Friday, August 30, 2024




August 29 2024 Northern Residents: A62s, A54s, A23s, A25s, I04s, I65s BiggÕs orcas: T46s Humpbacks: Quartz, Ridge, mother and baby It was perhaps the I4s (of the I15s) who first returned to Johnstone Strait via Blackney Pass after midnight leaving the A54s and A23s and A25s still in Blackfish Sound and whose calls stopped at 12:16am and would not resume until briefly at 5:03am. Where had they gone in the intervening five hours? Almost another five hours would again pass before we heard them once again in Blackfish Sound. This time their calls lasted until just 10:03am and we understood that they had come back to the western end of Blackfish Sound in order to go through Weynton Pass. This action resulted in a short gap as our hydrophones donÕt cover activity in Weynton Pass. The Strait had been quiet of orcas all night until the groups emerged out of Weynton Pass and began to go east at 10:47am. The A54 and A5 calls were joined by those of the I15s and A62s. A lingering question was where did the A54s and A5s reconnect with the I15s and A62s? Moderate progress was along the Hanson Island side. By 11:33am the orcas were off Big Bay and the southeastern end of Hanson Island. By noon they had spread out off the entrance to Blackney Pass. They took advantage of the confluence of the waters of Blackney and Johnstone Strait to forage as they milled and staged their entry north into Blackney Pass at 12:41pm. Eleven minutes later these orcas were in sight of the Lab. They were arranged in four groups, the A23s, the A25s, the I4s and finally the A62s. They all reached Blackfish 1:34pm. Strong clear calls accompanied their exit to Blackfish Sound. After 2pm these became gradually less frequent as the whales moved to the west. The BiggÕs orcas, the T46s, were seen eastbound close to Vancouver Island west of Naka Creek around 2pm. So far only the I4s had been identified from the I15s. A day ago we lost track of the I27s and I65s and had listed them only as possibles in the last summary. But at 2:49pm, the I65s came back via Queen Charlotte Strait and proceeded towards the Johnstone Strait. By now the A5s ,the A54s and I4s decided to go back to Johnstone Strait. While in Blackfish they separated ways with the A62s. It would take them four hours to exit Blackfish in favour of Blackney Pass. Their movements were without urgency. The I65s were already closing in on the Ecological Reserve by 4:30pm. It took the others almost an hour to transit Blackney Pass which they finally accomplished by 5:59pm. The A62s continued to be heard faintly in Blackfish Sound until 6:50pm. Afterwhich, they journeyed into Queen Charlotte Strait. From 6pm onwards the A23s,A25s and A54s made progress towards the Ecological Reserve. They found Strider beach at 9:42pm and went for a short, six minute rub which now involved both I15s and the A54s. The rub was repeated, with lots of close I15 calls and the ÒAsÓ in the background, at 9:50am. This one was seven minutes long. From the beaches (there were calls on Main beach at 10:05pm as well) the groups went eastbound together past the ReserveÕs eastern boundary. The last calls for 29 August were at 10:14pm. Filmmaker Jacques Naude enjoyed the second day of his very brief visit to Hanson Island, soaking in the passage of orcas, the occasional humpback, the ocean and the people. 
OrcaLab
31 Aug 2024 01:56:39 PDT
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Thursday, August 29, 2024




August 28 2024 Northern Residents: A54s, A62s,A23s, A25s, I04s, possible I27s, possible I65s,[A42s plus A94 in the Salish Sea] Humpbacks in Blackney Pass: possibly Meteorite, Oreo, Quartz and Ridge- Argonaut for sure Pacific White-sided dolphins Gain some, lose some. We have not heard from or of the A50s or the A34s (- the A62s) since the 26th. In their place the A54s have been the ones to travel with the I15s fairly consistently ever since. So on this day, through the early hours, and only by 5am did the A30 (A54) calls come closer to Strider beach as the whales moved further along to the west. One anomaly occurred when Momoko heard A and G clan calls faintly on Flower Island at 3:54am. This would turn out to be a gem of information which we account for in the storyline later. By 5:44am the calls in the Strait were shifting to the Critical Point system as whales approached the Robson Bight area. The calls were really close by 6am. Strong echolocation and crunches implied that the whales had gained the bonus of a successful hunt. Calls then faded as this group moved further away. The recording ended at 7:54am with the cession of calls. Surprisingly, over the course of these several hours only A30 calls were noted. This gave us pause. By 8:48am, the I15s in the Strait declared their presence. At 9:39am, we could see orcas on the CP remote camera heading west past Kaikash. As so very often happens, we were witnessing orcas coordinate their social agendas. A report from Alex at 10:05am told us that three whales, who turned out to be the I4s, were off Donegal Head. They had come from the direction of Lizard Point. This made us realise that the three I15 groups that had been consistently in the area had separated at some point. This sighting in Queen Charlotte Strait was approximately when the A54s and other I15s were opposite Big Bay advancing to the west and Weynton Pass. The meeting of the two converging groups, coming from Johnstone Strait and Queen Charlotte Strait, was to happen soon. We found out that the A62s had come in from Queen Charlotte Strait around the same time as the I4s. They first moved toward the Plumper Islands then at 10:32am we could hear faint echolocation in Blackfish Sound as the A62s spread out from Bold Head to Donegal Head and organised themselves for the journey to Johnstone Strait. The A54s and the rest of the I15s were ready to receive them just past noon. At 12:40pm the whale watchers followed the A62s east past Blinkhorn. No mention of the A54s and the I15s as all the focus was on the new whales. A62 or Misty is A34Õs oldest daughter. She has had four offspring all of whom are male. She had not come in with her motherÕs and sisterÕs families so this was her first time in the area. As they continued eastward we became aware of the A5s in Blackfish Sound. The whales Kate heard at 11:33am were most likely the lagging A5s. We listened to their calls in Blackfish for over five hours, from just past 2pm until 7:40pm when they finally entered Blackney Pass. They were in the Strait by 8:15pm. Meanwhile, the new arrivals were making way in the Strait. By 2:30pm, they were halfway from Kaikash to the Robson Bight. A pair, perhaps Misty and A130 (her youngest) went for their own brief rub at 3:33pm while the rest of the family and others stayed back offshore opposite, or in, or near the Bight. Straitwatch could see a dozen or so near the western boundary of the Ecological Reserve, five others were further west while at least two others were seen foraging in the Bight. From 4:55pm to 5:36pm their echolocation on Robson BightÕs Critical Point system explained their continued presence in that area. Misty was not done at Strider. She and A130 returned for two more rubs, the first, starting at 6:03pm to 6:09pm, the second from 6:20 to 6:30pm - just the two of them. As they quickly disappeared west some of the taller fins could be seen on the remote camera offshore to the west. They too were now going west. Again, there was that uncanny coordination. As the A62s went west, the A23s and A25s were coming closer. They travelled through Blackney from 7:42 to 8:13pm. They went east towards the westbound groups. This caused some excitement expressed by their energetic calls. The result was everyone turning west before 8:56pm. At 9pm, there were already whales floating off the entrance to Blackney Pass. Though pointing west at first they decided on Blackney Pass. By 9:44pm, there were blows already half way through the Pass. The blows ceased to be heard by 10:04pm when they went into Blackfish Sound. A30, I15 and A5 calls in Blackfish lasted from 10:11pm until past midnight. One last group of four would scurry through Blackney just after midnight. Calls ended at 12:46am.
OrcaLab
29 Aug 2024 21:15:00 PDT
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Wednesday, August 28, 2024




August 27 2024 Northern Residents: A54s, I65s,I04s, I27s, [A42s plus A94 in the Salish Sea] Humpbacks: In Blackney Pass Pacific White-sided dolphins From midnight to 3am approximately we had the impression that the A54s and the I15 groups (the I4s, I27s, I65s) were going east through Johnstone Strait from a starting point of Blackney Pass. We never heard the A5s again and supposed that they may have gone off to the west instead. The I15s and the A54s spent the night together and by daybreak they were still there, only now headed west. The movement west, from the east end, perhaps started as early as 3:51am when calls resumed after a forty-five minute pause. Perhaps the whales might have been too far for us to hear them. Featured in the western movement were; the echolocation at 5:07am on Strider along with the faint calls on Kaizumi which gave clear indication to the new direction, the echolocation on Kaizumi which told of their progress west in the Strait, the closer echolocation on Kaizumi which confirmed their proximity to that part of the Strait, the close A30 (insert A54) calls on Kaizumi which helped us understand that the A30s were in the lead (for now), the rub which started at 8:26am at Strider which gave us an understanding as to how spread out the various groups were, and finally the close echolocation on Parson Island at 9:13am which meant that some of whales had made it to the entrance to Blackney Pass. When the orcas came into view of the Lab it was the I15s who came first. They only took ten minutes to make it to Blackfish Sound. The A54s were much slower and stayed in the Strait till 12:32pm when they came into Blackney Pass. This was a hour after hearing the last of the I15 calls fade into the distance. The A54s took about a half hour to transit Blackney. Just after 1pm they disappeared into Blackfish Sound. In the next hour that passed. Two humpbacks breached near White Beach Pass. Possibly a mum and baby. A sports fishing boat ran into them. Thankfully, Straitwatch talked with the boater later. At 2:51pm, the A54s came slowly back into Blackney Pass, very slowly. It was almost two hours before they left in the direction of Johnstone Strait. They came out of Blackney Pass, as seen by the CP remote camera, and headed east at 6:54pm,. They must have angled over to Vancouver Island because there was a rub at 6:02pm west of the Bight. The rub only lasted 5 minutes but there were at least five members of the A54s involved. Now it was a progression to the east; at 6:48pm the echolocation on Critical Point indicated that they had come as far as Robson Bight, one ÒchuffÓ as they brushed over the stones at Strider at 7:42pm told us that they had no intention of stopping their eastward journey, and finally the their silence meant that they had gone past the range of our hydrophones. The I15s and the A54s would spend another night together. We enjoyed a rare uneventful evening. Many from our group had gone to the ÒBoat Bay PartyÓ, an annual event held by Cetus who manages the Ecological Reserve Warden programme and the Cliff Research site. Outstanding for many at Boat Bay was the unexpected display of Northern Lights. Back at the Lab we saw them too but were also enthralled by the starry sky that had been hidden from us on so many nights because of fog. Pretty sure as everyone looked into the skies at Boat Bay they were thrilled to see this twinkly canopy too.
OrcaLab
28 Aug 2024 16:47:57 PDT



August 27 2024 Northern Residents: A54s, I65s,I04s, I27s, [A42s plus A94 in the Salish Sea] Humpbacks: In Blackney Pass Pacific White-sided dolphins From midnight to 3am approximately we had the impression that the A54s and the I15 groups (the I4s, I27s, I65s) were going east through Johnstone Strait from a starting point of Blackney Pass. We never heard the A5s again and supposed that they may have gone off to the west instead. The I15s and the A54s spent the night together and by daybreak they were still there, only now headed west. The movement west, from the east end, perhaps started as early as 3:51am when calls resumed after a forty-five minute pause. Perhaps the whales might have been too far for us to hear them. Featured in the western movement were; the echolocation at 5:07am on Strider along with the faint calls on Kaizumi which gave clear indication to the new direction, the echolocation on Kaizumi which told of their progress west in the Strait, the closer echolocation on Kaizumi which confirmed their proximity to that part of the Strait, the close A30 (insert A54) calls on Kaizumi which helped us understand that the A30s were in the lead (for now), the rub which started at 8:26am at Strider which gave us an understanding as to how spread out the various groups were, and finally the close echolocation on Parson Island at 9:13am which meant that some of whales had made it to the entrance to Blackney Pass. When the orcas came into view of the Lab it was the I15s who came first. They only took ten minutes to make it to Blackfish Sound. The A54s were much slower and stayed in the Strait till 12:32pm when they came into Blackney Pass. This was a hour after hearing the last of the I15 calls fade into the distance. The A54s took about a half hour to transit Blackney. Just after 1pm they disappeared into Blackfish Sound. In the next hour that passed. Two humpbacks breached near White Beach Pass. Possibly a mum and baby. A sports fishing boat ran into them. Thankfully, Straitwatch talked with the boater later. At 2:51pm, the A54s came slowly back into Blackney Pass, very slowly. It was almost two hours before they left in the direction of Johnstone Strait. They came out of Blackney Pass, as seen by the CP remote camera, and headed east at 6:54pm,. They must have angled over to Vancouver Island because there was a rub at 6:02pm west of the Bight. The rub only lasted 5 minutes but there were at least five members of the A54s involved. Now it was a progression to the east; at 6:48pm the echolocation on Critical Point indicated that they had come as far as Robson Bight, one ÒchuffÓ as they brushed over the stones at Strider at 7:42pm told us that they had no intention of stopping their eastward journey, and finally the their silence meant that they had gone past the range of our hydrophones. The I15s and the A54s would spend another night together. We enjoyed a rare uneventful evening. Many from our group had gone to the ÒBoat Bay PartyÓ, an annual event held by Cetus who manages the Ecological Reserve Warden programme and the Cliff Research site. Outstanding for many at Boat Bay was the unexpected display of Northern Lights. Back at the Lab we saw them too but were also enthralled by the starry sky that had been hidden from us on so many nights because of fog. Pretty sure as everyone looked into the skies at Boat Bay they were thrilled to see this twinkly canopy too.
OrcaLab
28 Aug 2024 16:47:51 PDT



August 27 2024 Northern Residents: A54s, I65s,I04s, I27s, [A42s plus A94 in the Salish Sea] Humpbacks: In Blackney Pass Pacific White-sided dolphins From midnight to 3am approximately we had the impression that the A54s and the I15 groups (the I4s, I27s, I65s) were going east through Johnstone Strait from a starting point of Blackney Pass. We never heard the A5s again and supposed that they may have gone off to the west instead. The I15s and the A54s spent the night together and by daybreak they were still there, only now headed west. The movement west, from the east end, perhaps started as early as 3:51am when calls resumed after a forty-five minute pause. Perhaps the whales might have been too far for us to hear them. Featured in the western movement were; the echolocation at 5:07am on Strider along with the faint calls on Kaizumi which gave clear indication to the new direction, the echolocation on Kaizumi which told of their progress west in the Strait, the closer echolocation on Kaizumi which confirmed their proximity to that part of the Strait, the close A30 (insert A54) calls on Kaizumi which helped us understand that the A30s were in the lead (for now), the rub which started at 8:26am at Strider which gave us an understanding as to how spread out the various groups were, and finally the close echolocation on Parson Island at 9:13am which meant that some of whales had made it to the entrance to Blackney Pass. When the orcas came into view of the Lab it was the I15s who came first. They only took ten minutes to make it to Blackfish Sound. The A54s were much slower and stayed in the Strait till 12:32pm when they came into Blackney Pass. This was a hour after hearing the last of the I15 calls fade into the distance. The A54s took about a half hour to transit Blackney. Just after 1pm they disappeared into Blackfish Sound. In the next hour that passed. Two humpbacks breached near White Beach Pass. Possibly a mum and baby. A sports fishing boat ran into them. Thankfully, Straitwatch talked with the boater later. At 2:51pm, the A54s came slowly back into Blackney Pass, very slowly. It was almost two hours before they left in the direction of Johnstone Strait. They came out of Blackney Pass, as seen by the CP remote camera, and headed east at 6:54pm,. They must have angled over to Vancouver Island because there was a rub at 6:02pm west of the Bight. The rub only lasted 5 minutes but there were at least five members of the A54s involved. Now it was a progression to the east; at 6:48pm the echolocation on Critical Point indicated that they had come as far as Robson Bight, one ÒchuffÓ as they brushed over the stones at Strider at 7:42pm told us that they had no intention of stopping their eastward journey, and finally the their silence meant that they had gone past the range of our hydrophones. The I15s and the A54s would spend another night together. We enjoyed a rare uneventful evening. Many from our group had gone to the ÒBoat Bay PartyÓ, an annual event held by Cetus who manages the Ecological Reserve Warden programme and the Cliff Research site. Outstanding for many at Boat Bay was the unexpected display of Northern Lights. Back at the Lab we saw them too but were also enthralled by the starry sky that had been hidden from us on so many nights because of fog. Pretty sure as everyone looked into the skies at Boat Bay they were thrilled to see this twinkly canopy too.
OrcaLab
28 Aug 2024 16:47:46 PDT
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Tuesday, August 27, 2024




August 26 2024 A34s (still minus the A62s),A50s, A54s, A23s. A25s, I65s, I04s, I27s, [A42s plus A94 in the Salish Sea] Humpbacks:In BP, Freckles and baby, Argonaut, Quarts, Ridge; At CP, Freckles and baby. Argonaut Pacific White-sided dolphins This night was really a completion of the day before, if that makes any sense. The A23s and A25s went quite a bit further east of the other Resident groups in the Strait on the 25th. We had only a hint of their whereabouts around noon when orcas were seen off the Eve River. There was so much activity on the 25th that this piece of information was nearly forgotten. Then before midnight Serah heard their very faint calls, probably still east of the Ecological Reserve. An I15 group had come through Blackney Pass and was in the Strait by then. They lingered west of the Kaikash area. Kate, at Bere Point, heard both A1 (not specified) and I15 calls from 2:26am on, leading us to the conclusion that only part of the I15s had returned to the Strait. Just before 1am the A5s advanced west of Robson Bight. Shortly afterwards they went north through Blackney Pass into Blackfish Sound where their calls were heard to 1:48am. Vocal Pacific White-sided dolphins in the Strait added a postscript to this part of the nightÕs activity. A long period of time passed. At 10:50am a large group of Residents were reported off Port McNeill. By the time they were passing Alert Bay at 11:52am Jared tyidentified the orcas as the I27s, I4s, I65s ( the I15 groups); the A50s, A54s (the A30 groups);the A23s, A25s (the A5 groups). Had these groups gone all the way around Malcolm Island? It was quite the procession and travelling a seldomly used route. Interesting to us was that when we first heard calls we got a better sense of the range of the Strider hydrophone. At 1:07pm, when the whales were off the Stephensen Islets off the entrance to Weynton Pass, we heard faint ÒAsÓ. We had not totally realised the range of this hydrophone. On this occasion It may have been because the ocean conditions and levels of boat noise were more favourable.. Considering the possibility that the entrance to Weynton afforded, particular groups, the A30s and I15s, decided to go north through Weynton. The A23s and A34s continued on going east in the Strait and then north through Blackney Pass at 3:25pm with the A25s following them north at 4:17pm. Twenty minutes later the A23s returned to Blackney Pass with the A25s. The A34s stayed in Blackfish resisting the immediate urge to go south with the A5s waiting on the A30s and I15s in Blackfish Sound. It was, however, an A30 group (not clear if both A30 groups, perhaps just the A54s) and the I15s who came through at 6:45pm after much calling. They cleared our view by 7:06pm. The A34s seemed to fade to the west. Around 8pm, only A30 and I15 calls were heard even though the A5s were last seen going east. The A30 group and the I15s must have headed pretty quickly over to Vancouver Island because at 7:59pm they had a quick rub. The A30 and I15 continued to Robson Bight. By 9pm the A30 group was very near Strider where they stayed until 9:43pm. After this the calls began to fade from Strider perhaps as the whales made a wide turn to the west. Echolocation, at 11:11pm, back at Kaizumi, suggested that they were not immediately committed to really going far east. Their calls on this system lasted through the next half hour. Compared to the day before this was a much simpler day. The surprise of the day was the groups being all together using Broughton Strait for their entry to the Strait. Each day is so different from the one before!
OrcaLab
27 Aug 2024 21:18:25 PDT



August 25 2024 Northern Residents: A34s (still minus the A62s),A50s, A54s, A23s. A25s, I65s, I04s, I27s, [A42s plus A94 in the Salish Sea] BiggÕs orcas: T120, T117, T146As, T146D, T46Bs and T46C2 Humpbacks:in Blackney Pass, Inukshuk, Freckles and baby; at CP, Freckles and baby, Argonaut The whole night was filled with calls from the familiar groups, the A30s, I15s, A5s and the A34s. One had to only imagine what was happening with a swirl of orcas, occupying space, shifting around, foraging, even rubbing. The A23s and A34s had started to come from the western part of the Strait the previous evening. They met up with the A30s, the I15s and A25s somewhere between CP and the eastern end of the Reserve. Generally, once the meeting was sorted, the movement was to the east and somewhat closer to the Cracroft Island side. At 1:24am someone found time for a five minute rub. Right up to 8am we were still hearing faint calls only now instead of going away from the Ecological Reserve the whales turning around moved back to the Boat Bay area by 8:15am. At first staying closer to the Cracroft Island side, the A34s made it to the Sophias before 9am. The Achiever moved mid strait with these whales. The A34s crossed and by 9:43am had passed Little Kaikash on the Vancouver Island side. In the meantime, in the course of the afternoon, the Lab had four separate BiggÕs encounters. The BiggÕs action had begun earlier near Donegal Head. The Achiever, Seasmoke and Sailcone all reported seeing BiggÕs and later Jared Towers. Sailcone described a group of three BiggÕs (T117,T120 and T146D) engaged in killing a sea lion near Donegal at 12:34. Scotty even recorded some of their sounds. Our first encounter was when a small group of BiggÕs orcas went through Blackney Pass to the south. They showed up at 10:39, took incredibly long dives and swam the entire length of the Pass by 11am with only a few surfacings. This may have been the T146As whose story we pick up later in the day. At CP, two of the BiggÕs orcas passed within two meters of the shore below the platform, turning on their sides looking up at Jordan and Olivia - they will never be the same! The second was so quick and this time the three BiggÕs (the T146As again?) were headed north and gone by 1:03pm. Jared meanwhile observed that T146D split from T117 and T120 off Donegal in order to meet her sisterÕs group the T146As in Blackfish Sound where they milled off Double Bay. What T146D and the T146As did next is recalled more fully by Jared in his Instagram post.https://www.instagram.com/p/C_JhzYlym4b/ T117 and T120 went east to Blackney at 2:06pm. We soon had our third encounter at 2:06pm when T117 and T120 surprised us without warning by appearing right at Burnt Point. They moved out from the point, travelled through and were no longer seen by 2:18pm. The fourth and last BiggÕs event was at 5:23pm. This one involved the T46Bs and T46C2 who came from Johnstone Strait. They crossed in front of the Bell Rocks, travelled through to the north into Blackfish Sound at 3:48pm. T46C2 or Sam as she is affectionately known is a special whale to many. She was discovered alone in Weeteeam Bay, on the outer coast of remote Aristazabal Island in 2013. After two weeks Sam, who was visibly growing thinner, was coaxed out of the bay. Sam was re-sighted as she made her way alone ÒdownÓ the coast. She had a few more adventures along the way. One occasion was when a lone orca was seen near Minstrel Island in Knight Inlet not too far from OrcaLab. There is always concern when orcas become separated and seemingly alone. So three boats went to check out the situation. The whale could not be found even though the area was searched widely. The day was getting on. We had to leave. Jared in his own boat wanted to get gas at Minstrel Island before heading back too. He found T46C2 (Sam) near the gas dock not far from where she was first sighted. Over the years she has explored and hunted on her own, thrived and even joined family others as she did this day. Resuming the afternoon story of the residents in the western part of Johnstone Strait. Whales were reported going west on the Vancouver Island side near the Eve River at 12:15pm. That is quite far east so we wondered about that but would pick up that thread later in the day. This was at the same time the A34s were leaving Beaver Cove (much further west) and heading across to Weynton Pass. By 1:18pm they were in Weynton and by 1:32pm Alex, from her vantage point on Donegal Head, was reporting that they were going north fast. They completed going around Donegal Head by 1:41pm and got to Lizard by 2:30pm. Much of the afternoon for the other residents, the A50s, A54s, I4s, I27s, and I65s was about travelling west in the Strait. As they did so there were two short rubs at Strider, from 2:02 - 2:09pm and from 2:36 to 2:30pm. Resident and BiggÕs stories were destined to collide. At 2:42pm when both types of orcas were in the Strait they became vocal almost at the same time on the same hydrophone. This acoustic happenstance does not often occur but it is another example where BiggÕs and ResidentsÕ use of the area has been overlapping frequently this summer. The A50s took the Cracroft Island side. This was confirmed by the Cliff when they saw BendÕs distinctive fin. It sounded like the I15s were coming along on the Vancouver Island side. There were several whales mid strait as well. When the A34s were off Lizard Point around 5pm, the A54s and Pacific White-sided dolphins entered Blackney Pass followed by the I65s, A50s, I4s and I27s. The I27s were travelling in close with the A50s not far off the Hanson shore. I77 (of the I27s), his brother I107 and A84 (of the A50s) would continued to associate all the way to Weynton Passage. At 7:38pm Scotty saw them and the rest of the A30s and I15s enter Weynton Pass. The humpback Inukshuk galvanized our attention from 6:20 to 6:26ppm. He had been in the rip at CP with Freckles and her baby around 5:30pm. A while later he was in Blackney Pass. He travelled toward the lab surrounded by dolphins and a growing number of sea lions. It was a frenzied scene. Dolphins leapt, sea lions porpoised, Inukshuk bellowed out some sounds and a hefty growl after which he continued north and the dolphins, still leaping and the sea lions cavorting, went south together in an energetic rush. Inukshuk fluked off Burnt Point and was gone. The BiggÕs orcas were not yet done for the day. T117 and T120 returned close to CP from 7:47pm to 7:54pm and at 9:22pm BiggÕs were vocal in Blackfish Sound. We are not sure if all the I15s came back or just part of the group because by 8pm it was darkening and super foggy. However, close I15 calls and echolocation were heard on the Parson Island hydrophone as this group navigated the entrance to Blackney Pass. The I15 group was still calling at 8:15pm when a short while later incredibly faint A5 calls were heard. The A5s had missed all the dayÕs activity. It made sense that they were probably the group seen much further east, off the Eve River, at 12:15pm. It had taken them time to come within reach of our hydrophones. The A5s gradually got louder and closer after 9:15pm. Boat Bay finally heard their blows at 10:53pm and confirmed that they were going west. The I15s, further west were between them and the A54s, who were even further west, seen in Beaver Cove at 9:15pm. The day had less than an hour to go when calls and echolocation on Critical Point indicated that the A5s had made up some of the distance. At least the A23s would eventually come into Blackney Pass, go north, and enter Blackfish Sound. Best to leave it there. It was a complicated day with so many interesting facets, twists and turns. But by dayÕs end all the resident groups we have become familiar with were more or less together once more and the BiggÕs dispersed to others parts unknown.
OrcaLab
27 Aug 2024 11:30:06 PDT
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