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August 18 2022 Orcas: A50s, A54s,A34s,T060D, T060E Humpbacks: Black Pearl, Kraken (Black PearlÕs baby) and possibly Quartz Pacific White-sided dolphins We begin where we left off. The orcas of the day, the matrilines of the A30s, the A50s and A54s and those of the I15s, the I4s, I27s and I65s, disappeared into Blackfish Sound and beyond after midnight. The dolphins had the last word at 1am. The night was quiet after that. But little did we know somewhere out in Queen Charlotte Strait lots was happening and at some point the A30s bid the I15s farewell and greeted the A34s! The A34s, for the past several years have rarely ventured into the area until very late in the season so their arrival the next morning was going to be a huge welcomed surprise. Suzie had seen pictures of orcas resembling the A34s a day or so ago prior in Christie Pass (near Port Hardy). But our minds were just not yet ready to believe they would make it this far. In the morning there was dense fog yet again. We could not see a thing. Megan overheard a whale watch boat at 9am mention hearing faint, distant calls while their hydrophone was deployed in Parson Bay. About ten minutes later we heard calls too. A1 calls of course. Given the foggy conditions all we could do was track the calls and echolocation as these grew louder as the whales moved east. Just as the calls grew faint again blows were heard in Blackney Pass at 11:32am. A fairly large group was travelling on the far side of the Pass and later we would surmise that this was the A54s. A second group passed much closer to us. Bend peaking out from the fog turned out to be our only clue as the rest were obscured denying clear individual details. The Skana was on hand close by and gave the confirmation that the A34s were in this group. Off they all went to Johnstone Strait. Megan and Shari also had to be content with listening to blows as the whales entered. But as they did so the A34s, in particular, opened up and made more of the wonderful calls we had not heard since last Fall. We were soon to learn that A62 (Misty) was there. There had been a lot of conversation about her last year. Sightings of her family had been so slim and fleeting that it had been impossible to know if she was really there. We reviewed over and over the few pictures available to us and tentatively suggested she was present after all. It was so good therefore to have this confirmation. Most of the whales, this day were in Johnstone Strait by 12pm and chose to travel east mid strait. By this time the fog was beginning to thin and in places lift entirely enough so that the two remote cameras, the one on the Cracroft Island side and the one on Vancouver Island, were able to follow the whale watch boats and the orcas. By 12:40pm the A34s calls were becoming very clear on the Kaizumi hydrophone. Unfortunately, for us (and the whales too) the noise from the fishing vessel, close to Kaizumi was pretty loud too. As the fish boat went about its business of making a set kayakers were attempting to get a closer look at the whales. The undaunted orcas kept going. After a single quick pass over at Kaizumi they persevered towards Robson Bight and were rounding the eastern headland by 1:48pm. From there it was down to Strider and Main beaches. They closed in on Strider just before 2pm and began a rub at 2:02pm. Surprisingly, they had only a fleeting interest in rubbing. Their first effort lasted only eight minutes. They staged several close calls off Main beach but did not rub. Instead they engineered a turn to the west during which they rubbed again briefly between 2:18 and 2:21pm at Strider. A trailing member of the party had a go at 2:29pm. Robson Bight was soon passed again and at 2:52pm the Cliff declared that everyone was indeed westbound. After foraging east of Kaizumi a couple of the A34s had a three minute rub at 4pm. The kayakers a short time later were seen just 25 meters from the shoreline of this beach. The presence of such activity can and does affect the whales when engaged in rubbing behaviours. This is why Strider and Main beaches are protected as part of the Ecological Reserve and monitored carefully by the Wardens to make sure boaters/human do not intrude. Kaizumi, outside of the Reserve, has no such protection. While we again contemplated this situation two BiggÕs orcas caught our attention in Blackney Pass. T060D and T060E, brothers, disappeared quickly around Burnt Point. They did not go far and at 4:18pm reappeared opposite the Swanson Island shore. As the Resident orcas crossed over closer to Cracroft Point, these two brothers headed to White Beach Pass, past Harbledown, and over to the north edge of Parson Island. By 5:23pm they were in Parson Bay heading north and it was here that we lost track of them. The A30s, after some milling and foraging off of Cracroft Point and the entrance to Blackney Pass, entered Blackney Pass and came into view at 5:33pm. The A34s, however, carried on to the west in Johnstone Strait. The A30s were not in a hurry and it took them an hour to traverse the Pass and enter Blackfish Sound. A84 seemed quite distracted. He looked as if he was foraging but it was interesting that one of the young A34 males had also exhibited some reluctance to follow his group and had almost made a try for Blackney Pass. Were these whales of a similar sensibility? Did they not want to part? The call of family in the end prevailed and both went on their decided way. By 7:40pm there were only faint A30 calls heard in Blackfish Sound. The A34s by this time were in Beaver Cove west of Telegraph Cove. Jim Borrowman saw them come out around 8pm but lost them in the fog that had descended once again. The A30s likewise became once more evident to us on the Flower Island remote camera as they headed east toward Blackney Pass. By 8:22pm there were blows heard on the far side near Parson Light where humpbacks breached and huffed nearby. Soon calls were heard and we were able to track the A30s into Johnstone Strait. The A54s were first and amazingly after Megan told us she and Shari counted around ten blows we actually found them, surrounded by dolphins, as they crossed through fog and growing dark toward mid strait. We could hear the A50s coming into the Straits soon afterwards. We had no luck finding the A50s as it was too dark but Megan and Shari obligingly counted 6 blows, the perfect number. Both these groups went east and the Cliff (now at their camp in Boat Bay) informed us that by 10:36pm they were hearing lots of blows just offshore. We heard a few calls and just past midnight this camp still had a group out front of them. And thatÕs where we will leave this dayÕs story. In the seemingly seamless life of these orcas there will be, no doubt, more to say tomorrow.
OrcaLab
19 Aug 2022 09:14:11 PDT |
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August 18 2022 Orcas: A50s, A54s,A34s,T060D, T060E Humpbacks: Black Pearl, Kraken (Black PearlÕs baby) and possibly Quartz Pacific White-sided dolphins We begin where we left off. The orcas of the day, the matrilines of the A30s, the A50s and A54s and those of the I15s, the I4s, I27s and I65s, disappeared into Blackfish Sound and beyond after midnight. The dolphins had the last word at 1am. The night was quiet after that. But little did we know somewhere out in Queen Charlotte Strait lots was happening and at some point the A30s bid the I15s farewell and greeted the A34s! The A34s, for the past several years have rarely ventured into the area until very late in the season so their arrival the next morning was going to be a huge welcomed surprise. Suzie had seen pictures of orcas resembling the A34s a day or so ago prior in Christie Pass (near Port Hardy). But our minds were just not yet ready to believe they would make it this far. In the morning there was dense fog yet again. We could not see a thing. Megan overheard a whale watch boat at 9am mention hearing faint, distant calls while their hydrophone was deployed in Parson Bay. About ten minutes later we heard calls too. A1 calls of course. Given the foggy conditions all we could do was track the calls and echolocation as these grew louder as the whales moved east. Just as the calls grew faint again blows were heard in Blackney Pass at 11:32am. A fairly large group was travelling on the far side of the Pass and later we would surmise that this was the A54s. A second group passed much closer to us. Bend peaking out from the fog turned out to be our only clue as the rest were obscured denying clear individual details. The Skana was on hand close by and gave the confirmation that the A34s were in this group. Off they all went to Johnstone Strait. Megan and Shari also had to be content with listening to blows as the whales entered. But as they did so the A34s, in particular, opened up and made more of the wonderful calls we had not heard since last Fall. We were soon to learn that A62 (Misty) was there. There had been a lot of conversation about her last year. Sightings of her family had been so slim and fleeting that it had been impossible to know if she was really there. We reviewed over and over the few pictures available to us and tentatively suggested she was present after all. It was so good therefore to have this confirmation. Most of the whales, this day were in Johnstone Strait by 12pm and chose to travel east mid strait. By this time the fog was beginning to thin and in places lift entirely enough so that the two remote cameras, the one on the Cracroft Island side and the one on Vancouver Island, were able to follow the whale watch boats and the orcas. By 12:40pm the A34s calls were becoming very clear on the Kaizumi hydrophone. Unfortunately, for us (and the whales too) the noise from the fishing vessel, close to Kaizumi was pretty loud too. As the fish boat went about its business of making a set kayakers were attempting to get a closer look at the whales. The undaunted orcas kept going. After a single quick pass over at Kaizumi they persevered towards Robson Bight and were rounding the eastern headland by 1:48pm. From there it was down to Strider and Main beaches. They closed in on Strider just before 2pm and began a rub at 2:02pm. Surprisingly, they had only a fleeting interest in rubbing. Their first effort lasted only eight minutes. They staged several close calls off Main beach but did not rub. Instead they engineered a turn to the west during which they rubbed again briefly between 2:18 and 2:21pm at Strider. A trailing member of the party had a go at 2:29pm. Robson Bight was soon passed again and at 2:52pm the Cliff declared that everyone was indeed westbound. After foraging east of Kaizumi a couple of the A34s had a three minute rub at 4pm. The kayakers a short time later were seen just 25 meters from the shoreline of this beach. The presence of such activity can and does affect the whales when engaged in rubbing behaviours. This is why Strider and Main beaches are protected as part of the Ecological Reserve and monitored carefully by the Wardens to make sure boaters/human do not intrude. Kaizumi, outside of the Reserve, has no such protection. While we again contemplated this situation two BiggÕs orcas caught our attention in Blackney Pass. T060D and T060E, brothers, disappeared quickly around Burnt Point. They did not go far and at 4:18pm reappeared opposite the Swanson Island shore. As the Resident orcas crossed over closer to Cracroft Point, these two brothers headed to White Beach Pass, past Harbledown, and over to the north edge of Parson Island. By 5:23pm they were in Parson Bay heading north and it was here that we lost track of them. The A30s, after some milling and foraging off of Cracroft Point and the entrance to Blackney Pass, entered Blackney Pass and came into view at 5:33pm. The A34s, however, carried on to the west in Johnstone Strait. The A30s were not in a hurry and it took them an hour to traverse the Pass and enter Blackfish Sound. A84 seemed quite distracted. He looked as if he was foraging but it was interesting that one of the young A34 males had also exhibited some reluctance to follow his group and had almost made a try for Blackney Pass. Were these whales of a similar sensibility? Did they not want to part? The call of family in the end prevailed and both went on their decided way. By 7:40pm there were only faint A30 calls heard in Blackfish Sound. The A34s by this time were in Beaver Cove west of Telegraph Cove. Jim Borrowman saw them come out around 8pm but lost them in the fog that had descended once again. The A30s likewise became once more evident to us on the Flower Island remote camera as they headed east toward Blackney Pass. By 8:22pm there were blows heard on the far side near Parson Light where humpbacks breached and huffed nearby. Soon calls were heard and we were able to track the A30s into Johnstone Strait. The A54s were first and amazingly after Megan told us she and Shari counted around ten blows we actually found them, surrounded by dolphins, as they crossed through fog and growing dark toward mid strait. We could hear the A50s coming into the Straits soon afterwards. We had no luck finding the A50s as it was too dark but Megan and Shari obligingly counted 6 blows, the perfect number. Both these groups went east and the Cliff (now at their camp in Boat Bay) informed us that by 10:36pm they were hearing lots of blows just offshore. We heard a few calls and just past midnight this camp still had a group out front of them. And thatÕs where we will leave this dayÕs story. In the seemingly seamless life of these orcas there will be, no doubt, more to say tomorrow. 0100 PWD FI 0900 ww hearing distant calls on Hydrophone in Parson Bay 0912 distant calls heard A1s 0957 el on FI, rapid A1 calls 1008 mr calls FI 1044 lots of el 1955 calls become louder Calls become faint 1132 blows in fog 1138 third group includes A72 1140 calls PI 1143 A12 sp 1150 A62 seen (misty)!! 1200 calls on CP ÊLoud el getting louder Lots of N3s 1215 mr calls on KRB then dist el, calls cont CP Whales heading east in JS 1240 clear A34 KRB 1257 going east ms 1327 test fishing right off KRB 1347 kayakers on KRB 1357 major human presence KRB 1306 single chuff KRB, 2 small fins past KRB headed east Western Brave setting KRB 1326 el on CRPT/distant calls SRB 1348 close calls CRPT 1358 close calls SRB 1404 rub start SRB 1406 calls MRB 1410 rub ends SRB 1418 Rub start SRB 1421 SRB rub end 1429 single chuff SRB/ Whales turn west from eastern end - no rub at MRB 1442 el on CRPT 1448 close el CRPt 1452 EE report all heading west 1535 group east of KRB1539 kayakers on KRB beach 1548 goofy calls 1553 foraging east of KRB 1600 Rub start KRB 1603 rub end KRB 1611 close calls kRB T060D & E in BP at Burtn Point heading north 1612 2 kayakers 25 meters from shore , one whale offshore 1618 Biggs at Dock 1628 D&E off dock Cross JS, very spread out 1636 A34s on CP 1623 D&E WBP 1624 Oo milling/foraging between KRB and CP 1628 D&E HOH 1631 Megan sees OO between CP and Western B 1652 heading west 1656 D&E hanging out near North edge 1723 D&E mid Parson Bay Close calls/el EBP cont 1733 Oo in BP (A30s)A50s/54s head north thru BP to BFS, A84 stops to forage Ê 1742 A34s continue west 1831 last group clears to BFS/calls FI 1854 - not visibleÊ 1933 faint calls FI 1940 faint calls and el FI 1940 Jim reports group of Oo went into BC now ?headed eastÊ by 2004 1952 on FI cam heading east/calls and el cont 2022 hearing blows BP/ HB breaches <2040 blows heard outside farside in fog, then calls on PI - Oo heading south Heavy bn in JS Ocean Clipper - tug eastbound off Schmidt Creek 2047 A30s calls fading PI 2048 faint on CP 2050 louder A30 calls on CP/ el - A54s heading out/ fog getting dark/ Megan countered 10 blows 2103 calls (A50s) were also on PI as A54s headed southeast with dolphins 2104 calls down, bn KRB (there had been calls KRB) 2108 N3s on CP ? 2nd group/ Megan counted six blows Megan reports two groups in total 16 blows (all A30s) A30 calls CP (?A50s), still going 2137 2138 pause in mr calls, distant calls 2236 Boat Bay reports lots of blow passing camp headed east/ we heard distant call just now
OrcaLab
19 Aug 2022 08:57:12 PDT |
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