Whale Sightings Reports

A few Whale sighting reports below, but it's been very quiet in the northern part of Georgia Strait. Reports have it that at least some of the Transient Killer Whales we had close to Powell River have gone out West past the Port McNeill / Sointula area, while some were still being spotted down by Whidbey Island off the Olympic Penninsula in the US. Keep your eyes open, they may still just pop up to surprise us.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Transient Orca – Killer Whales

Transient near Myrtle Rocks, Powell River

Susan MacKay, SG Images April 10, 2012

April 12:

6:30 pm around 6 Orca including one big male were seen heading towards Heriot Bay by the Cortez to Quadra Island ferry.

And:

6 pm there were 4 to 6 Orca, all small dorsals seen close to South Rendezvous Island heading towards Raza Island by a broken down prawn boat.

Jack Springer, Campbell River Whale Watching

April 12:

Between 12noon and 2pm on April 12th, we saw about 20 Killer Whales playing. they came by our boat within 15 feet. They were Spyhoping splashing about for the first hour. Later when we went to the North side of the Island they started to Breach. We saw 6 breaches in about 30 seconds. they continued to swim about and around our boat... At one time we had Orcas on all sides of the boat. At one time we saw 8 fins out of the water at the same time. We do not know how many whales were there we only guessed by seeing whales out each side that we could count 20.

Gord Chouinard, Lund Seaside Inn ....on Sevilla Island

Transient Killer Whale Malaspina Strait

Susan MacKay, SG Images April 10, 2012

Transients and Grey Whale

Reports submitted by Orca Network, Whidbey Island, US

April 16

3:40 pm - Sandra Pollard just called from the Clinton/Mukilteo ferry. She's seeing 4 or 5 orcas, including two adult males, heading east a bit north of the ferry lane. At the same time the captain of the ferry just reported a gray whale off the bow.

April 15
7:00pm - We are watching the orca still north of the Clinton ferry making their way south. See blows, dorsal of male and couple of breaches. General movement southbound. Also 6-10 harbor porpoise off Mukilteo mid channel.
Alisa Lemire Brooks

April 15

6:55 pm - Just observed a pod of orcas swimming south from Camano Head past the west side of Hat Island down to the Mukilteo/Columbia Beach ferry crossing. They are still frolicking just north of the ferry crossing. There was one, maybe two full size adults and at least 3, maybe 4 very small juveniles! SO SPECTACULAR!!!!!
Melanie J. Sceva Hill

April 15

6:30pm - gray whale right in front of our place at whidbey shores! We are just south of the spit on the cliff. Headed south! Slowly!
Sara Young

April 15

5:46 pm - Two greys between Cama beach & the State park. Closer to Whidbey. Moving s...l...o...w...l...y
Danelle Murphy

April 15

4:54 pm - Orca just past baby island, headed south, two for sure:) from where I stand on Camano Island between Cama beach and the park.
Danelle Murphy

April 15

4:39 pm - One gray south bound 2.5 miles north of North Bluff Rd.
Deception Pass Tours

 

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.

Transient Orca and Pacific White Sided Dolphins

Transient Orca and Pacific White Sided Dolphins reports. The Transients from the evening of April 1^st (see photos below) were identified with the help of and thanks to Jared Towers of the DFO as T040, T100 and possibly the T071's.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Transient Orca – Killer Whales

Transient T040 Menzies Bay, Campbell River

April 1, 2012 (7:30 pm)

Jack Springer, Campbell River Whale Watching

April 5:

1 pm Eight Orca Southbound at Cape Mudge, Quadra Island just across from Campbell River. Passed on from a water taxi.

Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys

Transient T100 Menzies Bay, Campbell River

April 1, 2012 (7:30 pm)

Jack Springer, Campbell River Whale Watching

Transients T071s Menzies Bay, Campbell River

April 1, 2012 (7:30 pm)

Jack Springer, Campbell River Whale Watching

Pacific White Sided Dolphins

April 6:

Warm greetings: I've just joined your site to report seeing 3 or 4 Dolphins this evening at 7:20 frolicking and playing quite close in at Davis Bay. They slowly headed north towards Sechelt and two of us got a thrill watching them. Due to sun set light we could not see their colouring. Thanks for the opportunity to report these wonderful animals.

Linda Moseley

(Good to have you on board and look forward to hearing from you again. SM)

 

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.

Lone Orca by Powell River Plus

It's the first time in a over a year that I've seen a lone Orca. They are social animals, so there are generally other whales around at the same time. Transient Orca T14, born in 1969 was known for frequently travelling alone, but there have been no confirmed sightings of him for around one year. The last few sightings of him, he was with other whales. Few more sightings reports of Southern Resident Orca, Transients, and photos of the Orca by Cape Mudge follow.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Orca – Killer Whales

Northbound Orca by Cape Mudge

6 pm March 7, 2012

photo: Susan Randall

March 11:

10:20 am Caught a glimpse out of the corner of my eye of something dark in the water. Managed to get the binoculars on this one large male Orca surfacing for three more big breaths before the Texada ferry rounded the light off Blubber Bay. For 20 minutes, I kept scanning the whole area off Westview, Powell River for signs of the same or other whales, but never saw another dorsal or blow. He did a bit of a direction change initially heading towards Rebecca Rocks, but I can't even confirm that he didn't turn back South-East. Amazing how stealthy a large animal can be!

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Northbound Orca by Cape Mudge

6 pm March 7, 2012

photo: Susan Randall

March 6:

2 + Orca were tight to shore close to Earl's Cove heading towards Egmont, Sechelt Inlet. They were spotted from the ferry.

Parsla Robertson

Additional third hand reports came in of two other sightings around either the last couple of days of February or first couple of days of March of at least 4 Orca also seen from the Earl's Cove to Saltrey Bay ferry. I hope to receive details directly from the observers and will pass the information on.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Following Sightings Reports submitted by: Susan Berta & Howard Garrett, Orca Network, Whidbey Island, WA

March 6
J pod near Porlier Pass, Trincomali Channel (25-30 miles southeast of Nanaimo) 1400 hrs.
Ron Bates

March 6

I found J Pod after a lot of searching at the mouth of Porlier Pass in rough seas. They were entering Georgia Strait and I left them pointed for Bowen Island.
Ocean EcoVentures Whale Watching - Cowichan Bay, BC

March 6
Transient killer whales T020 and T021 along with the T086A's and the T137's were off of Victoria on March 6th. We left them south of Oak Bay headed for Discovery Island at 1520hrs.
Mark Malleson, Prince of Whales

March 6

4:45 pm - 5-6 transient killer whales hanging out about 2 miles south of Victorian waterfront.
BC Whale Tours

March 6

Off Clover Point (Victoria) at 2:18 pm saw a pod of what I assume were transients traveling about 3 miles to the east off Clover Point. There was a group of 5 harbour seals taking shelter along the rocks keeping a wide eye.
Maria Chantelle Tucker

 

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.

Orca Sightings

Large number of Orca are passing through on the inside waters again, but no word on the Pacific White Sided Dolphins. Sightings reports are few, but at least there are sightings. Some more information from NOAA below on the satellite tagging of Southern Resident Orca.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Orca – Killer Whales

March 4:

20+ Transient Orca, possibly the same ones from yesterday's report by Seymour Narrows, were at the top of Johnstone Strait this morning. If they are the same ones, they must have turned and were headed Southward past Orca Lab in Blackney Pass around 7am.

Reported by Marie on Orca Live

March 3:

Hi Susan, Just got a report from my friend Josh Duncan on the Western King (commercial fishing vessel) that he saw 13 Orca heading just north of Seymour Narrows (Campbell River area) in a northerly direction. He said there were 3 large fins in the pod. I asked if he took photos and if he noticed any notches in the dorsals but no reply yet. 130 pm (He didn't take any photos, and didn't notice any notches. No additional information to this posting time. Susan)

Have a nice weekend, Cheers

Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Wildlife and Adventure Tours

February 29

A J pod (Southern Resident Orca) sighting from yesterday, sent by John Ford of DFO's Pacific Biological Station: We observed J pod southbound off Nanaimo at 1800 (2/29). They were heading (south) towards Dodd Narrows when we left them at dark. John

submitted by Susan Berta and Howard Garrett, Orca Network, WA

February 29

3:45 pm - Sounds like T20 & T21 4.4 Nautical N.E of Race Rocks 1445
Ron Bates

submitted by Susan Berta and Howard Garrett, Orca Network, WA

NOAA's Northwest Fisheries Science Center reports:

Southern Resident Killer Whale Satellite Tagging

March 2, 2012, update – The researchers continue their survey, with the primary goal of re-sighting J26. Although they have heard J pod members on the hydrophone several times during the night, they have not yet encountered them during daylight hours. Other researchers from Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans have reported an encounter with J pod in the Strait of Georgia late in the day on February 29. The Canadian researchers confirmed that the tag was missing from J26. The NWFSC is currently searching for J pod in that general area and will continue to do so over the next several days in order to re-sight J26 and collect information on SKRW winter feeding activities. See the NOAA Ship Tracker website for the current location of the Bell M Shimada and where it has been searching over the last several days.

 

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.

Sightings - Orca & Dolphins

Orca Report including a link to the Satellite tagged Southern Resident J26's travels. Pacific White Sided Dolphins are back in the sightings reports. Considering they are considered a pelagic, open ocean, cetacean we are very lucky to see them in our inside waters. There were only minimal sightings of them till around 18 years ago when they started to come back into inside waters in larger numbers. Their gregarious and playful antics and leaps make all who see them smile. Have you had your smile today? Let me know if you see them so I can pass it on.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Orca – Killer Whales

Information about the Orca tagging and satellite tracking map of tagged Southern Resident J26 can be found at: http://www.nwfsc.noaa.gov/research/divisions/cbd/marine_mammal/satellite_tagging.cfm  The map illustrates the track of J26 over the first three days to February 23^rd after tag deployment.

February 27:

Unidentified pod of 7 - 9 Orca were spotted up around the Sointula / Port McNeill area heading West during the morning.

Anonymous

Pacific White Sided Dolphins

February 28:

HI SUSAN, THIS MORNING ON THE 11:15 FERRY FROM VANCOUVER ABOUT HALFWAY TO LANGDALE WE SAW A GOOD SIZE POD OF SILVER SIDED DOLPHINS. THEY WERE SO CLOSE TO THE FERRY. IT WAS BEAUTIFUL TO WATCH THEM PLAYING IN THE WATER. THEY WERE HEADED NORTH. HOPE THAT THIS CAN BE USEFUL

Gerry Chabot

February 26:

5:20 pm At least 20 Pacific White Sided Dolphins were playing in the Queen of Burnaby's wake heading towards Powell River. A few leaps and surfing movements then they turned to follow the ferry's wake towards Comox. I spotted a few off to top of Texada around 6pm, but I guess the rest continued with the ferry.

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.

Orca Southbound by Lund

Orca by Lund late this afternoon! After scanning the clam waters and not seeing any Whales, Dolphins or Porpoises for days, I was beginning to wonder if there are even any Sea Lions around. This evening I was told about one lone Sea Lion just resting on the surface, south of Powell River. That was it till the call came in today. Maybe this time they'll stay around? Keep your eyes open.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Orca – Killer Whales

Orca between Lund Harbour and Savary Island

February 23, 2012

Photo by Crystal Mitchell

February 23:

At 5:20pm February 23rd there was a pod of 3-4 (Orca sighting off Lund, BC). One looked very small, might have been a baby. But the pod otherwise kept tight together. They were coming from Major Rock on past Lund. The pod was headed South East towards Powell River. The pod was about half a kilometer out from the Lund Dock. They were moving at a slower pace, but kept their pace up. I wish I had my big camera to capture a closer look! Picture was taken from the pub deck!

Crystal Mitchell

5 pm A call came in that there were 3 to 5 Orca including one large male headed Southward, passing the end of Savary Island and towards Powell River, from just off of Lund. Gina Wood was watching them from her Lund Water Taxi Office. Thanks Gina!

 

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.

Humpbacks, Orca and Sea Turtle

More Humpback Whale reports from Mexico this time, another favourite wintering spot for them. We have identified a few that spend their winters in either Mexico or Hawaii and summers in the Johnstone Strait area.

Also in the news is the necropsy of the 3 year old Southern Resident Orca Whale L112 found dead near Long Beach in Washington State on Feb. 11. See more information below. It's always sad when a whale dies and we can only hope that there will be some definitive information that can be acted upon coming out of the necropsy results. More links and information below including yet another Sea Turtle in BC waters.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Transient Orca

February 11: (Possibly the same Orca seen February 14 by Powell River – SM)

Tracey and Ian Cobane, who were staying at the beach cabin at Bold Buff today, saw a group of about 9 Orcas swimming south in Sansum Narrows (Salt Spring Islands, BC) about 11 am this morning. They returned, swimming North about 3 pm. Ian thought there were 3 big males, and a few babies, splashing and jumping (feeding? Playing?) Tamar Griggs, Bold Bluff submitted by: Susan Berta & Howard Garrett, Orca Network, Whidbey Island, WA

Orca by Texada Island

February 14, 2012

Photo: Susan MacKay

Humpback Whales

February 14:

We saw whales breaching at a distance here in Mexico, too. I assume they were humpbacks. Way too Far out to get pictures but saw 2 blowing and breaching for about 10 minutes

Michael

Southern Resident Orca

A 3-year old female L pod juvenile, L112, was found dead near Long Beach, WA on Saturday, February 11. She died of "significant trauma" and had been dead about three days when found, according the initial necropsy report.

(Link: http://www.cascadiaresearch.org/examination_of_dead_killer_whale-12Feb2012.htm)

So far no cause of death has been determined, but injuries from military sonars have been suggested, and as readers of the February 8 sightings report saw, Canadian navy exercises practiced using sonars in Haro Strait around 5 am on February 6, as part of a multi-vessel training exercise from February 5 to February 18. In addition, NOAA has permitted US naval training along the Washington coast, involving explosive munitions in addition to sonar training. A few weeks ago a group of conservationists and American Indian tribes sued the National Marine Fisheries Service to curtail the Navy's expanded training exercises in whale habitat.

Further examination will hopefully find the cause of L112's untimely demise. If sonars or explosive ordnance is found to have killed her, concerns have been raised about her mother L86, her brother L106, and other L pod members who also may have been impacted.

Susan Berta & Howard Garrett, Orca Network, Whidbey Island, WA

More Links in the News

Sea Turtle, Dolphins, Grey Whales plus more

Here are some more interesting links submitted by Lisa Spaven of the Marine Mammal Response Network – remember if you see any injured, distressed or dead marine mammals please call the incident reporting hotline at 1-800-465-4336:

A 4th sea turtle found in Pacific Rim National Park (this one another green turtle and already dead)

http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20120210/bc_fourth_turtle_icy_waters_12021/20120210/?hub=BritishColumbiaHome

And sad news from of a killer whale death...L112 found dead on Long Beach WA Saturday. Preliminary necropsy results (see link above) suggest unknown source of trauma to head. (These links are original news reports - SM)

http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2012/02/dead_orca_whale_washes_ashore.html

http://www.timescolonist.com/health/Death+young+female+orca+mysterious+trauma/6148919/story.html

Legal news: Court compels Ottawa to protect Killer Whale habitat

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/british-columbia/court-ruling-compels-ottawa-to-protect-killer-whale-habitat/article2335762/?utm_medium=Feeds%3A%20RSS%2FAtom&utm_source=Home&utm_content=2335762

http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/Government+must+protect+killer+whale+habitat+court/6134639/story.html

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2012/02/10/pol-endangered-killer-whales-court.html

Dolphin stranding video: International Fund for Animal Welfare video compilation of dolphin mass stranding efforts in Cape Cod this past month

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXO2dLkYsPg

The coolness and vulnerability of the sperm whale:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2096142/Sperm-whales-How-plastic-bags-poisoning-planets-greatest-predators.html

True story of the rescue of 3 ice stranded grey whales (aka Big Miracle movie)

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/2012/02/big-miracle-barrow-whales-rescue-true-story.html

 

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.

Calm Ocean but Whales?

I got all excited when in the very flat calm waters I saw something dark surface....it was disappointingly a log bobbing around in the tide line. Then I noticed something that looked like a dorsal....it was sea lion doing a sideways porpoise showing it's flipper and looking like an Orca. I fully expected to get some Orca reports, but I may have taught the locals to realize that sea lions can truly look like Orca from a distance when they porpoise sideways slowly.

I do have some photos of the last Orcas to be spotted close by, see below. I wish they'd get back to the Sunshine Coast area. Please note that there may have been some confusion that the whales last seen up here where spotted in the UK, but, in fact, the report only was from the UK film crew I consulted with. They were filming a reality program for the Discovery Channel. The sightings they were lucky enough to see were by Hardwicke Island in Johnstone Strait (not the UK). There have been no other local (Sunshine Coast - Johnstone Strait area) sighting reports since that last sighting posted. I do hear of people keeping a lookout along the Davis Bay walk in Sechelt and other areas (thank you)....where did they go?? Keep looking, they are out there somewhere, it's a big ocean.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Northern Resident Orca

February 11. 2012

Photo by Ed Jordan

Northern Resident Orca

February 11. 2012

Photo by Ed Jordan

Northern Resident Orca

February 11. 2012

Photo by Ed Jordan

 

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.

Fog and Whales

Sightings have been few and far between over the past bit, but finally, from out of the fog, there are a couple of reports. The drifting banks of thick fog has definitely made it difficult for any sightings along the Sunshine Coast. Fog banks were a bit lighter from Campbell River and up into Johnstone Strait.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Orca – Killer Whales

February 6:

I've just had a message from Charlotte and they said they have been incredibly lucky and seen cow, big bull and possibly yearling at West Thurlow by Hardwicke. They think there may have been one or 2 more.

Jodie Wilcox (from the UK! Amazing how this works. SM)

February 3:

Whales and Dolphins BC received a late report of 3+ Orca at the top end of Johnstone Strait around 1 pm. Later reports had these whales as Resident Orca.

Susan MacKay

Pacific White Sided Dolphins

February 5:

Around 3 pm with the hydrophone down and in between boat sounds, I picked up some Pacific White Sided Dolphin chatter. It was only due to the one big dolphin leap that I could even confirm that they were under the swarm of birds off the top of Texada Island and towards Rebecca Rocks. It was great to be out on the water; and no fog.

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.

 

Storms and Orca Sightings

Whales are almost impossible to spot when there's a storm, but in a few places the seas weren't quite as bad as out in front here. The indication was that the Orca were headed towards Powell River, but no-one managed to spot any from Saltrey Bay to Powell River and across towards Campbell River. Seas were high enough that no ferries were running and the salt spray is all over my windows. The Whales are out there though, so with things settled down, keep your eyes open.

Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins BC

Orca – Killer Whales

January 23:

Hi Susan -
We got this report tonight that you might be interested in:
Jan 23 @ 5pm Alan and Jennifer Fletcher here, north side of Hornby Island. We Just had a pod of approximately 7 orcas ,no confirmed ID ,but probably group of Resident as sea lions swimming happily nearby! Animals moving east about one km off shoreline
Cheers Alan

It could be J pod, who went by SJI (San Juan Island) yesterday - so just a heads up in case they show up in your neighborhood again, whoever they are!
Susan Berta, Orca Network

January 22:

9:10 am Call came in 2 Orca (at least) were Southbound towards Powell River from between Savary Island and Lund. One Male, one Female.

Al Wood, Lund Water Taxi

Al couldn't stay long with them, but was certain about two Orca at least. There was no sign of them down to Powell River, but the seas were full of whitecaps. SM

 

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.