Summary for September 27th AND 28th A42s, I27s, I4s, I16s, I65s The quiet and restful night and morning was concluded at around 11:00am on the 27th when we spotted orcas heading south through Blackney Pass. Seventeen individuals were counted on the swift passing, though our photos did not prove clear enough to identify with certainty all four matrilines in the assumed I15s. However, our assumptions were confirmed when Larry Roy of Discovery Expeditions stopped by with a couple of guests bearing photos from three of the matrilines and in conjunction with our numbers, we were able to deduce that we had the entirety of the I15s. They had continued south out of Blackney Pass and we monitored them on the Cracroft Point camera. Though remaining silent through the entirety of the passing in front of the lab, they finally began to make fairly clear calls at 11:28am audible on the Cracroft Point hydrophone. A report from Larry at 12:53pm brought us news that the group had split upon entering Johnstone Strait - some whales easting while the rest headed west. The remainder of the evening and the rest of the night was spent in silence, aside from the incessant tug boats and cruise ships making their way through Blackney Pass. At 5:44am on the 28th we awoke to echolocation and I15 calls around the rubbing beaches and Robson Bight. The orca calls were punctuated by a humpback singing in Blackfish Sound around the turn of the hour. By 6:25am there were I15 calls on the Rubbing Beach hydrophone, though they ceased shortly thereafter. 8:25am brought A5 calls in Blackfish Sound with a visual sighting of A66 (male in the A42s) from Jared Towers near the Plumper Islands. We waited to see if they would travel past us in Blackney, but this time they did not. The calls faded away around 10:20 as the A42s headed into Weynton Pass. Meanwhile, a pair of humpbacks were beautifully traveling south on the far side of Blackney Pass. A5 calls arose on the Cracroft Point hydrophone at 11:50am, suggesting the A42s easterly travel around the south side of Hanson Island. At about 2:50pm we heard I15 calls and echolocation on Critical Point, and sure enough, there were two orcas in Robson Bight, slowly heading west. The A42s were confirmed at the Sophia’s heading east at 3pm (report from Ambient Light), which matched what we were hearing acoustically on our Critical Point hydrophone: We awaited their next move as the i15s and A42s rejoined in Johnstone Strait. Faint I15 calls were picked up on the Cracroft Point hydrophone at 4:49pm and soon orcas briefly came into view on the corresponding camera. A42 calls joined them around 5:10pm and as the whales moved into the entrance of Blackney Pass echoed to the Parson Island hydrophone in Blackney Pass. By 5:42pm, with orcas still widely spread out around the entrance to Blackney Pass, the general movement proved to be to the west. At one point, it looked like they might come through Blackney but, alas, they continued west in the Strait. The calls from both groups slowly began to fade on Cracroft Point but remained constant throughout the evening. We enjoyed a wonderfully tranquil end to the day here in Blackney Pass with the setting sun providing an outstanding array of deep pinks on the distant eastern sky. OrcaLab 29 Sep 2019 09:22:14 PDT

ummary for September 25th AND 26th A42s,I4s,I16S, I27s,I65s,I35s The Pacific White-sided dolphins and humpbacks continued to call throughout the night both off Cracroft Point and in Blackfish Sound respectively. We heard the last of the humpback’s song at 5:40am, as the day prepared to break. At 7.37am we heard the first orca of the day - some I15 trills at Cracroft Point. A couple of minutes later the A5s joined them, and by 7.56am they were making their way north into Blackney Pass. We identified the I65s followed by possibly the I35s and I27s, then by the A42s who were mid channel as were the I4s, and finally the I16s at the rear. These are groups we have had over the past few weeks, together in one passing! By 8:51am they had cleared our view, and we continued to hear all A5, and I15 calls in Blackfish Sound until 11:40am. Just before the orcas passed, we also had a humpback in our view continuously breaching and tail & pec slapping north through Blackney Pass. A very busy start to the day! By midday, the leading groups of I15s had made it around Hanson Island and back to Blackney Pass. At 12:34pm A42 calls were in the mix The orcas milled and foraged in the entrance to Blackney Pass, before passing by our lab once again at 1:48pm. The passing was much quicker, lasting just shy of half an hour. We identified the I65s, then the A42s followed by the I4s, I27s with the I16s once again at the rear. At 2.23pm, shortly after the orcas cleared, we were watching another ‘playful’ humpback outside of the lab. Jackie Hildering was on the scene and confirmed that this whale was “Pepper” - an individual who had been seen around Campbell River recently and who had travelled here with two other “Campbell River” humpbacks. The I15s and A42s remained vocal in Blackfish Sound until just before 3.30pm, and at 5:37pm we received a report that they had gone through Weynton Passage and were now, once again, heading east in the Strait. Would they pass by the lab a third time in one day? Yes, they would! They arrived unannounced in Blackney Pass at 6:12pm, and zoomed past our view to the north. They were gone within just ten minutes. Three circumnavigations of Hanson Island in one day… perhaps they hold their own version of the Alert Bay 360? We noticed that there were much fewer orca than the previous two passings, and identified only members of the I4s and A42s. No calls whatsoever, just black fins streaking through Blackney. We heard some fleeting A5 calls in Blackfish Sound at 8:40pm, so likely at least the A42s had milled around. There were no more orca calls that evening and, in fact, no cetaceans were heard for the rest of the night. We awoke on the morning of the 26th with mixed feelings. It was a beautiful calm, clear sunrise but two of our number - Karien and Alicia - were leaving. Goodbyes are often difficult, but when you are brought together by a place so special you can be content in the knowledge that farewells are only “until next time, friend”. About twenty minutes after they had left, at 8:41am we began to hear A5 calls in Blackfish Sound, joined by the I15s shortly after, at 8:48am. Their calls were sporadic, and they entered our view in Blackney Pass at 9:10am. There was a lot of swell and they were very spread out so IDs were difficult; but due to the calls we knew that we had the A42s, including A66, with us. As we only had this one male, and there were only around ten whales in total, we think it was perhaps the I65s with them as they passed. They continued south and milled/foraged off Cracroft Point for the remainder of the afternoon, until just after 4pm. Interestingly, at 3:10pm, we heard some distant but clear calls. They did not sound like I15 so could have belonged to the I35s, but we’ve not seen nor heard anything from them since. The rest of the day was quiet, and we enjoyed the surprising September sunshine with a snorkel in our bull kelp patch. We heard some very distant G calls in Blackfish Sound and off Cracroft Point, between 7 and 7:15pm - so the groups had spread over the course of the afternoon. The rest of the evening was unusually quiet - not even a humpback song. We do however, always have the familiar belches and grunts of Steller Sea Lions hauled out on their favourite rocks. OrcaLab 27 Sep 2019 20:41:35 PDT

Multiple pod calls audible. Summary for 24th T099s, A42, I15s Over the last few days we have had unfortunate trouble with our hydrophone at Critical Point - which leaves us acoustically in the dark down a huge stretch of Johnstone Strait and in Robson Bight. Nonetheless, we’ve continued to sleuth away: piecing together the orcas’ story as they traverse the waters of Hanson Island and beyond. At 11:05pm on the evening of the 23rd, we heard A5 calls Blackfish Sound - most likely the A42s who have been the only A5s around consistently for the past few weeks. These faint calls were soon joined by those of a humpback at 11:46pm. As the orca calls faded away, the humpback took center stage, fully breaking into song by 12:02am. This melody was interrupted at 12:45am by an unfortunately noisy tug boat, but began again when the ocean was still. After 1:45am the beautiful humpback vocalizations drifted off, and the next few hours were wrapped in a velvety silence to match the darkness. Shortly before the dawn, we heard G clan calls on Cracroft Point at 5:36am. These clear calls were joined by the A5s at 7:24am. At 8:04am, we received a report of orca in Johnstone Strait, westing in line with the Sophia Islands, but on the Vancouver Island coast. These groups of A5 and I15 orca were vocal until 9:35am, and seen from our Parson Rock camera. however, they remained foraging and vocalizing in the Strait rather than taking Blackney Pass north. At 11am we noticed black fins and blows in Blackney Pass, way over towards Parson Island, heading north. We had heard no calls - who were they? How long had they been there? As we were scrambling for our scopes and testing our zoom lenses at full reach, we noticed about twenty sea lions pass very close to the lab, rafted up and heading for their haul-out rock. This more infrequently-observed behaviour got us thinking - could there be Biggs in the area? Sure enough, when we caught a side profile of the distant orca now in east Blackney Pass, we noticed that their dorsals and movements were very Biggs-esque. Later on, these orca were ID’d as the T099s - thanks to Jared Towers. At 11:49 we had a rare treat: the Biggs vocalized on our Parson Island hydrophone! They continued to mill around east Blackney Pass off Cracroft Point for about an hour. Later that day at 2.56pm, we received a report from Chris on Ocean Magic II that these Biggs had made their way to Weynton Passage and were heading north, our last update for this group of orca. Whilst we were occupied with the Biggs, the A42s and I15s had continued west in the strait and entered Blackfish Sound, and we began hearing them on our Flower Island hydrophone at midday. At 1:43pm we saw the A42s enter Blackney Pass, heading south. At 2:15pm they became vocal on our local hydrophone and we had some lovely, clear calls. Midway through their passage they changed their minds and turned right right around, and headed north. We received a report from Jackie at 2:53pm that there were a group of orcas spread out at the Fosters Islands - which included at leas the I65s. Perhaps they had called the A42s back? Ah, the ever-mysterious world of the orca! We continued to hear the A42s for the afternoon (sadly, along with the noise from three cruise ships and lots of smaller craft), as they made their way through Blackfish Sound. By 5.30pm we were hearing them no more. The day was concluded just as it started: a vocalizing humpback in Blackfish Sound. From 8.30pm we heard the sporadic whoops and grunts, and he was even joined by some chattering Pacific White Sided dolphins off Cracroft Point at 9.30pm. Another day, another medley of splendid sounds from the sea.  Orcalab 26 Sep 2019 10:52:51 PDT

Summary for September 23rd 2019: A42s, I15s September is a favorite month for many here at the lab. Dramatic sunsets, fewer boats and of course: the humpback whales. Although they are around all summer, September does seem to be when they are at their most vocally expressive - and yesterday we were reminded of that! The A42s, stayed in Johnstone Strait during the later part of the evening. Meanwhile, at 11:49pm a humpback whale began calling in Blackfish Sound for about forty minutes. Then at 1:00am, there was one clear G clan call, a long pause, and then more distant G clan calls again at 1:52am in Blackfish Sound. At this time we also had a humpback calling right outside the lab. The A42s must have continued east past Robson Bight eventually as we could hear distant echolocation on the rubbing beach a little after 2:00am and then at 2:30am a brief spell of distant calls. A calm, early morning commenced with the presence of longing moans from a humpback in Blackfish Sound around 3:00am which eventually turned into the most beautiful song by 5:00am. The humpback continued to sing until just before 7:00am as the sun began to rise. All else was quiet in the Strait. No further orcas were heard in Blackfish Sound or Johnstone Strait. As the light crept in both the A42s and I15s finally announced themselves off Cracroft Point at 7:55am. Then, at 9:15am, we spotted the orcas traveling east, close to the Cracroft Island shoreline. The vocalizations became clearer as the orca passed “CP”. At least five individuals were seen heading due east - but likely there were more because we were hearing both A and G clan vocalisations. As they approached the Sophia Islands, their calls became distant and inaudible. They were followed all morning by a determined and reckless small white whale watching vessel. What a disappointing way to start the day. The calls, predominantly G clan, drifted in and out over the course of the afternoon on Cracroft Point. We caught them on our camera foraging and milling still in Johnstone Strait near Kaikash beach at 1:34pm. The orcas went silent after 2:00pm, but soon after around 3:00pm Korry from Discovery Expeditions reported seeing orcas milling between the Sophia Islets and the western boundary of the Ecological Reserve. At 3:48pm, we could hear distant G clan calls at Cracraft Point. The orcas moved into the entrance of Blackney Pass around 4:08pm. The orcas went silent after this, and then at 4:16pm it appeared that the A5s (the A42s) were starting to catch up with theI15s. Once all together, they began to move north through Blackney Pass. The first wave of whales were split into two groups, and the second wave had only one large group. This large group included members of the A42s, including A66 and A79 with her baby. They silently cleared to the north from Blackney Pass at 5:06pm into Blackfish Sound, and immediately started calling. The calls lasted until 5:28pm. At 6:05pm, we could hear distant G clan calls in Blackfish Sound and a bit later, at 6:12pm, the A42s were also audible in Blackfish Sound. We continued hearing both clans in Blackfish Sound until 6:41pm. In the meantime, technical difficulties disrupted our hydrophone in the Robson Bight. Sadly, the connection cut out and we were not able to connect properly. At 8:00pm, there were again A5 calls in Johnstone Strait. The A42s must have swung back through Weynton Pass and on reaching Johnstone Strait continued eastward. Their calls continued into the evening. Our chilly, yet action packed day ended with gratitude for the beautiful ecosystem we are a part of here on Yukasam.  OrcaLab 24 Sep 2019 22:29:58 PDT

Summary for September 22nd. A42s, I4s, (I16s,I27s Jared Towers)I35s After sunset on the 21st of September, the A42s were audible around Cracroft Point 8:45pm to 10:09pm. The early hours of the 22nd were punctuated by humpback song floating over our hydrophones from Blackfish Sound. This beautiful song continued on and off until 5:00am. The next hour was quiet, when at 6:29am G Clan calls began to register on our Cracroft Point hydrophone. These calls continued for a few hours, stopping at 9:33am. Quickly thereafter, at 9:36am, the A42s were in the Ecological Reserve and we were able to spot one male and one small fin slowly westing in Robson Bight. As we tracked the movement the A42s in Johnstone Strait; we began hearing I15 calls again at 10:56am in Blackfish Sound. These calls continued throughout the late morning, and at 11:10am we heard reports of orcas heading south from Bold Head. The afternoon began with excitement as the orcas appeared in Blackney Pass at 11:45am. There were seven orcas spread out and traveling south quietly. They became vocal after arriving within range of the Parson Island hydrophone at 12:12pm. Then suddenly, at 12:16pm, a group of five orcas entered Blackney from the north, passing close to our lab deck. This second group cleared the Pass at 12:28pm, and we were able to ID I76 from the I4s, and I35 and I123 from the I35s. As the G clan whales united in Johnstone Strait we heard lovely vocalizations on our Parson Island and Cracroft Point hydrophones. Their chattering continued until 1:38pm, when the calls faded entirely. “Pings” electrified the airways again at 2:30pm, and by 2:50pm we spotted a large group of orca around Cracroft Point: they appeared to be angling north at the entrance of Blackney Pass. They quickly entered the Pass and charged north through the northwesterly winds. The group became spread out as they tail slapped, rolled, breached and raced about in the waves. One baby was particularly playful! Identification was difficult amongst the swell and white caps; but from the calls we were hearing and the numbers of individuals (males, sprouters and babies), we saw: we were quite certain we had the same groups as before. The I35s, I4s and more members of the I15 matrilines. At 3:05pm the G Clan orcas had exited Blackney Pass and arrived in Blackfish Sound. Shortly after their calls stopped we began to hear the A5s on the same hydrophone. We believe the A5s must have traveled west in the Johnstone Strait and traveled north in Weynton passage to meet with the G clan whales in Blackfish sound. A5 and I15 calls continued until 4:10pm, when all the orca went quiet or out of range. We didn’t hear them again until 6:24pm, when both the A5s and I15s were heard in the Johnstone Strait on the Cracroft Point hydrophone. We are uncertain as to whether the I35s were still present then. These calls continued consistently until 7:27pm when the whales calls became less frequent on Cracroft Point and we began hearing distant A5 calls in Robson Bight. Calls continued faintly on both hydrophones, when suddenly, at 7:35pm, close and clear I15 calls sounded off the entrance to Blackney Pass in Johnstone Strait. However, these calls ended as quickly as they started; leaving us in silence once more. As we prepared for next day's anticipated southeasterly winds, we were waylaid by a surprising event in the bay. A harbour seal had managed to catch a huge salmon over half his size and was lying exhausted on the rocks by the wood chopping area. He eventually got back into the water and spent the next 30 minutes further exhausting himself, devouring his catch just meters away from us. We stood with cameras watching him as he threw his food around. To our surprise - half way through his meal - a larger seal came swimming into the bay, stole his fish and took it away for himself, leaving our poor friend with only the scraps discarded earlier. He swept up the scraps - feeling quite disappointed, we imagine! - and headed back out of the bay. It was quite the event to watch. A5 calls persisted distantly in Robson Bight until becoming extremely distant and stopping altogether at 10pm. It has been a busy day here at OrcaLab, but we are so grateful to get to spend so much time with the residents this late into September! OrcaLab 23 Sep 2019 12:29:05 PDT

Multiple pod calls audible. Forgive our lateness for this summary of yesterday, we've had a very orca-filled morning here today! We’ll pick off from where we left it yesterday… At 8:00pm the night was not nearly over. The calls from the G clan whales continued distant on Critical Point until the early hours of the morning whilst briefly being interrupted by a singing humpback at Flower island around midnight. Just after the humpback stopped singing its beautiful song, the whales - who had made their way through Weynton Passage - began vocalising in Blackfish Sound at 12:43am. These melodic calls lasted into the early hours of the morning; before dwindling and finally sounding no more, just before 2.30am. After a spell of silence in the darkness, we heard calls at the rubbing beach at 7.08am. Both some A5s and G clan calls were present, and Alicia spotted three whales on the rubbing beach camera and then again in Robson Bight. They were milling around on the Cracroft Island side. At 8.45am we received a report from AJ at Farewell Harbour that the whales were moving west on the Cracroft shoreline at Forward Bay. This coincided nicely with consistent but distant calls in the Johnstone Strait until 10am. At 10:27am, the calls moved onto Cracroft Point, located at the southern entrance to Blackney Pass. The G clan were steadily louder; with the A5s remaining more distant. By 10:45am, the leading whales had made it to the entrance of Blackney Pass and we all gathered on the deck, anticipating their passage to the north. Clear “pings” were heard on our Parson Island hydrophone, so we made a fair assumption that the leading whales were members of the I35s that had been sighted the day before. (The I15s do attempt “pings”; but they are not quite as pronounced!) The whales moved through slowly in three groupings, but made no sound as they traversed our view. The A5 calls were ever-present on Cracroft Point until, at last, they too headed north through Blackney Pass at 11.03am. At 11:32am we heard clear echolocation on the Flower Island hydrophone, located in Blackfish Sound. Their lovely, clear calls - the I15s, I35s and the A42s - continued in the sound until just after 1pm, and the last call was heard at 1:39pm. We later received a report at 3:12pm from the Mayumi that the orca had made their way into the Johnstone Strait and were traveling east close to the Hanson Island shoreline. We confirmed this acoustically as we heard their calls on Cracroft Point around the same time. A little later at 4:06pm, Farewell Harbour reported orca traveling north into Blackney Pass by Parson Island. We had heard nothing over the hydrophones, but quickly located the whales as they moved into our view. They had circumnavigated Hanson Island in the space of five hours! Members of the I15s and A42s were identified; spread out in several groups. They had cleared our view and continued on their way into Blackfish Sound by 4:25pm. We continued to hear G clan and A5 calls in the sound for a while until they dropped off yet again around 5:35pm. After another spell of silence, it became clear that they had once again moved south through Wenyton and back into the Johnstone Strait - as at 18:14pm we picked up their vocals distant on Cracroft Point. They certainly are giving us the runaround - literally! Very faint G Clan and A5 calls were distant and sporadic as the sun began to set, and another day at the lab drew to a close. We are unsure as to whether all the members of the I15s and I35s were still here, although acoustically it sounded like they were. Let’s see what tomorrow brings. Orcalab 22 Sep 2019 15:16:22 PDT

Multiple pod calls audible. What an eventful day! As late evening turned into night, there were consistent I15 calls in the Bight and A5 calls on Cracroft Point. Occasionally, calls in Johnstone Strait echoed to Parson Island, but the orca appeared to have no interest in traveling north through Blackney Pass. After midnight, the calls became more sporadic and distant until around 3:00am when the calls became clearer and a bit louder on Cracroft Point. At this point we could hear the distinctive I15 calls but so sounds from the A5s. They moved slowly further to the west in the strait towards Weynton Passage where we last heard them around 4:30am. The night was not over yet as when the orcas were out of reach of our hydrophones a humpback started to sing in Blackfish Sound. Sadly his song was overshadowed with a lot of boat noise. He eventually stopped singing just before 6am. After a spell of stillness, calls came in on the Parson Island hydrophone at 7:22am. This time, only G clan calls were present. We assumed that this was the I15s, until we began to hear some very well delivered “pings”, so there was a thought it could be possibly the I35s or I31s. Not long after consistent calls on Parson Island; the whales began to move north through Blackney Pass and calls were heard on our local hydrophone. Quin was outside on the deck listening for blows as the fog was very dense. The whales appeared to make it halfway through the Pass in two groups; before stalling then eventually turning back to the south. They weren't fighting the tide, so we wondered if they might be waiting for the A42s who hadn’t been heard since around 10:30pm the night before on Cracroft Point. By 9:28am, the G clan whales had made it back into the strait and faint sporadic calls were heard at Cracroft Point. By this time the fog had begun to lift, but we were unable to locate them on the cameras. By 10:14am the calls had become so distant we assumed the whales had traveled to the west towards Weynton passage. But still no sign of the A42s. At 10:30am we heard a report which surprised us a little - there were orcas heading north in Blackney Pass between Whitebeach Passage and Swanson Island, hugging the Swanson shore. If this were the same group of whales we had just heard in Blackney Pass, then it means they must have changed directions yet again and headed back north, right in front of us! They were completely silent and our view was clouded in fog, so they slipped past unnoticed. At 10:35am our suspicions were confirmed when we heard a ping and calls similar to those we had heard an hour previously, and a little while later a report over the radio confirmed that these whales were the I35s. We continued to hear their dwindling calls in Blackfish Sound until midday, when we heard them no more. Interestingly, a little later we received a report that this same group was still very close by, just southwest of Stubbs Island at the northern part of Weynton Passage, milling. They were just out of our earshot - but what were they doing? Were they waiting for someone else? At 1:06pm all became clear. We heard no calls but suddenly a strange bubbling and grinding sound was coming over the hydrophone - the sound of rubbing! We all scrambled to our stations and found a group of seven orcas on the surface rubbing beach camera, headed west close to the Vancouver Island shore. We rewound the underwater camera on explore.org and - success! - we found the most beautiful scene. Seven orcas in close succession including a baby and a big male had come in for a rub. Now, at this point, we were all fairly certain that this must be the A42s, whose return from the east has been much anticipated. With seven whales, including a baby and a big male, in their group: it was a nice fit. However, at 1:29pm, the westing orcas sounded on our critical point hydrophone, echolocating and calling. But wait - these were I15 calls! A few minutes later at 1:32pm we heard A5 calls which confirmed our suspicion that the A42s were present. So although we cannot say with absolute certainty that it was the whole A42 family rubbing, given that they were the only group we saw at the rubbing beach and they arrived into Robson Bight behind the I15s; we are happy to make a well-informed assumption. The calls continued in Robson Bight as the orcas travelled west, foraging as they went. At 3:06pm we began to hear them on Cracroft Point, confirming that they were still traveling west through Johnstone Strait. The orca were quite quiet as they made their way towards Blackney Pass, but by 3:22pm they had entered the pass going north! Once they entered Blackney, this large group of residents were very vocal and chatty - even amidst loud boat noise. We heard expressive and excited I15 and A5 calls from this group on both our local Flower Island hydrophones. Our outside team identified members of the I4s, I27s, A42s and I16s boosting north. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon with perfect visibility and little boat traffic. A rare September treat! After clearing the Pass to the north, they continued to be vocal in Blackfish Sound until 5:27pm. Suddenly, at 5:29pm, we began hearing calls on our Cracroft Point hydrophone, indicating that the leaders of this group had taken Weynton Pass and were already back in the Johnstone Strait. It seems that the group was either very spread out or had split up; because at 5:56pm there were calls in the Blackfish Sound once again. We stopped hearing any calls just after 6pm. Where had they ended up? They do like to keep us on our toes! Just before 7pm, an exciting report came from Larry at the Sophias, who is fairly certain that he saw a grey whale heading west in Johnstone Strait. They have a distinctive double spout and heart-shaped blow. Unfortunately, we didn’t hear anything on our hydrophones to confirm it acoustically. Just after 7pm, we picked up distant calls on both Cracraft Point and Robson Bight hydrophones. We could hear A5 and Gclan calls over both hydrophones, which means that the groups were pretty spread out between the reserve and the entrance of Blackney Pass at that point. After 8:15pm we could only hear the orcas on the hydrophone in the Robson Bight, so either all orcas had moved east (or were staying silent!). The calls remained distant for a long time. What would they do as the night rolled in?  Orcalab 21 Sep 2019 10:58:00 PDT

No calls but orcas nearby The night was quiet, with only a single humpback gracing our hydrophones with grunts and groans in Blackfish Sound, just after midnight. Blackney Pass was wrapped in a velvety darkness until the early morning; broken only by the familiar splashes and snorts of sea lions as they patrolled our shores. Just as the first light appeared, so did the orcas, at 6:08am on our Critical Point hydrophone, located in the Johnstone Strait. We heard G clan calls first, later confirmed to be the I15s, and some signature A5 N4 calls a short while later, at 6:14am. Only minutes later, we heard faint A5 and I15 calls on our rubbing beach hydrophone at 6:25am and 6:27am respectively. They continued to travel slowly east - foraging as they went - and we heard some beautifully clear, close I15 calls and echolocation for the next few hours. Just before 7am, as the light flooded over the islands and glassy waters, Quin found them on our remote rubbing beach camera and tracked them as they milled and foraged, flitting between east and west. We saw one male and at least three smaller fins, and their calls suggested that the two groups - A5s and I15s - were intermingled as they went. They didn’t seem to be committing to a particular direction, and at 10.00am we were hearing still regular, but more distant calls on the rubbing beach, and we could no longer see them on our cameras. Our last call was very distant at 11:28am on Critical Point, located in Robson Bight, suggesting that at least one orca was a little further west than the rubbing beaches. Due to the orientation and range of our hydrophones, it is always a little tricky knowing where to place the orcas at this point, but our best estimation was that they were either further to the Cracroft Island shore roughly opposite the rubbing beaches, or had decided to go further east down the Johnstone Strait where our extended ears cannot hear them. The afternoon was a quiet one. We collected some driftwood for our winter wood stores, keeping an eye and an ear focussed on Blackney Pass and our speakers, eagerly awaiting the return of the orcas once more. As dinner was underway and our evening was drawing on, our ears were rewarded with that familiar sound piercing the white noise - they were back. At 6.26pm Karien heard distant A5 calls on the rubbing beach hydrophone, and at 7:32pm they were joined by distant G clan calls. Although one should never make assumptions, we were fairly confident that this was the same two groups as earlier: some of the the I15s and A5s making their way west once again. Their calls gradually became louder, and the resulting melody was truly beautiful. Located in the ecological reserve - the rubbing beach hydrophone is perfectly place to capture calls in one of the orcas’ most frequented locations, and this evening we had the added bonus of no boat noise. Then came the cherry on top of this already delicious acoustic cake - they were rubbing! Although too dark for our cameras; at 8.13pm we heard the unmistakable “bubbling” sound as the orcas exhale, expelling air from their lungs to sink to the seafloor, followed by the characteristic grinding of stones as they propel their entire bodies seamlessly along the smooth stoney surface. This happened a few times over the course of only three minutes, before the orcas continued on their way. Due to the close calls we heard around this, we believe it was members of the A5s who were rubbing, with the I15s further offshore. At 8:55pm we heard A5 calls on Critical Point, meaning that some members had indeed continued to the west, although at 9:06pm we could still hear some A5s and I15s on the rubbing beach, meaning that the groups were still fairly spread out. Their calls continued and tapered out over the next couple of hours, and we last heard them at 10pm still on Critical Point. The evening concluded with a humpback grunting at 10:09pm in Blackfish Sound. Another beautiful day here on Hanson Island! OrcaLab 20 Sep 2019 12:43:29 PDT

No orcas present. Our recent days here at Orcalab have been spent in the company of powerful, active humpbacks. As September advances, they have become more vocal, resulting in a couple of beautiful recordings on our Flower Island hydrophone. Very early on the morning of the 18th, we heard humpback squeaks, pips and groans coming from Blackfish Sound. These calls never swelled into song, but it is always a beautiful treat to hear humpbacks adding their voices to the sounds of the wild ocean. Later in the morning, a humpback started vocalizing again in Blackfish Sound and we were so happy to have their company through the quiet hours of the day. At 11:50am we got an exciting report from Bill on the Naiad Explorer that the I16s and A42s were slowly easting from Port Hardy. However, the orca remained just out of earshot as the day bloomed and the fog gave up its hold on Blackney Passage. The sun broke in late afternoon and graced us with the warmth of an autumn day. Then, after hours of anticipation, Karien began hearing G clan and A5 calls at 6:08pm on our Flower Island hydrophone in Blackfish Sound. I15 and A5 calls continued to get louder throughout the hour, and at 7:00pm fins were spotted on the Sea Lion Rock camera. By 7:21pm we were able to see the residents entering Blackney Pass - a sight for sore eyes! As the daylight began to fade, identification became difficult through the scopes. However, we knew that the I15 group was in the lead, followed by the A5s, as we documented I15 calls on our OrcaLab hydrophone well before hearing any A5 calls in Blackney Pass. They orca were quite determined to reach Johnstone Strait, and did not display social or foraging behaviour as they trekked south. All orca cleared Blackney Pass by 7:57pm. After they cleared, we began hearing calls first on our Parson Island hydrophone, then our Cracroft Point hydrophone and finally our hydrophone in the Robson Bight. Calls continued in the Bight until 10:25pm. Since we did not hear the orca on our Rubbing Beach hydrophone (and did not hear them again on our Robson Bight hydrophone), we believe that they may have continued east through the night, staying close to the Cracroft Island shore. We are so so happy to have them back in the area, and to hear their calls over our remote hydrophone systems! OrcaLab 19 Sep 2019 13:53:38 PDT

Performing maintenance We are sorry but we are experiencing a problem with our Internet connection at the moment. Sorry for the inconvenience.We will be back as soon as we can. Hope your day is going well for you! OrcaLab 18 Sep 2019 09:55:17 PDT

Summary for September 16th 2019: A42s,I15s, A23s, A25s, possible A54s and I65s In the late evening of September 15 the whales continued to call in Johnstone Strait on the Cracroft Point hydrophone system. Still very distant at first but then around 10:00pm A5 and I15 calls became a little clearer. At 11:33pm, we heard some sporadic humpback grunts and gurgles on the CP hydrophone while Suzie and Alicia soon reported hearing breaching sounds outside the CP camp in the dark. At 12:14am we started a recording after hearing faint G clan calls again on the Cracroft Point hydrophone. 15 minutes later there were A5 calls along side the still distant G clan calls. The impression we had was that the whales were moving very slowly around the Strait, seemingly still in no hurry at all. At around 12:45am the calls became more mid range in strength so we thought that perhaps they had finally made the decision to turn and head back to the east. Then the calls stopped around 1:41am. Distant calls picked up again at 3:40am. The whales were now in (or almost in) Blackney Pass. Our tracking abilities were compromised somewhat by a tug boat, followed closely by two consecutive cruise ships coming through Blackney Pass heading north and flooding the Pass with a huge amount of noise and crashing waves just after 4am - impossible to hear any blows. Luckily, faint calls became audible on the local hydrophone. Through the din we determined that the whales, like the boats, were headed north quickly through Blackney Pass. By 4:27am, Quinn and Shari were hearing A5 and G clan calls in Blackfish Sound just to the northwest of the Lab. Faint calls could still be heard when Karien took over for the morning shift at 6am. At 6:43am Shari saw four Cormorants on the steep rock wall on Parson Island poking their necks out of the crevasses assessing the dawning day. And across on our side of Blackney Pass we counted 61 Sea Lions on their haul out rocks. They really do seem to have settled into their winter routine of sleeping, eating, pushing each other off the rocks and then sleeping some more. At 7:52am we began to hear A5 calls in Blackfish Sound. They sounded pretty distant, and just before 8am we determined that I15’s were still with the A5s. On the VHF radio Eagle 53 reported that orcas were off Stubbs Island (north Weynton Pass) headed towards Donegal Head. The whales who had been in Johnstone Strait the day before were now committed to going onward to Queen Charlotte Strait. From 8:08am we heard some A5/I15 calls very sporadically until around 8:45am when they passed out of our range. By 09:25am the orcas were now off the White Cliff Islets and continuing west towards Fife Sound. We, meanwhile, spent most of our morning enthralled by the sleepy goings on at Sealion Rock. However, not all the sea lions were on the rocks, several were still in the water and we witnessed one thrashing about just off the Lab. When we investigated further using the remote Lab camera we realised he was gulping down a large octopus with flailing tentacles.. At 11:23am Knight Inlet Lodge reported that the generally westbound orcas were now resting off of the Penfolds. At 12:46pm we got the welcomed news from Jared Towers that the A23s, A25s, and perhaps the A54s and the I65’s, were slowly westing just off Lizard Point. These groups had not been around for a while and had probably returned to reconnect with the others. Kate Brauer, at Bere Point on Malcolm Island, saw a breakaway group of orcas come in for a 20 minute rub then continue westward. Meanwhile, at the Lab the reality that the orcas were probably not interested in returning to Johnstone Strait anytime soon began to dawn. But the day was not without events. At around 15:4pm Shari began to hear a humpback in Blackfish Sound. After gearing up for a little while he burst into a fantastic song for over 30 minutes. There was very little boat noise and it really was a joy. A lovely end to Shari’s time at the Lab as she is scheduled to head back to the UK for the winter. She will be greatly missed by all and we look forward to her return next year. Karien headed over to CP for the evening, trading places with Alicia. Wonderful roofer, carpenter and handyman Mark McCallum, his partner Lexi, and their son Arther arrived in the late afternoon. This was Arthur’s 3rd birthday and we soon sat down to dinner followed by celebratory chocolate cupcakes decorated with candles, strawberries and whipped cream! As darkness set in we hoped the orcas would return soon and that we would hear their calls through the night once more! OrcaLab 17 Sep 2019 09:39:44 PDT

Summary for September 15 2019: A42, I4, I27, I16, I65 and possible I31s The rest of the night was quiet until 2:05am when there were again calls in Johnstone Strait. Somehow and sometime the groups found their way back to Johnstone Strait, possibly through Weynton Pass which they seem to favour as a route to and from these days. The calls lasted until 4:31am. The whales seemed to be very spread out from Cracroft Point to Robson Bight, a pattern they continued into the rest of the day. Generally, the movement was east and very slow. By 6am, some of the I15s were off the Main Rubbing Beach making clear and lovely calls. They were joined by the A42s soon after. Neither group showed any interest in having a rub but continued on their way past the Reserve. Even though they became quiet by 8am we could follow their progress eastward on the remote camera. For a short time a humpback called around 9am in Blackfish Sound and for a very long time the sea lions relaxed on their rocks. We became very busy around the Lab organising for a dive to retrieve Marion Poupard’s hydrophone array located just off the Lab. This required going over to CP and getting Suzie and Alicia to help. We set Quin down at CP to look after things there and allow him to get a feel for Johnstone Strait and the camp. Once Alicia and Suzie were back, Suzie and Megan donned their dive suits and gear and prepared to dive. Getting this equipment back to the surface with its long cable and sensitive equipment is fairly complicated and required everyone to help. The dive was very successful and as Alicia attended to the equipment Megan and Suzie regaled everyone of how curious sea lions came to check them out as they dove. Hot tea and showers were the order of the day afterwards. Alicia and Suzie went back to CP. By this time Bill Mckay had reported finding the whales stalled off Cedarstedt Creek at 12:44pm. Then at 2:41pm Bill reported orcas off the Adams River. With an incredibly slow turn these whales finally began to move west. No one was in a hurry and like before, they were very spread out. We did not hear any calls on the rubbing beach system (our most easterly hydrophone) until 3:29pm and the calls were still very distant and we did not see anyone until 3:46pm. These whales were right across the Strait closer to the Cracroft Island side. There was again no interest in a rub even by whales closer to the Vancouver Island side. After some milling or pacing back and forth some of the I15s passed offshore of Robson Bight. Most of the calls so far were those of the I15s, sometimes excited and mostly on the Robson Bight system to the west of the Main Rubbing Beach. There were a few calls reminiscent of the I31s so we wondered if they had joined the others sometime during the night before everyone returned to Johnstone Strait. Just before 5pm we began to hear the A42s on the rubbing beach system. They too were incredibly distant. And we guessed (correctly) that they too were closer to the Cracroft Island side. In the distance, off the “Spirit of the West” camp east of Boat Bay at 6:30pm, we could just make out their fins as they carried on to the west. By this time the lead I15s were being picked up by the Cracroft Point system as they passed the area off of Izumi rock west of Robson Bight. Their blows were clearly visible by CP and the remote cameras. It was disappointing to see that the same boat which had followed the whales continually up the Strait was still there and still too close. Slowly the train of orcas moved closer and closer to Kaikash and CP. Suzie and Alicia supplied the Lab with updates as to their progress. By 7:30pm, some of the I15s were approaching the CP area. Taking their time, several whales milled off the entrance to Blackney Pass. We were hopeful that they might fully commit to coming into Blackney but they didn’t and eventually these whales stayed Strait side and pushed on toward the eastern end of Hanson Island. The day had turned sunny earlier and the evening became spectacular. The ocean was calm and the sky bright with hues of red, orange and pink. At 7:48pm both the A42s and more of the G clan whales were crossing the entrance to Blackney Pass. After more hesitations the array of whales eventually passed the entrance of Blackney and carried on up the Strait calling pretty much the entire time. Alicia and Suzie absorbed the fading light, and listened to the distancing calls, while the Lab did exactly the same around the corner in Blackney.  OrcaLab 16 Sep 2019 00:36:32 PDT

Summary for September 14 2019: I4s, I16s, I27s?, I65s Getting it together! Yesterday the I15 groups in Johnstone Strait were so difficult to track. The weather conditions were lousy (although rain is always welcome) for watching whales and the orcas were so quiet for long periods of time. We did hear them between 11:31pm and 11:47pm when they were off the entrance to Blackney Pass probably nearer to the Vancouver Island shore and most likely heading east once again. We need to offer a correction. The I15 groups yesterday (September 13) were reported to be the I4s and the I65s but this was later (after the summary was posted) corrected to be the I16s and the I4s. This contributed to continued confusion today. All was pretty quiet from midnight till morning. The humpbacks began moving into Blackney mid morning. Again there were several at a time in the Pass and they were fairly active foraging. At 11:41am (12 hours after we heard the last I15 calls) there was a report of Northern Residents heading west off Stimpson Reef east of West Cracroft Island. This would turn out to be the I16s and the I4s when they were identified later after reaching the area off the Adams River at 1:45pm around the same time other orcas were spotted heading east from Donegal Head. These orcas would turn out to be the I65s with possibly the I27s. An hour passed before the I65s (and I27s) were about to enter Johnstone Strait from Weynton Island. We heard their calls a few minutes later at 4:53pm. It was not clear to everyone which whales were actually in the Strait and to add to the confusion the groups from the east (the I16s and the I4s) were getting closer to those coming from the west. As we only heard I15 calls (except for the few dolphin calls off the Main rubbing beach at 3:11pm) we were not convinced that there were any other groups present other than I15 families. We spent a lot of time trying to sort out the various reports, what we were hearing, and what we were watching on the remote cameras. By 4pm, the coming together of the entire I15s was well underway off the Izumi Rock area. By 4:20pm, the whales were all westbound now but quite spread out. Between 5:33pm and 5:48pm the majority had passed Cracroft Point and the entrance to Blackney Pass. The last group headed west with dolphins in tow closer to the Hanson Island shore just before 6pm. They were headed for Weynton Pass but now all together as a family once again. A humpback somewhere off Parson Island began to warm up vocally for the night ahead just after 6pm and as the I15s came around Hanson Island to Blackfish Sound at 7:31pm another, or perhaps the same, humpback chimed in with the orca and dolphin calls. There were a few more faint I15 calls at 8pm. Other happenings around the Lab. We had a changing of the guard at “CP”. Megan and Shari traded places with Alicia and Suzie in the afternoon. Suzie saw a sea otter just off the CP platform at 6:22pm. This and the orcas going by was certainly a nice start to their stay at the camp. Quin stayed on today and spent most of his time in the Lab, hearing for the first time orcas in real time! The sea lions really seemed to settle on to the local rocks today. Never fails to impress how they make rocks look so comfortable. The humpbacks were equally impressive lunge and trap feeding, rolling with dolphins, breaching and just simply being.  OrcaLab 14 Sep 2019 22:45:38 PDT

Summary for September 13 2019: I4s, I65s, T109, T109E, T109Ds Even though the pass-by in the dark would not reveal which of the I15 families were present, we made a guess as they passed through the last part of Blackey Pass on their way to Johnstone Strait, that it was most likely the I4s, I27s and I65s, a combination that had been prevalent earlier in the summer. We only read Jared Towers’ message later that this was who he had seen heading into Blackfish Sound earlier. The I16s were not there this time. Even though there were quite a few orcas it was impossible to track their movements in Johnstone Strait after they became silent at 9:27pm. All then remained uneventful until a humpback somewhere near Parson Island decided to announce his presence with the beginnings of a song at 3:08am. Further out in the Strait the I15s began calling as well. Though the humpback remained somewhat stationary the I15s seemed like they were heading west towards Weynton Passage. This loose duet of humpback and orca continued in bouts off and on until 4:15am. The humpback then had one last brief go at 5:09am and a few dolphins chimed in a few minutes later. We believe by this time the I15 families had travelled out through Weynton Passage. They were found off the western end of Blackfish Sound at 8:10am as they headed to Weynton Pass once again. We had other distractions by this time as Dylan, Claire and Jeremie prepared to leave Hanson Island. Their departure was coupled with a “town-run” so there was a lot of activity as laundry, grocery lists, garbage were organised. Remnants of the last southeaster was evident as rain came in fits and starts through the morning. Eventually, and almost on time, the “June Cove” departed but not before last minute hugs and well wishes for those leaving. With Karien temporarily leaving as well with Paul to help with town run chores and work on the new Orcalab website, Alicia and Helena,were the only ones staying. The day had not, so far, seemed too challenging but as the hours ticked away several events began to unfold. The I15s had managed to get into Johnstone Strait and by 10:31am they were reported between Blinkhorn and Kaikash Creek heading east. Their trail then grew cold. The rain had turned to drizzle and with it mist and low cloud - not quite foggy but the effect was similar. This made it impossible for Megan and Shari at “CP” to locate the whales. There was not a chance for the remote cameras either. To make things even harder the whales were completely silent. There was slightly more success with watching humpbacks in Blackney Pass but as they were on the far side they too had the advantage of distance and the same misty conditions. Their identities were elusive also. We could tell, however, that there were several. They shared the space with a few dolphins who came out of White Beach Pass at 11:55am. T109, T09E and the T109Ds travelled east past Port McNeill by 12:16pm and before 1pm a humpback let loose with a few very loud sounds. These were over before they could be located. However, the I15s (specifically the I4s and I65s, there was no mention of the I27s) had been found by the whale watch boats and were being followed as they continued to move east between Kaikash and Izumi Rock at 12:47pm. The Reserve seemed to be their destination. They obliged with a few vocals at 1:51pm which they repeated closer to Robson Bight at 2:30pm. Following these few sparse leads we watched for them on the remote cameras. After an hour we saw just one male moving inshore off Strider Beach. A group of dolphins chatted their way past the Main Rubbing Beach soon after. Under the cover of the misty conditions the I15s must have moved back to the west undetected. Meanwhile, just before 4pm there was a report of a group of Bigg’s orcas heading east close to the Hanson Island shore. This seemed promising. Perhaps they would come close enough for identification. It was not to be. By the time (4:38pm) they were in Blackney Pass they had shifted over to the very far side. Despite being directly opposite the Lab, they like the humpbacks, and the I15s in the Strait before, were shrouded in mist and rain. The small group crossed Parson Bay, went behind the Light and then disappeared before 5pm. Later, talking with Jared about the composition of the group he suggested they might be the same Bigg’s, those T109s, who had been seen off Port McNeill earlier. Through the day humpbacks continued to be vocal for brief, fleeting moments. Finally, at 5:43pm the I15s also vocalised when they transited across the entrance to Blackney Pass on the far side of the Strait. Shari heard their blows briefly when they were closer to Kaikash Creek. By 6pm we were faced with silence once again and could only assume the I15s carried on to the west a while longer. Before nightfall, the “June Cove” arrived back and was unloaded and we had a late, uninterrupted by whales, dinner. We welcomed and enjoyed the company of former volunteer Suzie Hall along with Quin McIntire who was visiting for the night.   OrcaLab 14 Sep 2019 00:38:58 PDT

No calls but orcas nearby Summary for September 12, 2019. I15s. Last night was a blustery night on Hanson Island. With all of the tents pulled down, and everyone moved indoors, we hunkered down for the night. Waves crashed against the deck of the lab and the windows rattled from the wind. Branches draped in Spanish moss tugged to and fro by powerful gusts, casting shadows on the walls of the lab. A short burst of humpback squeaks and groans filled the silence coming from the speakers. As the storm roared on, another humpback seemed to half heartedly sing his song over the noise of a tugboat in the early hours of the morning. The remainder of the night was quiet on the hydrophones, but the storm outside continued as the wind blew strong and the waves continued their relentless push. Rain soon followed, and you could hear the droplets on the roof above the lab. The weather seemed to hold steady as the morning light began to flood our windows. We had no reports of orcas, and before we knew it, it was already after noon. Throughout the day we were able to count at least 7 humpbacks feeding, milling and travelling through Blackney Pass. The rough water made it difficult to see their bodies, but their blows gave away their positions. During this time we also had a single sea lion move up onto the haul out rock just beneath the Sea Lion Rock camera. He very slowly fell into a quiet state, laying on the rock, fighting to stay awake. He stayed there resting for at least an hour before slowly slipping back into the water without notice. By 4:00pm the rain began to pour, hopefully filling the creeks and rivers to help aid the local salmon runs and their journey back home. We began to wonder if we were going to go another day without hearing about the resident orcas. However, at 5:28pm, we finally received a report of orcas travelling east between Lizard Point and Donegal Head. We started a recording early, expecting to start hearing calls on the Flower Island hydrophone. Would the orcas come through Blackney Pass, or would they opt to go through Weynton Passage into Johnstone Strait? The evenings light filled Blackney Pass, and during a break from the rain a small rainbow opened up just opposite of the lab. Finally, the first calls arrived at 6:14pm and we heard the oh so familiar sounds of the I15 matrilines. We could just barely pick out dorsal fins coming from the North on our Sea Lion Rock camera, but they were not easy to follow. The orcas were very slow, moving against an ebbing tide. They started to become quiet on the Flower Island hydrophone...had they gone up Weynton Pass? There were no calls for 10 minutes until at 8:20pm we could hear some very faint echolocation coming from the direction of Flower Island. Next followed some very faint and sporadic I15 calls on the local left hydrophone at 8:35pm. The light had all but completely faded at this point, but we remained on deck to listen for blows. By 8:43pm we heard the first group. It sounded like a group of 4 first entering the pass, followed by what sounded like another group of 7. There were only a few calls here and there as the orcas passed by the lab. They moved quite slowly, taking their time as they moved southward in line with the light of the moon. Finally by 9:27pm we could no longer hear any blows. We wonder exactly what make up of the I15s could have passed by the lab. Was everyone together? Or had a small combination of the family returned from the north? Tomorrow will tell. The wind has quieted down, and the orcas have returned to the Strait. Tomorrow we say goodbye to three of our assistants, Jeremie, Claire and Dylan, and welcome back Suzie to the lab. Things are always in a state of movement here at OrcaLab. The weather, the volunteers, and of course the whales. Orcalab 12 Sep 2019 22:29:36 PDT

Summary for September 11th, 2019. T060s, T002B, T059 and humpbacks! We have a shorter summary today, but that does not mean it was any less interesting of a day! We hadn’t had the recorder going since the previous night when the Northern Residents orcas had made their pass to the North through Blackney Pass. Our night shift began with a humpback who began to sing shortly after 11:30pm. The humpbacks song was slightly difficult to hear as the local boat noise was still quite high for the evening, a tugboat had just passed Flower Island and was slowing chugging away to the North. The humpback continued to sing: low guttural sounds with squeaks and eerie notes mixed in. By 12:10am the song had concluded and the rest of the night was quiet. Our morning started off with a beautiful sunrise and clouds that looked to promise rain by the late afternoon. As we were settling into our morning routine, we received a report at 9:45am from the Discovery Skiff that the kayak camp had orcas heading west past the Sophia Islands, aiming towards Cracroft Point. The report was that there were 8 orcas, including 1 male and 6 smaller individuals. Had a group of residents silently slipped by us during the night or was this a group of Bigg’s? Megan and Shari at “CP” were able to snap an ID shot of the big male in the group, T060C. One big piece of the puzzle checked off! Now who were the remaining individuals? The orcas made good time and by 10:07am they were into our view at the South end of Blackney Pass. The group of Bigg’s remained silent, but became very active. We could see them porpoising and displaying bursts of speed. It looked as if the hunt was on, and a sea lion was caught in the middle of it. We believe that the sea lion got away, as just a short time later the orcas had slowed their movements and were aiming towards one of the nearby sea lion haulouts along the Hanson Island shoreline. The Bigg’s group came very close to shore, and passed by quite closely to our Sea Lion Rock camera. There was a group of anxious sea lions hanging out in front of their haul out spot, all grouped together and craning their necks high above the water to get a better view. Safety in numbers appeared to work as the Bigg’s continued onward, apparently uninterested in picking a fight with the large group. As the orcas came closer to the lab we were able to count 8 individuals, one of which that looked to be a newborn baby! As they passed opposite of the lab we snapped some shots of the very young orca, as well as the rest of the group. The baby stayed extremely close to its mother who we ID’d as T060, a forty year old mother of 5! We were able to account for all of the T060s, as well as T002B and T059 in the makeup of the group. The 8 orcas continued on their way North, pausing briefly while pointing towards a group of 3-4 humpbacks. Apparently uninterested in picking a fight with their much larger neighbours, they continued northward and cleared our view at 10:55am. The afternoon came and went, and we were able to watch humpbacks lunge feeding, and tail lobbing on the far side of the pass. We were unable to get ID photos of these whales, but during the business of the Bigg’s passing earlier in the morning, one of our volunteers, Claire, was able to snap a shot of BCY0409 or “Yogi” the humpback. The rest of our day was quiet as we made preparations around the lab for the coming southeasterly winds. One of the first “storms” of the year was about to pass through the area. With our rain buckets out, and the boats pulled in close, we continue to listen for the next sign of who we will encounter next.  OrcaLab 12 Sep 2019 12:27:34 PDT

Summary for September 10, 2019. I15s, I31s, A42s. We don’t have many nights absent of orcas calling, but last night was an exception. However, it wasn’t completely quiet. Our day started before the sun, as a Humpback began to warm up their vocal chords at 2:48am and eventually broke into song at 3:19am. This beautiful melody continued on our Flower Island hydrophone until 3:40am when it was interrupted and squelched by a passing boat. Before the humpback had finished, we began to hear A5 calls at 3:32am calling from Robson Bight, their calls were quite distant and infrequent. These calls continued for several hours and completely faded into silence just after 7:00am. Not long after that, at 7:12am we began to hear I15 vocalizations ring through our Flower Island hydrophone at close range. Within an hour these calls had begun to fade. We pieced together that the orcas must had taken Weynton Passage into Johnstone Strait as we began to pick up on our Cracroft Point hydrophone at 8:56am. The foggy morning made tracking the residents difficult, but just after 10:00am Megan reported that I76 had been identified easting along the Hanson Island shore while others were easting between Blinkhorn Peninsula and Little Kaikash Creek. At 10:49am we could see black fins emerging from the fog that had engulfed the Strait throughout the morning. We watched as the orcas moved past the entrance to Blackney Pass and made quick time past Cracroft point on their way east. By 11:24am we picked up faint calls on our Robson Bight hydrophone, and waited for them to appear on our cameras. Just after 12:00pm, we finally saw members of the I15s, I35s and A42s on our Robson Bight camera. The I35s could be seen moving on a direct course for the Robson Bight camera. We watched them come closer and closer, and their calls continued to get louder. We were treated to some very clear vocals as the orcas passed by our hydrophone and continued on to the east. The A42s and I15s remained further off shore, but seemed destined to end up at the rubbing beaches past the Bight. Finally at 1:05pm the orcas arrived at the Main Rubbing Beach to have a wild and wonderful time, rubbing and vocalizing throughout. We identified members of the I15s and the A42s. We could hear them releasing air to lower themselves onto the pebbles, and heard the pebbles move as they rubbed. Their calls were loud, clear, excited and exhilarated. There were so many individuals at the beach, we had trouble deciding where to point the camera! Here at the lab, we were beside ourselves as we watched multiple passes on both our above and underwater cameras - it was an incredible afternoon. After this unreal session at the Main Rubbing Beach, the I15s and A42s turned west again and meandered into the Bight shortly after 1:20pm. The episode at the beach wasn’t quite over as by 1:34pm we saw more orcas arriving at the beach! A group of 8 individuals passed by the underwater camera all grouped fairly tight with one another. They appeared to be more individuals from the I15s. They did not stay as long as the previous orcas, and by 1:44pm they had finished at the beach and were aimed back in the direction of the Bight. We followed the groups back to the Bight at around 2:05pm, but as they continued west we only heard and saw them sporadically throughout the afternoon. Then at 3:36pm, we began to hear close calls at Cracroft Point. Shortly after at 4:02pm, Shari reported a male and three small fins moving past the Cracroft Point platform, heading west, with more orca crossing the Johnstone Strait from Kaikash, angling toward Blackney Pass. For the next hour, we had calls on our Cracroft Point, Robson Bight and Parson Island hydrophones. Then finally, at 5:45pm, the A42s and the I35s decided to take to the Pass at speed. They traveled together as they moved north, led by A42 and her little ones A103 and A114. They were very vocal on our OrcaLab hydrophone, and cleared Blackney by 5:56pm. As they left Blackney Pass, we began to hear them on Flower Island and listened to their calls fade away to the North. The lab was quite calm for a short while, thinking we were done with the action of the day, until suddenly, at 7:26pm, we saw more orca entering the Pass from the south! We were caught slightly off guard as we did not hear any calls prior to seeing them in the pass. We had the I16s, I4s and I65s traveling north, all together, mid-channel. As they got closer to the lab they vocalized several times quite clearly on our OrcaLab hydrophone. They cleared Blackney Pass at 7:43pm, a very quick encounter! It was truly an action-packed, vibrant day here at OrcaLab. It is always such a privilege to witness the beauty and joy of the Northern Resident orcas. OrcaLab 11 Sep 2019 08:28:12 PDT

No calls but orcas nearby Summary for September 9th, 2019. I15s, I35s, A42s. Todays summary picks up where we left off yesterday evening. We were following the A42s and the I15s as they made their way west in the Strait from the reserve. We had been picking up distant calls on the Robson Bight hydrophone, and at this point the calls had migrated along with the whales to the Cracroft Point hydrophone. Would the groups come up through Blackney Passage? Or would they continue west in Johnstone Strait? It didn’t sound as though the orcas would come any closer as their calls began to fade from “CP” around 10:22pm. Not too long after, at 10:39pm, we could hear some very faint G-clan calls on the Flower Island hydrophone. This seemed to be a bit too quick to have been the same whales. Perhaps it was the I35s waiting to the North for a meet up? They had been seen in the area, but they had managed to skirt the range of our hydrophones for the duration of the day. A short time later, we could hear clear A5 calls on the Flower Island hydrophone as well as some very quiet I15 pings at 11:14pm. The timing of these calls would seem to be correct if the orcas had decided to take Weynton into Blackfish Sound. We didn’t hear them for much longer, as by 11:40pm the last calls were heard by the lab until the late this morning. The early morning shift was quiet, but Karien was able to identify “Guardian” the humpback traveling past in front of the lab. The morning progressed and at 10:41am, Bill Mackay on the Naiad Explorer reported that he was with the I4s and I27s just past Stubbs Island in Weynton Passage. Expecting them to arrive in the Johnstone Strait, we began to listen closely to the Cracroft Point hydrophone. Sure enough, at 10:58am we heard the first faint calls, G clan! By 11:30am we were able to see blows on the Vancouver Island side of the strait, slowly easting near Kaikash Creek. Twenty minutes later, we had a report from Jackie Hildering that the group of orcas consisted of the I15s and I35s and at 11:58am, the Naiad reported that the A42s were at the edge of the Stephensons reef, heading into the Johnstone Strait. We started to hear the A42s at 12:19pm and they appeared to favour the Vancouver Island shore while making their way east. The I15s and I35s had made their way to the tide rips at Cracroft Point shortly after noon, where they stopped to forage amongst several humpbacks, porpoises, and even several whale watching boats. The foraging episode lasted nearly an hour. We watched them on the “CP” camera until 1:16pm before the orcas started to trend towards the east, all spread out. The calls began to get quieter at 1:23pm, but we could still hear all three of the groups on the hydrophones. Shari, at “CP”, said she could see the A42s easting along the Vancouver Island shoreline during this time. At 1:47pm The I15 and I35 group of orcas could still be seen and it looked as if they were making a turn back to the west. We noted that the current was ebbing until 9:30pm, and it seemed likely that the orcas would make a move and ride the current to the North. Sure enough the groups turned west and at 3:23pm Shari provided us with early warning that the orcas were definitely angling into Blackney Passage. We were still hearing I15 calls and few very faint I35 calls and they soon were only audible on the Parson Island hydrophone. We began to scan to the south edge of our view, and at 3:43pm we saw black dorsal fins enter our view from the South. We could identify the I27s in the lead followed not too long after by who we believed to be the I16s and the I65s. The lead orcas made good time with the tide and they were already to Parson Light by 3:48pm. Around this same time we could hear A5 calls on the Robson Bight hydrophone so we knew the A42s were beginning to get closer the reserve. Back at the lab, we watched as several orcas, one being a “sprouter” male, take a quick break from travelling to forage. After a brief delay, the 3 groups continued North and cleared the view of the lab at 4:13pm. As soon as these groups had cleared, the I4s and two others appeared on the South edge of the labs view. They moved very quickly through the pass, and trailing that group was I76. He soon caught up to the others, and they all aimed straight for the north with very little time for pause. Only 7 minutes later, all of the orcas had cleared to the north. Their calls became more and more quiet before going silent at 4:57pm. Back in Johnstone Strait, at 4:41pm, we began to hear very clear A5 calls on our Robson Bight hydrophone. We were able to see A66 clearly on the camera and watched as he and his family continued their journey east. We hoped they had intentions to go to the rubbing beach! We started the clock. If all was in order, within 20 minutes we should start to see fins on the camera! Then, exactly 20 minutes later, we heard faint calls at the Rubbing Beach. We scanned for several minutes before zoning in on the orcas with the camera. At 5:19pm we watched as 3-4 orcas swam along the beach close to shore as they rubbed, making several passes in front of our underwater camera. They were both calling and echolocating while they moved back and forth along the beach. Within 15 minutes the orcas had finished at the rubbing beach and at 5:37pm they made a turn back to the west. Just like clockwork, at 5:54pm we began to hear them again within the bight. They came very close to the hydrophone as they moved through the reserve. Several very loud calls later they were already deeper into the Bight. They foraged there for around 30 minutes and were joined by some playful pacific white-sided dolphins. By 6:32pm the A42s were past the western boundary of the reserve and became quiet at 7:00pm. Our predictions of their moments for the day had been quite good up until this point. We expected some silence while the whales travelled back west, and if all was in order, we would hear them on the Cracroft Point hydrophone shortly. Unfortunately, we are not as good at being orcas as they are! After a very quiet hour, the A42s had slipped away out of our view only to surprise us by surfacing back on the Rubbing Beach cameras! At 8:18pm, in the fading light, we watched another beautiful session at the Rubbing Beach. The orcas remained silent and stayed for several passes, and at 8:30pm they appeared to head to the east… OrcaLab 09 Sep 2019 23:38:34 PDT

Summary for September 8, 2019. I15s, A42s. A day of travels. We left off yesterdays summary with the I35s, I15s and the A42s making way their way to Robson Bight shortly after 9:00pm. The groups continued to make their way to the east before stopping off for a relatively lengthy visit to the Rubbing Beach. At 9:13pm we could hear the I15s on the rubbing beach hydrophone where they continued to linger until nearly 1:00am this morning! The A5s (presumably the A42s) could also be heard with the I15s until 9:51pm when their last calls trailed off into the night. Were the I35s with them but travelling silent? The rest of the night was quiet until 7:15am this morning when we began to hear echolocation and distant A5 calls on the Rubbing Beach hydrophone. We could just barely make out the orcas dorsal fins on the cameras through the fog. The I15s must have been silent travellers up until this point, as by 7:30am their calls were now on the Robson Bight hydrophone. Then began a very slow movement towards the west and a day filled with travel. The G clan (were the I35s there too with the I15s) calls continued and we monitored their slow progress west in Johnstone Strait. At 8:30am we received a report from a kayak camp that the orcas had reached the Sophia’s Islands and were spread in small groups from the Cracroft Island side across to the Vancouver Island side of the Strait. At 9:12am, Megan and Shari at “CP” were able to make out several black fins amongst the fog and could hear many more blows beyond the line of vision. The calls continued to remain distant, but we could now hear them on on the Cracroft Point hydrophone as well as they continued west. It was difficult to keep track of the orcas in the fog, but we were able to identify one group which appeared to be the I4s from the I15s as they passed by “CP” around 10:00am. The orcas did not appear to be in any rush, nor did they make any sudden changes in their direction. They worked their way along the Strait before making a slow turn somewhere near Blinkhorn Peninsula. At 1:07pm The Naiad Explorer reported that a group of orcas were now travelling east on the Vancouver Island shoreline and we could acoustically confirm that at least the I15s were still within that group. It seemed that the orcas were content with retracing their steps back towards the Reserve. Their blows were just barely visible from the Cracroft Point camera and by 2:20pm, the “CP” platform once again had a clear, but distant, visual. Throughout this period, the I15s continued to call in a fairly consistent matter. The team at “CP” was able to identify the I27s mid strait, and could see at least 10 orcas, including a large male and least one other “sprouter”, much closer to the Vancouver Island shoreline, all travelling east. Meanwhile, the Lab was following these same groups on the remote camera. Finally, at 4:26pm we had a clear view of a group of 4 orcas on the Robson Bight camera. They were quite active within the reserve: spy hopping, diving, rolling over while producing excited sounding calls. As those individuals approached the hydrophones, and the others nearby, we were able to listen to some very beautiful I15 calls, up close and personal! The orcas stayed true to the day's theme of travel, and continued on east in the Reserve before making another stop over at the Main Rubbing Beach. At 5:23pm we could hear I15 calls at the beach and at 7:19pm we had the privilege to watch the orcas rubbing on the smooth rocks in the shallow bay. We were able to capture some incredible video on the underwater camera of eight orcas passing by! You could even see one juvenile orca blowing bubbles while making a pass over the beach. What a show! At 7:21pm we heard the returning A42s as they neared the Main Rubbing Beach. The rub continued until 7:27pm before the orcas made one more turn back to the west. We picked up their calls once more within Robson Bight at 7:49pm as both groups, the A42s and the I15s and possibly the I35s as well, traveled west. We watched them on the camera as a few groups milled about within the Reserve before following out several others who had already began to swim in the direction of the setting sun. And like any good story, we will leave things there and pick up where we left off tomorrow! OrcaLab 09 Sep 2019 08:37:07 PDT

Summary for September 7th, 2019. A42s, I35s, I15s, T007Bs, T109Bs,Cs. Continued Silence. It had been over 24 hours since we last heard northern resident calls on the hydrophones. At one point early in the morning, one of the lab assistants thought he heard a few very distant calls after 6:09am. A recording was started, but then ended very shortly afterwards when no further calls were heard. Perhaps he heard something - or, perhaps the silence was beginning to play tricks on our minds? The rest of the early morning was quiet, until just a bit after 10:00am when we received a report there were northern resident orcas seen in Queen Charlotte Strait, slowly westing along the Malcolm Island shoreline. Finally, an update on their whereabouts! We continued to listen for further reports as we were unsure of exactly who was there. The days interest continued to increase as at 1:16pm, Megan at CP reported that the T109Bs and the T109Cs had been spotted travelling west in Johnstone Strait between Kaikash and little Kaikash Creek. These are the same Bigg’s orcas that we tracked travelling east yesterday afternoon throughout the Strait. We kept an ear tuned into their movements and at 1:59pm there was a report that a group of Bigg’s killed a steller sea lion at Sprout Island. This group was believed to be the T109Bs and Cs. Soon after, Farewell Harbour reported over the radio that there were Bigg’s in Blackfish Sound taking long dives while aiming towards White Beach Pass. By 2:46pm we spotted the fins at the lab: a group of 4, made up of one “sprouter” male, two smaller fins, and one juvenile fin. This group looked nothing like the T109B/Cs that had been reported earlier, and after a quick look we were able to identify them as the T007Bs. They traveled in a close group, coming up multiple times in one location and then diving for long periods of time before re-surfacing. They moved slowly south, letting the currents turn them around and push them back and forth. At 3:22pm they were in Parson Bay and became quite active. To our team on the deck, and the whale watching vessels on the VHF, it seemed like this group was hunting. They were jumping, wiggling and wrestling. The steller sea lions were quite distressed and began porpoising and tumbling towards Parson Island Light. The Bigg’s continued slowly south and cleared the view of the lab at 3:52pm. The story transitioned to Cracroft Point as Megan patiently awaited a first glimpse. There were several Dall’s porpoises speedily porpoising out of Blackney Passage… odd… then followed quickly by 4 Bigg’s orcas porpoising and matching their speed, racing into Johnstone Strait! It didn’t take long before several large splashes could be seen, and it looked as though an attempt had been made to catch one of the Dall’s. Whether or not they were successful, we are unsure. As quickly as the chase happened, it finished and the entire group immediately fell into step, slowed their pace, and continued east down the strait. Whilst all this was occurring, we knew by 2:00pm that the resident orcas travelling along Malcolm Island had made it past Lizard Point and were now adjacent to Donegal Head, aiming into Blackfish Sound. At 5:17pm we finally began to hear I15 and A5 calls on the Flower Island Hydrophone. Jared Towers, who was out on the water confirmed the presence of the I35s, I16s, and the A42s all heading east down Blackfish Sound. We saw our first dorsal fin at 5:56pm and waves of small scattered groups of orcas continued to enter the Pass until 6:49pm. We picked our way through the groups and were able to identify members of each matriline. A79 and her young baby along with the rest of the A42s were a nice sight as it had been several days since we had seen them in person. All of the groups exited Blackney Pass by 7:01pm, with the last of the groups surfing and playing in the wake of a tugboat that had passed by moments earlier. All of the groups passed by Cracroft Point not long after on their way to Robson Bight, lead by members of the I35s (I104 and I146),  and followed closely by the A42s, the rest of the I35s, and the I16s (potentially the I27s as well). By 8 o’clock we could hear their calls distantly on the Robson Bight hydrophone as all of the groups made their way to the Reserve. We welcomed the busy afternoon after a quiet last day and a half, and settle into our nightly routine.  OrcaLab 07 Sep 2019 23:44:09 PDT