No orcas present. WHAT an exciting day! We received an early morning report from Kate at Bere Point that there were a group of about 8 orcas right off the north shore of Malcom Island, heading east in Queen Charlotte Strait - and they looked like resident orcas. We started filtering through our ID book, trying to figure out who the group(s) could be with the ID information we had been given - two males and one open saddle patch. Nothing was quite adding up, when we received a further report which totally blew us away... Jared Towers was on scene and had identified them as K Pod - Southern Resident orcas! We couldn't believe it, but better yet - they were headed right towards us, now just at Dong Chong Bay on Hanson Island at 11:55am, headed into Blackney Passage. Southern Residents headed right towards us! The next half an hour seemed to last a lifetime as we waited, but our patience finally paid off as the first fins came into view. They were spread out, mid-passage, moving swiftly with the flood current. This was the first time we have had resident orcas on our cameras this season - let alone southern resident orcas! - so it was really exciting to track their movements through our range and share it with you, our followers and Explore.org community. Thanks for tuning in! They cleared into Johnstone Strait at around 12:50pm and we continued to watch them on our remote cameras. We also heard some faint whistles and clicks as they were off CP which were very likely coming from K Pod; but no distinct calls. We last saw them all the way east on Rubbing Beach cam at 2:39pm, where we assume they carried on their way south - towards their traditional feeding grounds around south Vancouver Island & the San Juan Islands (although who knows where they will end up...). Thanks to everyone involved in the day. Most of the reports came from onlookers from land, which is a real testament to the power of this community. Many thanks to Jared Towers for confirming the identity of the 10 members of K Pod - the K12s and K13s - and his encouraging observation that they made at least one successful kill and shared the winnings. This is especially important for the Southern Resident orcas, listed as a Critically Endangered population due to scarcity of food. Not the resident arrival we were expecting to start this 2020 season, but a very welcome arrival indeed! OrcaLab 29 Jun 2020 21:31:05 PDT No calls but orcas nearby Exciting news: We just received a report from Jared Towers that Southern Resident orca, K Pod are in Blackfish sound and heading south towards Blackney Pass. We are eagerly watching and listening for their arrival on explores basecam. https://explore.org/livecams/orcas/orcalab-base A very excited Megan, Quin and Suzie!!!!!!! 29 Jun 2020 12:09:58 PDT