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August 1 2022 Orcas: A50s, A54s, I04s, I27s,I65s Humpbacks: Guardian (Cramer Pass), Ridge, Stitch and more Pacific White-sided dolphins, Dalls Porpoise Hello August! It is hard to believe that it has been just twenty days since the Northern Residents returned (July 12). How could that be? It seems longer: Perhaps because we attempt to follow the movement of the whales throughout their entire day and night that our days seem extra full. And so it was when we began to hear A30 calls in Blackfish Sound at 1:20am. We knew the groups who had been around during the previous day (the A30s,I15s and A73s) had ended up travelling west so it was not entirely unexpected to hear them return from the same direction. The A30s fell into a pattern of resting calls and echolocation until just before 2am when they suddenly began to call quite energetically. They then gave a sustained outpouring of absolutely beautiful calls for the next fifteen minutes. After came their blows as they moved past Flower Island and into Blackney Pass on the far side. Steadily the calls grew stronger on the Parson Island hydrophone as they progressed through the Pass toward Johnstone Strait. It was a starry and calm night above and below the bioluminescence flashed near the shore every as we tracked the distant soft blows/ We counted nine and marked in the book the possibility that the A54s were the authors of the beautiful calls in Blackfish and the leaders into the Pass. The second group, consisting of the rest of the A30s (possibly the A50s), the I15s and the A73s (revealed acoustically a while later) advanced into Blackney Pass by 2:50am. They were somewhat closer to the Hanson Island side and in a much greater hurry. They had dolphins with them. By 3am the orcas and dolphins had almost all traversed Blackney, some already in Johnstone Strait. It took the groups about an hour and a half to navigate past Cracroft Point and Kaizumi beach (no rub) as they headed east toward Robson Bight. From 4:25am to 4:40am they streamed past the eastern headland of the Bight pretty much in the same order as when they came through Blackney Pass earlier, the A30s, A4s, I15s, more A30s. Afterwards the first whales approached the Strider beach and Main beach area. Echolocation and high pitched whistle tones belied their close proximity. We sensed what was going to happen next. Just before 5am (4:57am) the orcas began a brief one minute rub at Strider. Strong echolocation at Main at the same time told us that some were further east and close to that beach. Although no further rubs the orcas stayed near both beaches for quite a while: A30s close to Main from 4:51am were joined by the I15s shortly after coming close to Strider at 5am. The A4s, and another A30 group, were there too and heard both on the Strider and Main hydrophones but never as close as the others. Eventually, the whales began to move back west and by 6:19am they were approaching the waters adjacent to Kaizumi beach. They were actually seen from the remote camera around 6:30am. The Strait was busy. Three cruise ships were present. Some of the orcas got caught up in the wake of one of big boats as they spread out from the Vancouver Island shore to mid strait rushed westward. Around 7am orcas had crossed toward Cracroft Point seemingly continuing west as others, less decisive orcas milled closer to Kaizumi. The whales that had gone west past Cracroft Point turned back to the entrance of Blackney and proceeded north, Others from across the Strait followed. The first came into view at 7:35am. The passing of several whales, the A50s for sure and probably all three I15 groups was complete by 8:05am. The A73s were not identified but most likely there as well. The rest of the morning and early afternoon was uneventful. Lab routines continued. Jeremie and Claire helped Herve Glotin assemble his new hydrophone array. When ready Megan and Suzie dawned their dive gear to help deploy the array off of the Lab as David and Will managed the Sonic. Claire and Meg put on their wet suits and snorkels so that they might film the installation. The strong northwest wind which was mounting made conditions tricky but not impossible. David drove the boat very well and the job was completed without too much fuss. Eli had the good sense to suggest lighting the sauna up so the four divers could warm up once out of the waster. Shari made sure everyone had a hot drink too. Herve was happy and set to test the equipment in the next day or so. Finally, at 2:30pm we received a report that the A30s, I15s and the A73s were now off Kaikash Creek. They had headed that way after coming though Weynton Pass. There were no calls until groups neared Kaizumi at 3:17pm. We heard both A30 and I15 calls. Soon after there was a good twelve minute rub before these whales continued on their way east. Another twelve minute rub followed , involving several more individuals, at 3:41pm. They too left to the east and we watched them as they headed to and past Izumi Rock. Rubs would be the order of the day but not before the I15s, the A30s and the A73s passed the eastern headland (Critical Point) of Robson Bight around 4:30pm. Once again the A73s seemed further off shore at first than the shore hugging I15s and A30 groups.. Just like twelve hours earlier a rub at Strider beach began but this time it was a much more serious effort, one that would last for an hour and forty-one minutes and involve all the groups. They also rubbed energetically at Main starting at the same time (4:56pm) and ending just a minute before the Strider rub. Very difficult to describe in detail all of the activity during a rub. We write pages of notes. Far better to try and watch on https://explore.org/livecams/orcas/orcalab-base and see for yourself! It is simply incredible. Such an intimate and privilege look into the lives of these orcas. 7pm saw the whales back near Critical Point, 8pm off Kaizumi (where someone brushed the beach on the way west), 8:14pm several whales passed Cracroft Point with Bend (A72) clearly identified amongst these whales. Megan and Shari, who were now at “CP”, our camp on Cracroft Point, watched the whales pass and enter Blackney Pass. So again, twelve hours later, the groups were passing north through Blackney Pass. They were spread apart. First in were the A30s followed by the I27s and I65s and finally the I04s. Dolphins, not to be left out chased around the orcas. The Pass was full of other activity too. At least five humpbacks, including Ridge and Stitch, made themselves known by their ascending blows and arching dorsal backs. Dalls porpoise came close to the Lab contentedly foraging. Claire then followed the orcas west through Blackfish Sound until the light failed. Their calls long since ceased.
OrcaLab
02 Aug 2022 08:27:21 PDT |
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