Happy Holidays! Short Report: Dolphins and Hummingbirds in the Snow

All the Best for the Holidays!

All of us, the Board of Directors and Volunteers at Whales and Dolphins BC / Wild Ocean Whale Society (WOWs) wish all of you and yours a very Merry Christmas and Happy, Healthy New Year!

Most of the Whales and Dolphins appear to be having a winter holiday this year, and so, it appears we are too. Cetacean sightings have been virtually non-existent in the Sunshine Coast, central Georgia Strait and lower Johnstone Strait areas this month. So far, December 1 - 21^st we have received one sighting report of a few Pacific White Sided Dolphins, and even they were Southbound!

Although things are quiet on the Cetacean side of things, Wild Ocean Whale Society (WOWs) has held its first Annual General Meeting and the Board of Directors have agreed that we can now open the society up for membership. More information will follow very soon.

Thank you all for your support and sightings information. Remember, we do work at it all year, so keep an eye out; they've got to be out there in that big ocean.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Call 1-877-323-9776 or Email your report.

Every sighting report is valuable

Have you seen a whale, dolphin or porpoise?

Pacific White Sided Dolphins

December 17:

11:30 am Small group of PWS Dolphins are mid strait between Horseshoe Bay and Departure Bay. There's no more than 10 of them and yes, they are Southbound. It's been a while, and couldn't find anything else out there, but good to see them.

Lee, Adventure Quest

For those of you interested in the Anna's Hummingbirds I have all winter, there were 5 of them coming to the feeder daily, but I have not been able to confirm if the number is down to 4 now after the first freeze we had early in December. There are still 2 males and quite a plump female. There was also a small male Rufous Hummingbird that also made an appearance just this past week. Presumably, he was Southbound and just stopped for a sip of the concentrated juice.

Susan

Anna's Hummingbird at feeder in snow

Photo December, 2013

by Susan MacKay, SG Images

Have you seen a whale, dolphin or porpoise?

Call 1-877-323-9776 or Email your report.

Every sighting report is valuable!

We are the non-profit Wild Ocean Whale Society

Pacific White Sided Dolphins and Wild Ocean Whale Society - WOW!

Pacific White Sided Dolphins and quiet on the Cetacean front. Hummingbirds are in full force though. That's at least a smile. At least on this side of the continent we're getting a bit of Spring.

Progress report: The official governing society of Whales and Dolphins BC is Wild Ocean Whale Society....or.... W.O.W. This seems very appropriate for some of the excitement with seeing whales in the wild. More paperwork is in the works.

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!

Pacific White Sided Dolphins

Pacific White Sided Dolphin

Riding beside the boat in the clear waters

Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys

April 10:

10 am Heading out and just spotted 3 Pacific White Sided Dolphins on the crossing from Quadra to Campbell River....there's gotta be more than 3 out here.

Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys

April 9:

2:45 pm 20 or so Pacific White Sided Dolphins between Hernando and Twin Island back and forth including bow riding a boat out there.

Cam M.

April 7:

1 pm Dolphins splashing around in Sechelt Inlet. No other details.

Broken Radio Transmission

Pacific White Sided Dolphins

Surface beside the boat

Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys

April 7:

10 am Dolphins spotted in Bute Inlet – from workers up there.

Aaron Webber, Campbell River Whale Watching

April 6:

1:15pm - Approximately 70 Pacific White-sided Dolphins sighted heading eastbound past southeastern tip of Nelson Island.
Michelle Evelyn and Dave, Sunshine Coast Wildlife Project

March 30 or 31: (rec'd late)

Saltrey Bay to Earl's Cove Ferry was totally surrounded with Dolphins. I'd say easily 500 dolphins. They were riding in the waves and everywhere you looked. It was incredible!

Sylvie

Captain Hook – T40

photo from Okeover Inlet

Jack Springer, Campbell River Whale Watching

Update on last sighting of T40 plus 3 other Orca was April 1^st somewhere in Desolation Sound (no time and not confirmed from source) – SM

Have you seen a whale, dolphin or porpoise?

Call 1-877-323-9776 or Email your report.

Every sighting report is valuable!

Rumours of Whales and Sightings of 'Winter' Hummingbirds

Rumours have it that there have been 2 more Humpback Whales other than 'Maude' around the Powell River area as well as some Pacific White Sided Dolphins between Savary Island and Lund last week. Orca reports are also sketchy and rumour has it that there were a couple, at least, of them headed down Johnstone Strait around Sunderland Channel.

I'm told that people made the assumption that these sightings had been reported by someone else. I heard about them third hand and a long time after the fact, so details are too sketchy to post as actual reports. I have included some links below to at least provide you with your whales and dolphins fix for the past few days.

A reminder to all; Please do not assume that sightings reports are passed on. Every sightings report IS important! Rather 10 reports of the same animal(s) than none at all. Also, frequently there are bits of detail that are noted by one reporter and not by the other, which can help in identification.

Work has been progressing on the various media outlets and new links on the main web site. Of major note, when it was brought to my attention, the Win a Cruise for Two Draw date had to be moved up to March 16, 2013 to allow enough time for people to make proper arrangements. I apologize for the confusion and thank the people who have both brought this to my attention and have contributed to Whales and Dolphins BC's Projects and Wish List. Good luck in the Draw! I am looking for volunteers to help out! If you are interested, please contact me.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Whale Sightings Reports

No actual reports from November 2 to November 7, 2012

BUT:

For those of you who enjoyed the 'Winter' Hummingbirds last year, I am so fortunate to have 4 Anna's Hummingbirds right now. There are three females and one male at the moment. I did have one other male, but he may have just been passing through. Will keep everyone posted. These birds, at least some, will stay all winter long.

See the Archived posts for more info and photos of them in the snow. Anyone wanting to put up a feeder for these birds are reminded that the colder it gets, the richer the food needs to be. My mixture is listed on the same post.

Since there are no actual Whales, Dolphins or Porpoise reports, here are a few links for you:

Humpback Whales off Hawaii interacting with Bottlenose Dolphins:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lC3AkGSigrA&feature=em-share_video_user

Orca taken from the Wild in Russia:

http://www.wdcs.org/news_int.php?select=1321#.UIxyC3VAnr4.email

Transient Orca – T059's

2012

Nick Templeman

Sightings After the Storms

After the huge windstorms we've had where it was impossible to spot a whale, the weather is greatly improved. Some of the worst wind gusts logged at Merry Island Lightstation, between Sechelt and close to Pender Harbour, reached hurricane force at 110 knots (204 km/hr or 127 mph!). There's a calming in the air. All I can say, is that it's about time!

I was worried about my Hummingbirds; I didn't see a male for a couple of days only the two females. Finally they showed up, but the smaller male has a permanent punk rock hairdo. Guess the winds damaged his head feathers. Just happy they're OK.

As for Whales? There's a few reports below. Gray Whales are making their way back up the coast, though most will pass on the outside of Vancouver Island, we sometimes see them on the East side. Keep your eyes open and please let me know. Happy Spring!

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Transient Orca – Killer Whales

March 18:

Hi Susan, Had a report from a friend that the saw 2 Orcas ( one large fin and one small fin) northbound past Cape Mudge at 3 pm March 18,2012. They had no camera with them. Makes sense they were northbound because current was ebbing then. They did say the large fin had a distinctive bend in its dorsal.

Sounds like they had a large number around Telegraph area yesterday n this morning as well. Cheers

Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys

March 17:

CWR - 14:05 - 16:37, from south to north of East Point, Saturna Island.
I left the T109As, T124As, and T12A in Tumbo Channel at 1635 today.
the whales were milling but seemed to be heading back west when I left them.
Dave Ellifrit submitted by Orca Network, Washington

March 16:

I spotted 4 orcas traveling North up the Johnstone Strait at about 12:15pm today, viewed from my apartment in Campbell River, BC, which is located directly across from the Cape Mudge Lighthouse on Quadra Island. I followed them in my car, stopping to take photos along the way, the last I saw them, was at Brown's Bay, at 2:45pm, still heading North.

Tara Bladon, Campbell River, BC

Dave Ellifrit identified:The bull is T11A and T11 is in there too.

Report submitted via Orca Network, Washington

Humpback Whales

Humpback, Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico

photo: Michael Stewart March 16, 2012

March 16:

We saw this mother and baby today off Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico today. The Humpbacks are leaving the area now.

Michael Stewart

 

2012 Charter Cruises

Enjoy a personalized week long Charter Cruise in the pristine wilderness of the Great Bear Rainforest. Information can be found on the 2012 Charter Cruises pages of Whales and Dolphins BC.

Orca in Our Area

Orca again by Cape Mudge, off Campbell River. Other Sightings are few and far between. There have been a couple of Grey Whales appearing in the Puget Sound area of Washington State. The shrimp draggers are still back and forth in front of Powell River. There are cetaceans out there, but it's a big ocean – keep looking!

Sad news of this morning's passing of Spinnaker, the Pacific White Sided Dolphin who has been at the Vancouver Aquarium since being saved from a net in 1991. A necropsy is being done.

Hummingbird update: They are very happy that the winds have eased. They had a terrible time getting to the rocking feeder. My four birds are feeding a lot with the two females actually sitting at the feeder together lately.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Orca – Killer Whales

Hi Susan, Just got a couple recent reports of Orcas in our area the last couple days. The first report was of a couple Orcas southbound past Cape Mudge, Quadra Island around 1 pm March 6th.

The second report was of at least 4 Orcas northbound past Cape Mudge, Quadra Island at 6 pm March 7th. It looks like we are seeing more activity.

Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys

 

2012 Charter Cruises

Enjoy a personalized week long Charter Cruise in the pristine wilderness of the Great Bear Rainforest. Information can be found on the 2012 Charter Cruises pages of Whales and Dolphins BC.

Valentine's Day Orca by Powell River

It was a lovely Valentine's gift to see Orca back in the inside waters and along the Sunshine Coast. Although I spent a short time out with them, there's nothing like sitting there and hearing their blows even when it got too dark to see them. They decided to arrive in the neighbourhood almost too late to see them at all. I managed a few very poor quality photos of them, see below. After my last report wondering where the whales got to, I received a couple of Humpback Whale reports, see below. I look forward to the Humpbacks and Dolphins (other than Orca, which are actually of the Dolphin family) also coming back to our coverage areas.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Orca – Killer Whales

(Transients?)

February 14:

Orca Tail Lob between Powell River and Texada Island

February 14, 2012

Photo: Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

4:40 pm A call came in of 6 or 7 Orca off Armour Road, south of Powell River heading Northward – my way. Thanks to Nina Falls for the sightings report!

I had little time to grab gear and head out into the calm waters in front of the Powell River Harbour. It didn't take very long to spot them, but as they headed close to shaded East side of Texada Island, the light wasn't in my favour to get ID photos. I managed to count at least 6 and possibly up to 9 Orca. As for vocals, I set the hydrophone down a number of times, but there was far too much boat noise from the ferries and tugs transiting the area to hear anything other than boats. I thought I heard a couple of squeaky calls, but they were not conclusively Orca calls.

Orca (possibly T20) between Powell River and Texada Island

February 14, 2012

Photo: Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

I'm pretty certain one of them was the Transient Orca T20 with his distinctive notch in that big dorsal, but they were distant and my photos were just too poor of a quality to be 100% certain. The females and the baby calf, merrily porpoising beside Mom, were also too far off; not to mention it was getting rather dark, to see clearly. I left them around 6:15 pm heading between the reef marker and Blubber Bay at the top of Texada Island.

5:43 pm Telephone message about the Orca out in front of Westview from neighbours Steve Grover, who suddenly realized he was also watching me, already out on the water with the Orca as he left the message. He also called my cell phone at one point to tell me that there were some Orca behind me which I did not see. Thanks Steve.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Orca Breach off the top of Texada Island

February 14, 2012

Photo: Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Humpback Whales

The following reports came in February 13, 2012 after my previous posting asking where the whales are. Most Humpback Whales are in Hawaii, but there was also a report of one in the Puget Sound area.

Hi Susan

It seems like a long time since we have had a visit but I do love your Blog and just wanted to let you know that we had many whale sightings while in Maui. Lots and lots of Humpbacks. There was not a day that went by without our seeing many breaches, especially against the darker background of Molokai. We had many sightings on our morning walk at Kapalua. We were smart enough to take our binoculars this time. While we were driving Erin back to the airport we had our closest sighting, just below the cliff edge, and huge! So we have been very lucky this past January. Hope all is well and you Anna hummingbirds are still okay.

Cheers Dulcie

And:

Want to report 3 Humpback whales breaching. Saw them off our deck.....of course, we are in Kona, Hawaii! See you in the spring
Dee

February 5

Just saw the humpback in Hood Canal today, from 4:15-6 pm off the Bangor navy base!
Emma Willoughby

Hummingbird Update

Still have the same four fighting over the feeder in Powell River. The male Anna's are in their breeding plumage and have even redder heads than a few weeks ago. They are also going through a lot more food even though it's warmer.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

 

2012 Charter Cruises

Enjoy a personalized week long Charter Cruise in the pristine wilderness of the Great Bear Rainforest. Information can be found on the 2012 Charter Cruises pages of Whales and Dolphins BC.

Whale Sightings and Hummingbirds

Today we did get some Orca – reports follow. Still not sure if these are Residents or Transients though. It's a bit too cold and choppy to get out on the water for ID's. Their behaviour makes me lean towards Transients rather than Resident Orca. Wonderful to have everyone letting me know so I can post the information – Thank you for networking and good eyes !

As for the Anna's Hummingbirds, thank you for all your emails. With many comments of surprise to have Winter Hummingbirds, I also heard of many other Winter Hummers in Gibsons, Sechelt, Lang Bay, all along the Sunshine Coast and up to Lund. Sounds like lots more people will be putting feeders out too.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Orca – Killer Whales

January 19:

10:30 am Call came in that there was a large group of Orca headed Northward from Lang Bay. They were spread out across the channel.

Heather Dixon

11 am Call came in that there were whales coming towards Grief Point.

Gail Alsgard

12:30 pm Over 300 Seagulls were feeding on what looked like possibly a very large herring ball. Although something must be chasing the food up and there were a few splashes that looked to be too large for birds to make, there was no clear view of any dorsals from Orca or Dolphins.

Michael Stewart

Orca off Westview, Powell River

January 19, 2012

photo by: Steven Grover (from his deck)

Hello Susan,

Did you happen to see the 2 pods of Orcas going North Jan. 19, today around 1 pm. I haven’t seen them this week but I wondered why cars were stopping along Marine Avenue. I live at Beacon B&B Spa so looked out on the water and there they were. I read your notes from January 17th and I think these appear to be the same whales you indicated on that date. There appeared to be a large one and in another location was a baby. They were fairly close by but still hard to detect how many of them there were. Happy whale watching,

Shirley Randall

1:30 pm After the “Orca out in front” sighting call from neighbour Steve Grover, I got binoculars on at least 4 Orca out in front of Westview Powell River. One male breached just off the Viewpoint as it headed in towards shore. About 2 pm An additional 3 Orca (1 Male, 1 Female & 1 Juvenile) passed by making my total count 7 Orca. They were not wasting time in heading Northward towards Atrevida Reef.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Later email report back from Steve: I never got a great look at the entire pod but I think 5 were there. I did get some shots of the bull off the deck. You can actually see the dorsal quite clearly in these shots. (see photo)

Steve Grover

January 9:

Just a hint of how far reaching the internet is: I received a late third hand report of some Orca by Cape Mudge lightstation on the afternoon of January 9^th. The report came from Jodie in the UK

 

2012 Charter Cruises

Enjoy a personalized week long Charter Cruise in the pristine wilderness of the Great Bear Rainforest. Information can be found on the 2012 Charter Cruises pages of Whales and Dolphins BC.

Hummingbirds in Snow Photos - No Whales Today

Although this really has nothing to do with Whales, Dolphins or Porpoises, these winter Anna's Hummingbirds are just too amazing to ignore. I managed to get a couple of photos of them at the feeder with the snow falling. The photos had to be taken through the window since they were too skittish to allow me to stay under cover and outside with them.

If you think you might have Hummingbirds over-wintering in our colder temperatures, the feeder mixture needs to be substantially thicker than in the summer months when they have lots of other food around. Winter mixture: In a cup measure I put 3/4 cup of sugar and fill with water to the one cup measure. I boil it up in the microwave, stirring every so often. Let it cool entirely. To avoid freezing, my feeder is under the eves close to the sliding door. Others have told me that they keep two feeders at the ready and if one starts to freeze, they put the second one out.

As for Whales, Dolphins or Porpoises, there were no sightings today, but it was also difficult to see much of the water in the snow this morning.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Male Anna's Hummingbird in the snow - Powell River, BC

January 18, 2012

Photo by Susan MacKay, SG Images

 

Female Anna's Hummingbird in the snow - Powell River, BC

January 18, 2012

Photo by Susan MacKay, SG Images

Male Anna's Hummingbird in the snow - Powell River, BC

January 18, 2012

Photo by Susan MacKay, SG Images

2012 Charter Cruises

Enjoy a personalized week long Charter Cruise in the pristine wilderness of the Great Bear Rainforest. Information can be found on the 2012 Charter Cruises pages of Whales and Dolphins BC.

More Orca by Powell River

Surprise sighting of some Orca by Powell River and a very late report of a December sighting when we thought there were none. Reports follow. Also below are a couple of interesting links from Lisa Spaven of the Marine Mammal Response Network.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Unidentified Orca – Killer Whales

January 17:

9:42 am While talking on the phone, I was surprised to notice a blow a short distance off the Westview ferry teminal in Powell River. Quickly looking through binoculars, a few Orca appeared briefly. Doing long dives and surfacing very briefly, there were only a few chances to really look at them. There were approximately 7 Orca counted, but there may have been more. They including at least one large male and one, possibly two juveniles. After a couple of quick breaths they disappeared for quite a while and popped up again quite a distance off before the next breath. By 9:50 am they were Southbound well past the viewpoint and almost to Grief Point and out of sight.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

December 9, 2011:

Very late report, but interesting in that there were no other sightings of Orca at or around that time. There was a distant photo taken, so yes, it was Orca.

3 Orca surfaced quite close to the Texada Ferry just out from Blubber Bay and headed Northward towards Atrevida Reef and Lund.

Sean

Southern Resident Orca J27 off Willingdon Beach,

Powell River, BC January 11, 2012

photo taken off video clip by Susan MacKay, SG Images

Of Interest

Go where few have dared...inside a sperm whale! Think of this as an opportunity to experience the awe and gore of a large whale necropsy but without the mess and the everlasting smell (trust me, sperm whale stink is in a class of it's own!). It's just too bad that the necropsy wasn't filmed here.

Inside Nature's Giants - The Sperm Whale Necropsy

Wed, Jan 18, 10pm on KCTS-PBS

PREVIEW: http://video.pbs.org/video/2185065525/(amazing how a voice over and suspense-full music can make a necropsy seems action packed!)

Also, if you've ever wondered how BCMMRN fits into the national marine mammal response picture, here's the link to the national Marine Mammal Response Program website. http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/mammals-mammiferes/index-eng.htm

Lisa Spaven, BCMMRN

Hummingbird Update:

Still have two male and two female hummingbirds battling over the feeder in the cold and snowy conditions. This afternoon, when the winds picked up and the feeder swung back and forth, one of the males was blown off his perch but made a safe landing onto an alternate perch. With the forecast snows, I hope to get a few photos of the birds in the snow.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

2012 Charter Cruises

Enjoy a personalized week long Charter Cruise in the pristine wilderness of the Great Bear Rainforest. Information can be found on the 2012 Charter Cruises pages of Whales and Dolphins BC.

January Orca Reports

Wishing everyone a great New Year!

Locally it started with some strong winds and rain over the past few days. With all the white caps on the ocean, local sightings around the Sunshine Coast and Powell River areas have been non-existent. If any cetaceans have been out there, they've been able to stay relatively hidden. In other areas though, some Northern Resident Orca made an appearance in the Blackfish Sound area just above Johnstone Strait today, January 5, 2012. There were also Transient Orca rumoured in the upper Johnstone Strait area. Meanwhile, Southern Resident Orca were seen around the Whidbey Island area of Washington State as were a few Transient Orca. My apologies for not having more details at this time.

For those of you following my winter Hummingbird count: The winds were hard on these tiny birds, but they managed to sneak a bit from the swinging feeder a few times. Watching them time their access was interesting. Today, things settled down and lo and behold, I now have another male Anna's Hummingbird for a total of two males and two females.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Humpbacks, Elephant Seal and Hummingbirds

Sounds like the Humpbacks are still around the Sunshine Coast, Saltery Bay to Black Point area. There were reports of an Elephant Seal, see photo below, in the Powell River area. Lack of whale, dolphin or porpoise sightings has otherwise limited this winter's postings, but for those interested in my “Winter Hummingbirds”, there are three that have claimed the feeder. One male and two female Anna's. With Christmas just around the corner, here's wishing you and yours the best for the Holidays and coming 2012 year.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Humpback Whales

I have continued to receive second and third hand reports of up to 4 Humpback Whales anywhere from Myrtle Rocks, just South of Powell River to the Saltery Bay / Earl's Cove Ferry runs. Dates have been unclear, but they seem to estimate between December 2 to December 8^th.

Susan MacKay

December 6:

A rare treat this morning at 8:10am ! A humpback whale was spotted heading south down the Malaspina Strait past Myrtle Rocks. It was lazily taking long dives and frustratingly out of range of our camera. But what a great sight to wake up to.

Holly Roy

Elephant Seal

This is an unusual sight around Powell River, so keep your eyes open.

December 9:

I think it the seal my friend saw yesterday is an elephant seal????

Michael

December 9, 2011

Photo forwarded by Michael Stewart

2012 Charter Cruises

There are a few week long personalized Charter Cruises available. Information can be found on the main Whales and Dolphins BC site. Direct link to the page is:  2012 Charter Cruises

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC