At this point, our avid readers know that orcas are the world's largest dolphins, despite the fact that their common name is Killer Whale.  Because the name Killer Whale is such a misnomer we almost exclusively use their scientific title of orca.  Up until this week they were also the only dolphins that we see in the Salish Sea.  There have always been vague reports about Pacific White-sided Dolphins being spotted in these waters, but the reliability of those reports always...

Being on the water six days a week pretty much guarantees that a person is going to see all things imaginable when it comes to these orcas.  That, of course, in no way diminishes my excitement in seeing them each and every time.  They are beautiful and sleek and amazing and unpredictable.  Despite the regulations that govern boating around these animals, sometimes mistakes happen and boats get caught out with an orca too close.  Eventually the odds are going to turn on you, since...

With the orcas being able to swim 30-35 mph and covering 100 miles in a day, it is easy to see how they can become "lost" from one day to the next.  And with the Salish Sea being such a large body of water, how is it that the whale watching companies ever find what they are looking for?  Since we do not use bait sites, spotting planes or boats, and none of the animals we see are animatronic, we must be using some other means of detection.  Sonar?  Nope.  Fish finder?  Only works if...

We often have people ask us about whether the orcas wear tags and if that is how we know where they are.  Since the Southern Residents are listed as an endangered species, researchers are not given permission to attach tags to them.  The same logic that discourages the use of tags is the same safety-based thinking that prohibits taking skin or blood

White dot on dorsal fin is satellite tag. Photo courtesy of Cascadia Research

samples from the resident orcas, thereby limiting the...

When it comes to orca mating, researchers do not know how the pairs are established.  Mating is indiscriminate, meaning that males and females do not stay together.  Females raise the calf with their family and the males help to raise their siblings, cousins, etc.  It has even been theorized that the matriarch has some say in who will pair with whom and when.  Talk about a nosy in-law.

If the matriarchs do not condone, or even establish, when the mating will take place, and we know...

Compass Rose

All of the old mariner's tales that you have heard about the watery deep are true.  She is unpredictable, untameable and undeniable.  She giveth and she taketh away, and usually when you least expect it.  Here in the Salish Sea, nestled amongst the San Juan Islands, it is no different.  Each day and every trip is different.  The weather changes just like a woman changes her mind and everyone knows that there is no arguing with that.  The water will be glass one...

I know, you are probably wondering what in the world that word is and how it could possibly be pronounced.  Well, both fall under the category of easy to explain.  Mysticetes (MISS-ti-seats or MICE-ti-seats) are baleen whales that filter feed on small prey items.  Of course, all baleen whales are filter feeders, that is what baleen is for, the difference comes in what they are filtering out of the waters.

Humpback Whale mouth with baleen. Photo courtesy of kidcyber.com.au

The...

Last evening we headed towards the southern tip of San Juan where Cattle Point Lighthouse is located. This is our last week of sunset tours and I'm really going to miss the way that lighthouse looks against a setting sun. That thought was interrupted when we spotted Stellar Sea Lions showing off their large bodies on Whale Rocks. These sea lions can weigh up to 2200 lbs! We continued up the west side of San Juan where we encountered the L-pod around False Bay. The whales were widely spread out...

Yesterdays afternoon trip saw a little seen baleen whale - a minke. There are only about 18 minke whales in and around the islands. Our guests got very good looks at this whale in the afternoon both from the MV Sea Lion and the smaller MV Kittiwake.

Last evening on the 5;30 tour the resident orca whales were back in range and Captain Craig said they saw lots and lots of whales.  He thought possibly all 90 of them - not just in one spot of course.

This afternoon boat boats are again...

Rainbow Over San Juan Island by Bill Wright

A bit tardy, but we do see some wonderful rainbows here on San Juan Island