August 21 2021 Orcas: I27s, I65s, [A42s,A25s and possibly I4s eastern Johnstone Strait] Humpbacks: Tag, Quartz, Stitch, Ridge On the surface of things this day was fairly straight forward, only it was not! The orcas indeed went west the previous evening and spent time in Queen Charlotte Strait over night before turning up mid morning off Donegal Head. At 10:16am Jared reported that they were heading towards Stubbs Island. We began to hear distant calls soon afterward but before 10:30am they were clearly headed into Weynton Passage. An hour later (11:36am) we heard their distant calls as they entered Johnstone Strait and began to head east. Their progress was quite slow. By now, we understood that it was the just the I27s and the I65s. The I4s were not there. Yesterday, we had a hunch that there had been a change that probably began from the time the A42s and A25s headed far to the east the day before. Our biggest question was, did the A42s and the A25s entice the I4s away from their constant companions, the I65s? In their absence the I27s seemed to have stepped in and were now ÒtogetherÓ with the I65s. We had watched for weeks the I27s move to their own drummer, for the most part in the same general area as the others but most times acting and moving quite independently. As this day unfolded we got to see how integrated they were becoming with the I65s. Just after they entered the I27s shifted closer to the Hanson Island side of mid strait. The I65s took the middle road and stayed pretty much together. Then after a forage the I27s fell in step behind the I65s and the two groups proceeded east mid strait. Their distant calls shifted between the hydrophones, first on the far reaching Strider hydrophone to that of Cracroft Point. As they neared the entrance to Blackney Pass they were briefly heard on the Parson Island hydrophone at 12:51pm. Less than half an hour later it was KaizumiÕs turn when the whales began to angle into the beach there. At 1:37pm, both groups went in for a rub. It was a long, long rub of nearly an hour, perhaps the longest rub we have witnessed at this location. Uninterrupted, undisturbed, these two families enjoyed their relaxed time there. At 2:31pm they moved on and resumed their eastern travels along the Vancouver Island shore. Just after 3pm, they entered the Ecological Reserve. The Robson Bight hydrophone picked up their approach and the remote camera soon located their advancing fins. By now they had spread out. From 3:49pm to 4:03pm their calls and echo location were clear, at times intense, and increasingly close as they neared and passed the eastern headland (called Critical Point) of the Bight. Their next ÒstopÓ was Strider Beach for another rub which began at 4:22pm. Again both groups participated. This rub was much shorter, lasting eighteen minutes. The orcas never ventured to the Main Beach just east of Strider but turned back to the west. The Wardens reported at 5pm that they were westbound toward Critical Point. They stopped calling, confounding our ability to track their movements from there. But a final report for the day from the whale watchers mentioned that it looked like the I27s were headed back into Weynton Passage around 8pm. An hour later we heard a single very distant call still in Johnstone Strait which we understood to be very far to the west. We have not yet heard any calls on the other side of Weynton Passage in Blackfish Sound so once again we are left with only a vague sense of their possible location and a guess that they have left for Queen Charlotte Strait once more. If so, their day simply consisted of one turn around the Johnstone Strait ÒboardwalkÓ. A few side notes: the Hanson Island gang got together with the Wardens at Boat Bay. This is a long standing tradition. Quin, Helena, Paul and Kamilla held the ÒfortÓ at the Lab. In the morning, the Wardens piled everyone into their large zodiac for the ride back to the Lab. Everyone had a great time and it was said, it was like visiting cousins, related through the work of observing and caring for the whales. In the morning, before everyone got back, Helena noted the large haul out of Harbour Seals occupying the same rocks used by the Sea Lions later in the Fall. They looked pretty content until an equally large curious kayak group passed by close. When Helena next looked the seals were gone. Pity! Mike Durban drove up and was picked up by Paul in the Sonic early in the morning. Mike is here to help with putting together another underwater camera housing! They need the low tide in the morning to look at the site. They came back to the Lab and got to work right away. It should be an exciting project.  OrcaLab 21 Aug 2021 22:19:54 PDT