Maxx K. | M/V Osprey | 07/19/2022 | 12:30pm
Me oh my it was a beauty out there! There wasn't a gust of wind out on the water today and you could see blue sky clear down until the bold and beautiful Olympic Mountains.
Osprey absolutely flew today, zooming up through the San Juan Channel and rounding over the north side towards rumors of a couple of Bigg’s Killer Whales we’ve come to lovingly know as the “butcher boys (T049A2 and T065A3).” *These maturing males have been spotted cruising the Salish for several weeks now, to the great dismay of many many harbor seals.*
These two fifteen year-old boys had been spotted just north of Victoria this morning, moving north towards the smattering of islands that surround Sydney Island. They surfaced in unison, initially directly off our port then swiftly moving off towards our bow.
Typically, within the Bigg’s population sons stay with their mothers, often for their entire lives. Now, this is not a hard rule. In fact, I’ve found the Bigg’s social structure to be quite a bit more fluid. Still though, males are lovingly considered big mamas boys. So why have these two boys moved away from their moms? They’re both fifteen and newly into puberty. Perhaps they’re just a bit rebellious. Maybe they’re on a bit of a vacation, finally old enough to leave the nest with mom's blessing. It’s safe to assume these whales grew up together, both being born in 2007 and their respective families, the T049As and T065As, being frequent visitors to the Salish Sea.
We followed alongside them for thirty or so minutes as they guided us northward before Osprey turned back towards San Juan Island.