Haleigh | M/V Osprey | July 4, 2021 | 5:30pm
Tonight’s sunset tour was one to beat! We traveled out of Friday Harbor northbound along Orcas Island. Recent sightings of cetaceans around Patos and Sucia island meant we had a direct route we were following. Going to these far-north islands was our mission, and we weren’t letting anything distract us!
By the time we passed through President’s Channel in between Waldron Island and Orcas Island, we knew to keep our eyes out for exhales, dorsal fins, and any other surface activity that might indicate the presence of our black-and-whites. Wrapping around the west end of Sucia Island, guests spotted our first signs! We were looking at a family of Bigg’s Killer Whales. This family was traveling in a tight group a few hundred yards off of northern Sucia island. Discrepancies in the ID’s of this family allowed us to take the task into our own hands. Each individual orca can be identified by the size, shape, and distinctive marks of their dorsal fin, eye patch, and saddle patch. With a plethora of sharp cameras on board, we could spend our trip homebound cross-referencing these images with a photo-identification catalogue of Bigg’s Killer Whales. A nick in one tiny dorsal fin, some wavy scratch marks on an adult saddle patch, and a distinct oblong eye patch that tapers out like little duck lips led us to our conclusion! Our group included a mother T124A2 (F, 2001) with her two calves T124A2A (M, 2013) and T124A2B (F, 2016). The mother also had her two young siblings, T124A4 and T124A6, along for a ride! Bigg’s Killer Whales travel as a family group, and it’s not uncommon to see siblings, aunts, and uncles joining for short periods of time. They’re incredibly social, just like us! Or better yet, we’re social just like them.
To top off the evening, a human family spotted a totally undercover Bigg’s Killer Whale family during our commute back to Friday Harbor! We got a few looks at them, in awe of how they managed to fly under the radar all day in the Salish Sea. We believe this family was the T49B’s. With a limited amount of time left to spend with them, we soaked it all up. Not long after, we were pulling back into Friday Harbor, soaking in the incredible day on the water and ready to enjoy an evening of fireworks!
Photo Credits: Ezra Garfield