August 22 2021 Orcas: I4s, I27s, I65s, A42s, A25s, T065Bs Humpbacks: Stitch, Ridge, Tag, Quartz? The excitement continued into the night, as the returned A5 group(s) continued west, past Robson Bight and into silence by 1:26am. We did not hear any I15 calls, so the ÒmissingÓ I4s whom we thought may have gone east with the A42s and A25s were not necessarily present. Around the same time, a humpback gave a few lazy groans, and a little while later some clear Pacific White-Sided dolphin chatter rang through Blackney Pass. These waters are very much alive! For the next few hours, with the flooding tide hindering the general westward movement, the different groups Òtag-teamedÓ their vocals as we heard one group, then another, then the first group again. Keeping us on our toes with brief calls, leaving us to piece together the puzzle! Just before 4am, a very brief bout of distant I15 calls in Johnstone Strait signified that our theory about the I4s could be correct, or that the other I15 groups had entered the western Strait. An hour later, an A5 group began to rub on Strider. It was very brief, lasting only three minutes, before they again headed west. We heard lots of echolocation as they approached the Bight at 5:45am, suggesting a hearty breakfast was in order. Back to the I15s, and at 6:45am we heard their faint and short calls in Blackfish Sound. We believe these to be the I27s and I65s, as they were later identified off Donegal Head around 9:23am. Then, the A5s again piped up at 7:39am having continued west, now likely at the western edge of Johnstone Strait. Lance confirmed the A25s westing from Telegraph Cove just before 9:30am, and the morning was quiet until another update from Lance that they had foraged in Beaver Cove for nearly 50 minutes around midday and were just heading out. Shortly after that report, we heard them on our hydrophones and continued to monitor them for several hours. At 1.30pm they were still only around Blinkhorn, heading east and spread from Vancouver Island to Hanson Island. A slow progression, but not for long. They seemed to speed up and by 1:53pm we could see some distant fins from Cracroft Point, around Kaikash Creek. A single I15 call a few minutes later signified that at least some of those groups were back in the Strait, perhaps aiming to catch up with the A5s. It did not take long for the heading whales to approach Kaizumi Rubbing Beach, and they came in to rub at 2:17pm. Close A5 calls and one distinct A4 call signified that the A42s could indeed be here again, travelling with A94 (of the A24s) as they frequently do these days. Puzzle pieces starting to align! Encroaching I15 calls on Kaizumi only a few minutes later told us that they, too, were possibly headed for a rub. Sure enough, within minutes, they had caught up and we heard equally loud A5 and I15 calls amidst the sound of ÒchuffingÓ pebbles. Although it was only a 15-minute rub, we caught some beautiful sounds of the mingled clans, before all headed east towards the Ecological Reserve. They did not waste time. Making a bee-line for the eastern edge of Robson Bight, we saw them zooming east on our remote camera, alongside some excited and a little ÒgoofyÓ calls, with plenty of echolocation. Both I15 and A5 calls could be heard. They cleared the point without hesitation, and headed straight for Strider. Now was our chance to get some visual IDs! The leading whales arrived at the beach at 3:25pm, and our underwater camera caught some incredible footage of the 5 whales speeding past as they rubbed. A few minutes later, we were thrilled to see the lovely ÒopenÓ saddle-patch of Holly/ Sonora (A42), and the distinct fin of Current (A79) confirming her familyÕs presence with the rest. We could identify all of the I27s, members of the I65s and - we are reasonably confident - members of the I4s too! In recent years, the Northern Residents have begun to favour Strider over the historic Main Rubbing Beach. Today, it felt like a small roll-back in time as at least six orcas came into Main for a good few passes of the beach at 3:40pm. Again, we believe we saw I76, the I27s and loud A5 calls signified some others, too. Worth noting that we did not see Surf (A66) from the A42s, or any of the A25s at the beach. Perhaps they continued straight east, offshore, not indulging in the delights of their kin. We watched the fins get smaller and smaller, disappearing to the east off the Main Rubbing Beach. Their calls dwindled, falling silent at 4pm. By 4:07pm, the Cliff reported that they were all now past the Eastern Boundary of the Ecological Reserve, and we have not seen nor heard from them again. Around the same time, the T065Bs were seen off Blinkhorn, heading east, and by 7:10pm they had made it all the way to the eastern edge of the Reserve. The whereabouts of the I4s over the past few days still remains unknown, as this convergence happened mainly at night. Did they stay out west for a couple of days, or go all the way east with the A5s? Perhaps reports or photographs from those around the Campbell River area are yet to come; perhaps we will have to accept that it will remain just another mystery in the lives of these whales.  OrcaLab 22 Aug 2021 21:50:19 PDT