Whales
are around, but it's a big ocean out there. Orca have made
appearances with the most notable being the Transient Bigg's Killer
Whales attacking Pacific White Sided Dolphins in Nanaimo Harbour. A
couple of links to reports of the Transient Bigg's Killer Whales in
Nanaimo and a Humpback Whale report from Mexico. A few people are
looking and spotting them. Keep your eyes open and remember to report
them!
There
are many things in the works with Wild Ocean Whale Society (WOWs).
Updates on these may appear to be slow, but they are coming, as are
some updates to pages on the main web site.
Susan
MacKay, Whales
and Dolphins BC
Every
sighting report is valuable
Have you seen a whale,
dolphin or porpoise?
Humpback
Whale, Mexico
February
7, 2014
Michael
Stewart, Powell River
UNIDENTIFIED
KILLER WHALES
February
7:
6:00
pm: Matt says there are Orca in the Ragged Islands (Copeland Islands)
just outside of Lund on the northern Sunshine Coast. Sounded like
there are three of them including one baby; dolphin size!
Gordie
Coles, Savary Island / Lund
February
6:
11:50
am: Two Orca heading east below Whalen/Fleury Rds (East of Myrtle
Point towards Black(Albion) Point) Very large dorsal. (At first
glance thought one was a sailboarder.) One slightly larger than the
other, both making shallow dives until just before going out of
sight.
Perk
Persea, Perseas Dive, Powell River.
February
2:
8:06
am: Good morning! Looks like they're back (Orca)! Moving south and
approaching Grief Point right in front of the Seaspan Tug, if you're
looking. Looks like 7 – 8 of them (not the right numbers for the
A8/42's SM). Just a quick look though...gotta keep to schedule!
Geord
Dunstan, Texada Water Taxi, Stubbs Island Whale Watching.
February
2:
9:00
am: I can see 3 or 4 Orca in a small pod close to Texada Island, just
passing. I heard them before I saw them. They're moving quickly.
Bill
Taylor, Powell River
February
2:
10:15
am: Orca – no numbers – on the south side of Savary Island,
westbound towards Indian Point from the Meadows.
Rick
Thaddeus, Savary Island
February
2:
Apparently
some Orca went by here yesterday, around 4pm or so, southbound. It
was on a FaceBook page. Did you hear or know about it?
Garry
Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours.
Humpback
Whale, Mexico
February
7, 2014
Michael
Stewart, Powell River
TRANSIENT
BIGG'S KILLER WHALES & PACIFIC WHITE SIDED DOLPHINS
February
3:
5:30
pm:
Large
groups of Pacific White Sided Dolphins and Orca reported in Departure
Bay, (B.C Ferries Terminal, Nanaimo.) Reported by a friend of mine.
Aaron
Webber, Campbell River Whale Watching.
**(see
Links
for more on this)***
SPLASHES
– ORCA OR DOLPHINS?
February
3:
Late
afternoon: I did my usual scan and was intrigued by some huge
splashes. My initial thought was that it was a boat, but the seas
weren't that bad to create the huge splashes (no boat spotted). There
were no cetacean reports, and I can't confirm species, but all
indications was that these splashes were either from Orca or Pacific
White Sided Dolphins. I had heard rumours of Orca by Trail Islands,
Sechelt and then the Transient Bigg's hunting Dolphins in Nanaimo, so
the assumption is that these animals were in flight mode or were Orca
in chase rushing up Malaspina Strait and North-West past Harwood
Island.
Susan
MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC
HUMPBACK
WHALES
Humpback
Whale, Mexico
February
7, 2014
Michael
Stewart, Powell River
February
7:
Report
from Mexico: I got some good humpback pictures for you this time,
hope you can ID them. There was a baby with 2adults, we stopped an
watched them for almost an hour. The baby jumped out of the water
ahead of the adults over and over.
Michael
Stewart, Powell River on holiday in Mexico
LINKS
IN THE NEWS
February
3:
10:00am:
Onlookers
who happened to be in Nanaimo on February 3rd
witnessed a rare confrontation between a group of eight or nine
Transient Bigg's Killer whales and a pod of approximately 100 Pacific
White Sided Dolphins. The whales herded the dolphins into the shallow
waters of a cove at Newcastle Island in Departure Bay where they were
able to trap and kill two of them in full view of ferry passengers
and onlookers from shore! (Lynne Cracknell) Here are links to the
video on that story:
Humpback
Whale, Mexico
February
7, 2014
Michael
Stewart, Powell River
Have
you seen a whale, dolphin or porpoise?
Every
sighting report is valuable!
We
are the non-profit Wild Ocean Whale Society