 |  Distant calls audible. August 30 2022 Orcas: A50s, A54s, A23s, I4s, I27s, I65s, Biggs (heard) Humpbacks: Stitch, Quartz We’ll dive right in where we left off: A30s and A23s in Johnstone Strait. They remained here for the majority of the night and early hours of the morning, audibly every so often faintly towards the eastern end. At 6:30am, as the sun was coming up for what proved to be a spectacularly sunny day, we heard calls that we hadn’t had for a while: The I15s! The difference between A and G clan is really quite stark, and all who were listening could easily tell them apart. The I4s, I27s and I65s had returned, likely taking Weynton Passage and slipping into the Strait to join the other groups. By 8am, Megan and Shari at Cracroft Point could see distant blows and orcas heading east. The ‘A whales’ to the east began to peel back to join these new groups, and some of the A30s came in for a brief rub at 8:18am before continuing west. One more whale would rub at 9:39am, before continuing west after the others. The I15s, meanwhile, had made it to Robson Bight, and we heard their faint calls echoing around. What’s interesting here is the shift in the dynamic between the A23s and the rest of the groups. They have been fairly glued to the A54s over the past week, but today they remained largely solitary and silent. As the others met up in the Ecological Reserve, they tracked west in Johnstone Strait. We could see A60’s large fin passing Cracroft Point around 10:56am, while the rest stayed closer to Vancouver Island. They passed Telegraph Cove and into Weynton Passage, before stalling at Bold Head for most of the afternoon. Back in the Strait, The A30s and I15 groups were getting organised. The A50s and I27s were visible from the cliff at 10:10am, slowly easting for a while. All eventually turned and made a move back to the west, passing the Sophia’s shortly before midday. As they tracked west, we saw lots of breaches and tailslaps and beautiful spyhops, as they made their way to Blackney Pass. Some of the I15s passed very close to Cracroft Point, and we heard their beautiful ‘squawky’ calls very clearly! They were eager for Blackney and made haste. The A54s were first, entering our view at 1:08pm. They were fairly spread out, but the mom & baby pairs of A54s and A86s were clearly visible. The I15 groups were next - mixed up and spread out with some of the A54s. I122 and I107 were seen together, as I76 travelled largely alone. The A50s brought the end of the parade, alongside I27 and her son I77. They were in quite a tight group and passed close to the lab. They were out of our sight and into Blackfish Sound by 2pm, where they stayed for the remainder of the afternoon. A smattering of reports told us that all groups were fairly spread out for a few hours, not travelling too far, as the A23s continued to forage off Bold Head, before they eventually passed back through Weynton Passage and into the Strait. Just as they had passed us to the North, the A30 and I15 groups prepared to travel back south in a very similar pattern, visible once again in our view at 6:30pm. The A54s lead the procession, mixed with some of the I15s. I107 and I122 were together again, and the A50s with I27 and I77 followed last, close to the lab! How interesting, all of these social dynamics. It was a beautiful passing in the glowing sunset light. Just as we were feeling confident as to the orcas’ movements, we received a report from the wardens at Boat Bay of a group of 6-7 orcas heading west at Swaine Point! Hmm. Bigg’s? We hoped that clarity would come sooner rather than later… The A30s and I15 groups passed Cracroft Point and into the Strait, all heading east. The A54s crossed to the Vancouver Island side for a brief swim-by rub at Kaizumi around 8pm. Just one mother and baby were seen. All tracked east in a few separate groups, as the A23s slowly followed - keeping their distance - visible off Telegraph Cove at 8:45pm. A forage in Robson Bight was in order, with mixed A30s and I15s audible on our Critical Point hydrophone around 9pm. They slowly headed east, A30s sounding a little more offshore, as some of the I15s headed for a brief rub on Main beach at 10:09pm. At one point, we heard the I15s rubbing, A30s offshore and Bigg’s calls in the distance! A-ha! The group off Swaine Point must have been Bigg’s afterall, now westing up Johnstone Strait. Phew, mystery solved. All Northern Residents moved to the east, the A30 and I15 calls audible and mixed off the eastern beaches as the day drew to a close. The A23s remained silent, and midnight arrived with a fantastic bout of Bigg’s calls close on Kaizumi. The two ecotypes had mirrored each others’ movements: Northern Residents easting closer to the Vancouver Island shore, while the Bigg’s wested along Cracroft, crossing to Kaizumi only when the coast was clear. The lives of these whales never cease to intrigue us! Suzie, OL 31 Aug 2022 14:10:24 PDT |
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