
Although this is only one side of the story, a picture says 1000
words.
Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC
Have you seen a whale,
dolphin or porpoise? Call 1-877-323-9776 or Email
your report. Every sighting report is valuable!
The
official governing society of Whales and Dolphins BC is Wild
Ocean Whale Society (WOW)
