July 11 2021 Orcas: BiggÕs orcas Humpbacks: Stitch, Argonaut, Guardian, Inukshuk, Freckles, Squiggle, unidentified Sea Lion This was a banner day for humpbacks in Blackney Pass. Kamilla saw 7 different humpbacks and identified 6 of them; Stitch, Argonaut, Guardian, Inukshuk, Freckles, Squiggle. One defied us so we sent the pictures of the dorsal fin off to MERS to have a closer look. Quite exciting to see Ònew facesÓ added to the list of regulars. Guardian had not been back in the Pass for a very long time and we believe (but will have this confirmed) that this is the first sighting of Freckles this season. Part of this day and the day before was taken up with handling a Sea Lion who died in one of our local bays. While on deck, in the early evening of July 9, we watched this young sea lion rush straight towards us and then swirl about very close to shore briefly. He died just afterwards. The next morning (July 10) he was floating in the same exact spot. There was no apparent cause of death. The Northern Residents have been absent from this area ever since they took off on July 8. Some of the groups (at least the A23s) were spotted off the Deserter Group the next day. Since then, nothing except one report of the A73s (Springer) seen on the central coast by Jared and Ely. We heard that there were BiggÕs in Johnstone Strait but donÕt know yet the details except they were near the Stephenson Islets (Weynton Passage) at 9:36am. On July 10 we kept track of the CCG Vector both visually and acoustically as it made several transects of Blackfish Sound. Using sonar they were conducting a hydrographic survey in order to upgrade existing charts. The sonar sounds were loud enough for us to hear even when the boat was in Queen Charlotte Strait but they were never overwhelming. Life at the Lab continues regardless and when not watching the humpbacks there are many (endless) chores. Will (on the chainsaw) and Megan (stacking) have been clearing the beach of the cedar branches from a portion of the felled cedar. This will be a great addition to our wood stash!   OrcaLab 12 Jul 2021 06:39:17 PDT