Multiple pod calls audible. Just after we heard some fantastic vocalizations on Parson Island hydrophone, the team at Cracroft Point lost sight of the orcas as they moved into the sunset. We expected them to continue west into Weynton Passage, however they have a habit of surprising us and instead turned north into Blackney Pass at 7:41pm! We think that the first group to come through were the A50s followed by the A42s and then the A54s. Surf (A66) travelled independently in the middle, moving slowly amongst the three groups. There was an incredible amount of excitement amongst them with tail slapping, spy-hopping and several breaches! The first and second groups along with Surf (A66) cleared from Blackney Pass at 8:18pm and the final group cleared at 8:26pm, taking a few minutes to wow us with some spectacular breaches. We are now listening to them on Flower Island hydrophone as they make their way into Blackfish Sound. The footage of this incredible passing is available to watch for the next 3 hours here https://explore.org/livecams/orcas/orcalab-base Sian 05 Aug 2018 21:16:39 PDT Superb sounds!! Hearing some fantastic calls from the A30s now on Parson Island hydrophone! Sian 05 Aug 2018 19:29:19 PDT Orcas hunting fish. The A30s and A42s are approaching Robson Bight cam! Watch now on explore! http://explore.org/live-cams/player/orcalab-robson-bight Momoko & Amelie 05 Aug 2018 13:22:49 PDT No calls but orcas nearby At 8:35 this morning we heard distant calls off Blackfish Sound. We had thought the A30s and the A42s had gone north through Blackney Pass at 4am so imagined this was them. A report came in that the whales were in Wentn Passage so it was a complete surprise when the silent A30s and A42s came into Blackney Pass headed south. They were all together favouring our side and as the fog bank had recently cleared we could follow them through the Pass and into Johnstone Strait on the various remote cameras. They passed the Cracroft Point camp fairly closely and there was some wonderful video. Likewise on the CP remote camera. briefly at 10:15 some of the group became vocal as they passed the camp. They have since continued east. They are still visible as they head to the Vancouver Island shore on the CP remote camera. They are still silent. Helena 05 Aug 2018 11:37:27 PDT No calls but orcas nearby At 8:35 this morning we heard distant calls off Blackfish Sound. We had thought the A30s and the A42s had gone north through Blackney Pass at 4am so imagined this was them. A report came in that the whales were in Wentn Passage so it was a complete surprise when the silent A30s and A42s came into Blackney Pass headed south. They were all together favouring our side and as the fog bank had recently cleared we could follow them through the Pass and into Johnstone Strait on the various remote cameras. They passed the Cracroft Point camp fairly closely and there was some wonderful video. Likewise on the CP remote camera. briefly at 10:15 some of the group became vocal as they passed the camp. They have since continued east. They are still visible as they head to the Vancouver Island shore on the CP remote camera. They are still silent. Helena 05 Aug 2018 11:36:37 PDT Distant calls audible. Since our last update, the A30s and A42s continued to the east from CP. They came to Robson Bight around 10:22pm. We think they went to east from the Bight. Then they came back to Robson Bight at 1:02am. We heard a lot of excited close calls. They left the Bight and kept going to the west in Johnstone Strait. We started picking up their calls on our Cracroft Point hydrophone around 2:50am. Meanwhile, two cruise ship and tug boat passed in front of the lab. Around 3:30am, they were off the entrance of Blackney Pass. At 4:04am, we could hear their blows passing in front of the lab to the north. It sounded like the 1st group was 5 - 6 individuals and the 2nd group was 8 - 10. They all cleared to Blackfish Sound at 4:34am.The A30s were quite vocal when they entered Blackney Pass. We haven't heard A5 calls for a while but we think all of them ended up in Blackfish Sound. We are waiting for them to speak up again! Momoko 05 Aug 2018 05:12:58 PDT Superb sounds!! Some incredible calls on CRPT right now! A30s/A5s heading back west through Johnstone Strait! Emma 05 Aug 2018 01:10:48 PDT

Orcas hunting fish. We have had a very exciting evening here at the lab! But first, let us backtrack a little. The A54s (belonging to the A30s) and A42s continued on their journey westward, and at 1:33pm they had just passed Blinkhorn heading to Beaver Cove, close to the Vancouver Island shore. At 2:00pm we received a report that they had turned around and were headed back to Blinkhorn (east), and at 15:28pm we were notified that they had crossed to the Hanson Island shore and were moving very slowly; still easting. Sure enough, just after 5pm we picked up A30 and A42 calls once more in the strait, and we saw them on our Critical Point camera, foraging around the entrance to Blackney Pass. Here they stayed for a couple of hours. Occasionally, it would look like they were headed into Blackney but they remained and the entrance of the passage, whilst we awaited them eagerly! There was an awful lot of boat noise across all channels, but we noted that their calls, especially the A54s, became more frequent and seemingly more excited. Finally, the two groups made their way into our view at 7:32pm. (Here's where it starts to get really exciting.) A66 was the first fin on the scene: his tall dorsal coming into view from the south, flanked closely by some small fins (more of the A42s). They traveled mid-channel and fairly quickly, when at once the A54s came hurrying through the pass. They were porpoising in a tight group, vocalizing very excitedly as they traveled. Suddenly, we picked up MORE excited A30 calls coming from the north in Blackfish Sound: it must be the A50s! The A54s continued north to meet their kin, and we were delighted to think of both halves of the A30 matriline reunited once more. Both groups had cleared from our view to the north by 8:03pm... or so we thought! In an instant, the A30 calls grew louder again on our local hydrophone once more when, all at once, the entire A30 matriline came back into view, passing close to the lab and speeding back to the south. They traveled in a tight-knit group, breathing collectively and making joyous vocalizations; it was a truly beautiful passing. The A42s followed suit, and they too traveled past the lab once more, heading south. Both groups had cleared from our view at 8:28pm (for good, this time!) and they traveled past Cracroft Point in the beautiful sunset light. We have followed them acoustically since we lost the light, and both groups are currently in Robson Bight. There are currently good calls and echolocation - perhaps a midnight snack whilst they share tales from their journeys? Phew! What an evening. Suzie 04 Aug 2018 21:48:54 PDT Superb sounds!! All the A30s and A42s are approaching CP! Watch them on http://explore.org/live-cams/player/orcalab-cracroft-point-surface OL crew 04 Aug 2018 20:38:34 PDT Distant calls audible. After a peaceful morning at the lab, we began to pick up A30 and A5 calls once more just after 10am in the Strait. We quickly found them on our Critical Point camera and heard echolocation in Robson Bight, where they foraged and slowly traveled west. They are still headed west in the Strait, hugging the Vancouver Island shore. We are currently watching them on our Cracroft Point camera, and although there's an unfortunate drone from boat noise, we have distant calls on the CP hydrophone too. We're waiting to see whether they keep west, or dip into Blackney Pass. Suzie 04 Aug 2018 12:35:01 PDT Distant calls audible. We began hearing calls again at 4:46pm when the A42s and A54s made a turn back to the east. We acoustically followed their progress east, and at 5:49pm we could see them on our Cracroft Point camera. The orcas foraged at CP for approximately two hours. They seemed to tease us with several slow, northerly movements towards Blackney Pass, only to turn around again and continue foraging. Eventually a decision was made, and both groups finally began to make their way north through Blackney Pass towards Blackfish Sound. It was a beautiful pass by, backlit by a beautiful sunset and calm waters. The A54s appeared to lead the way, with A66 and the trailing A42s not far behind. At 9:13pm, the groups disappeared from sight and went quiet shortly after. The orcas did not wait long before making a turn back to the South. At 10:20pm, we could hear blows in front of the lab. The orcas were completely silent on the hydrophones and travelled fairly quickly towards Johnstone Strait. They have continued to be silent until just before 3:00am when we began to hear A1 calls from within the Bight. We are listening to them now on our Critical Point hydrophone. Dylan 04 Aug 2018 03:14:31 PDT

No calls but orcas nearby It was a relatively quiet night, last night. At 11:01pm, the A42s and A54s spent about an hour within the Bight before continuing on to the east. We heard no more calls for the rest of the night. As the sun came up we began to scan Johnstone Strait for any hints of blows or dorsal fins. Then, at 9:06am we received a report that there was a large group of orcas westing along the Vancouver Island side of the Strait, west of the reserve boundary. We were just able to make out a series of blows across the strait using the cameras. The orcas were quiet, but there appeared to be more than 10 or so orcas moving quite slowly towards the Bight. Finally at 10:15am, we heard the familiar calls of the A42s and A54s from the previous night. The two groups foraged for about an hour, making several close passes by our hydrophone and camera before continuing eastward. At 11:32, they were spotted just off shore from the main rubbing beach, but did not come in any further. Once again, they turned back to the west, and travelled very close to shore as they returned to the Bight. Their travel trended in a westerly direction for the next several hours and by 2:30pm we could no longer hear their calls. The orcas have continued west in the Strait and we await their next movements.  Dylan and Amelie 03 Aug 2018 16:40:16 PDT

Distant calls audible. Since our morning report, we had last heard calls at 8:34am from Blackfish Sound. After several hours break, we had a report from Lukuwa that the orcas were entering Johnstone Strait via Weynton Pass, along the Hanson Island shore at 10:10am. We started hearing A5 calls at 1:30pm. Megan and Shari at CP reported that the orcas were approaching the entrance of Blackney Pass on Hanson Island shoreline. They spent about an hour in the entrance of Blackney Pass. They were very playful, rolling around each other and tail slapping. At 3:24pm, the A54s and A42s came into Blackney Pass, but they were strangling in the flood tide, going back and forth in the south of Blackney. Finally they started slowly going north and then they headed into Blackfish Sound at 4:53pm. We kept hearing their calls from Blackfish Sound, then at 7:35pm,they came back into our view and passed in front of the lab to the south. They cleared from our view at 8:00pm and slowly headed into the Strait. We could see them breaching and spy hopping on our Parson Rock cam. Now they are making their way to Robson Bight amidst a lot of boat noise from gill netters fishing during the sockeye opening.  Momoko & Dylan 02 Aug 2018 21:57:33 PDT No calls but orcas nearby At 7:46am the A54s surprised us by appearing in front of the lab, emerging from the fog. They arrived from the south in complete silence and didn't begin to call until 8:31am, once they had disappeared back into the fog to the north and out of Blackney. We continued to hear calls in Blackfish Sound for around 10 minutes before they fell silent once more. Sian & Suzie 02 Aug 2018 09:41:14 PDT Distant calls audible. Last night, the last calls we heard were at 11:00pm from Blackfish Sound. Several hours later, we heard a few calls at 2:42am and realized there were blows in the north of Blackney Pass at 2:55am. It seemed like they just entered Blackney Pass then headed back to Blackfish Sound. The blows cleared to north at 3:24am. We started hearing them at 3:48am from Blackfish Sound. We acoustically identified them as the A42s. Then suddenly the A30 group started to calling at 4:27am. They are in Johnstone Strait, going east. As the fishing opening has started since 6pm last night, there is a lot of boat noise in the strait! Momoko 02 Aug 2018 05:03:33 PDT

No calls but orcas nearby Quite an interesting evening at the lab! We continued to hear and watch the A30s mill and forage off CP until around 7:30pm, when they finally headed into Blackney Pass, traveling north. They passed fairly spread out and on the far side of the channel. Interestingly, we noticed a lack of A72 (Bend) who is very easily recognizable by her dorsal, but we did ID A75 plus two babies. Due to this identification, and with a total of 6 in this group, it became clear that we had the whole of the A54 matrline in front of the lab. This means they have separated from the A50s whom they are often seen traveling with... will they reunite, or could this be the start of a more permanent separation? We are excited to see what happens next! Just as the A54s cleared from our view to the north, we turned to appreciate the sunset hitting the mountains on Vancouver Island... and we saw more orcas! Initially silent, we recognized the large male, A66 (Surf) and counted 5 more smaller fins: making the A42 matriline. This is in line with the calls we were hearing on Critical Point earlier in the day, and sure enough they started to vocalize as they passed the lab and confirmed their acoustic identity. They milled and foraged and eventually cleared to the north at 8:31pm. The last calls were at 9:30pm in Blackfish Sound. We are still pondering the A4-esque calls that we heard last at 5:04pm on Critical Point, as we have heard nothing since. Did they turn back or are they silently traversing the Strait. Let's see what the night brings... Suzie 01 Aug 2018 22:02:18 PDT Distant calls audible. After spending hours foraging in the Bight, around 6:00am, the A30s and the A42s began to head west in the Strait. The A4 group was silent for most of the night, but also travelled west. The A30 group and A42s eventually turned back to the east and we could hear their calls on Critical Point at 12:23pm. For the rest of the early afternoon, they foraged in the Bight. We could hear lots of echolocation amidst the various boat noise from fishing vessels inside the reserve. The calls became faint around 2:26pm when the orcas appeared to make a turn to the west. About an hour later the A30s and A42s could be heard on the CP hydrophone. These two groups have been foraging just off the entrance of Blackney Pass since then. At 2:23pm, we also received a report that the Naiad Explorer was with some of the A30s, an A4 group, and the I27s near Port Hardy. Interestingly, we heard a single A4 type call on Flower Island at 4:21pm. This A4 group then must have taken Weynton Passage to the Strait as we heard more A4 calls distantly on Critical Point at 5:04pm. We are still watching some serious foraging going on at CP. You can watch now on explore.org! https://explore.org/livecams/oceans/orcalab-megans-cracroft-point-cam OL Crew 01 Aug 2018 18:07:43 PDT Superb sounds!! There has continued to be a lot of movement by the orcas since our last update. We lost sight of the A4's and A42's in the Bight at 9:30pm and their calls began to get very faint shortly after. As the evening progressed, just before 11:00pm we began to hear A30 calls on Flower Island along with a few I15 calls. Meanwhile, the A4 and A42 groups had made westerly progress through Johnstone Strait as we picked up their calls on CP at 11:29pm. They made quick progress as they travelled into the entrance of Blackney Pass. At 11:34pm we could hear at least the A4's on Parson Island and as they travelled further into Blackney Pass we began to pick up their calls on Local Left. The previously mentioned A30 and I15 groups could still be heard on Flower Island, and at 11:52pm we could also hear them on Local Left. There was several fishing boats travelling in a row and it was difficult to hear blows outside the lab. The A30's, I15s, A4's and A42's appeared to meet up in Blackney Pass, and then things got a little bit interesting. The groups went quiet at 12:09am and the only clues we had was an assortment of many blows spread throughout Blackney Pass in front of the lab. We finally began to hear calls again on Flower Island at 1:02am. It sounded as if the I15 group and at least some of the A30's had gone back into Blackfish Sound. By 1:42am the A42's and another group of the A30's had already reached Robson Bight. The A4's lagged behind them and remained close to CP. We have been now listening to the A42's and at least some of the A30's foraging in the Bight for several hours. The A4's have been slowly easting and are now also being heard on Critical Point. We are waiting for more clues about the whereabouts of the I15s the rest of the A30s. Dylan and Tomoko 01 Aug 2018 04:09:29 PDT