[06/16/2017 – M/V Kestrel – 02:00pm]
The whale watching has been great lately! We are entering what local naturalists are calling the “new normal.” The diversity of our ecosystem is shifting, and we are seeing that reflected most notably in our local orca populations. With a drop in our local salmon population we are seeing less and less of our Southern Resident killer whales in our inland waterways. Traditionally we expect to see members of J, K & L Pods from about May through September fishing throughout our straits. This year, with a spike in our marine mammal population, most notably harbor seals, we are seeing many matrilines of Bigg’s killer whales taking up residence in our waterways.
Yesterday, Captain Gabe and I took our small group of M/V Kestrel guests up into the Canadian Gulf Islands for a great encounter with the T0137 family of killer whales. This family comprised of a mother and her three kiddos ranging in age from 15 to 3 years old are known for their tendency to hunt and kill sea lions in our waters, yesterday it seemed as though they were enjoying some seal snacks. I have not personally seen this family in over a year, so it was very exciting to see how big the kids are getting! Most days I feel like an Aunt watching these calves grow.
Oftentimes we do not get to see much of the hunts above the surface, but yesterday we had the whales in full on celebration mode. They were jumping around and sharing the carcass amongst themselves. It was definitely some of the most active behavior I have ever seen from Transient killer whales. Enjoy some photos from the day!
