There are two ecotypes of killer whales that inhabit the Salish Sea throughout the year – the transients and the residents. Killer whale ecotypes are both genetically and behaviorally distinct, meaning they don’t interbreed, they have different behaviors, they speak different languages, and they look slightly different. The main distinguisher between transient and resident killer whales is their feeding habits. While transient killer whales feed on marine mammals, resident killer whales feed exclusively on salmon, and 80% on king salmon in particular. Because their prey is here year-round, we often see transient killer whales here year-round. Residents, however, only return when the salmon start running, around June through August. Recently we’ve only been sighting transient killer whales perusing the area, but today we were finally joined by our famous residents!
We found members of J pod just below turn point in Canadian waters. We especially love watching residents because they’re prone to more splashy surface activity, since they’re not afraid of scaring away their prey. Throughout the course of our viewing we watched countless breaches and tail slaps from all members of the group. Among them was Eclipse’s new calf J51, who is less than a year old! We observed mamma Eclipse showing her baby how to breathe in a nice rhythm, both the mom and calf surfacing together while traveling. After a ton of breathtaking views, we turned back home.
We took a quick jog through John’s Pass and around the north end of Speiden Island to get some awesome looks at harbor seals and a ton of bald eagles, including a mating pair. We enjoyed a smooth, sunny ride home before docking in Friday Harbor to a beautiful summer day.