09/16/17- M/V Kestrel- 10AM & 2PM
We had two trips on M/V Kestrel and both were fantastic! One of the many benefits of the zodiac vessel is its speediness, so it will allow you to cover more ground in a shorter period of time.
On our first trip we were the first boat to find a group of Bigg’s killer whales, which is always very exciting! We got reports for whales around Stuart Island so we headed in that direction and actively looked as we traveled around. We found the T123’s, which is a group of three orcas consisting of a mom and her two offspring. T123A is a fully grown male; our guests always enjoy marveling at the huge dorsal fins of the male orcas.
On our second trip we saw a humpback whale in Canadian waters. The humpback whale was doing longer dives (about 9 minutes) but gave us great viewing while it was up on the surface! We also got to see a group of Bigg’s killer whales, the T65A’s and T99. T65A2 was actually mating with the T99, and we were lucky enough to see it! Orca Mating, from the surface, appears to be a lot of rolling around with sometimes many different individuals involved. The true tip-off is when you see orca genitalia at the surface, specifically a penis.
Our guests enjoyed this exciting and interesting viewing of some of the whales we find here in the Salish Sea.
Naturalist, Rachel