Wednesday, July 27, 2022




July 27 2022 Orcas: A50s, A54s(heard), A35s/ A56 (heard), A73s, A42s (heard) I35s, I68s Humpbacks: Stitch, Argonaut, Insomnia Pacific White-sided dolphin Minke: Eclipse Starting this summary one needs to imagine sitting in our Lab at midnight earphones on, listening, very dark outside. Serene but not quiet. Far away near the eastern end of the Ecological Reserve under a clear starry night and in calm waters were the Northern Resident orcas who had been present all day. Here they had paused somewhere between Strider and Main beaches. Their conversation was intense at times especially when nearer the hydrophones and they strongly echo located, pounding the ocean with their heavy precise clicks. So close at time and yet they did not rub. They were not alone. Dolphins were not too far away and then a humpback around 12:30am happened by and made his presence known. This was quite startling. As the orcas made several heavy click trains the humpback punctuated them with whups, grunts and swirling water. He was close! Neither the humpback or the orcas seemed willing to give ground to the other. This was reminiscent of long ago in 1993 when Offshore orcas once ventured into Blackney Pass at the same time as the A30s. The A30s after following the quickly retreating Offshores into Blackfish Sound, returned promptly to Blackney and pounded out the same type of heavy echolocation for several minutes. Of course it is very possible something else was going on. The humpback calmed down eventually but still the orcas stayed in the same vicinity for several hours more. Finally just before 5am (remember this all began before midnight) the I35s and or the I68s went for a five minute rub at Main. A little while later the As performed a three minute rub at Strider after which there was a succession of rubs: 5:16am (44 minutes) at Main, 5:41am (less than a minute) at Strider, 5:45am (less than a minute) at Kaizumi, 6:08am (twelve minutes) at Main, 6:29am (eight minutes) at Main and finally 6:46am (ten minutes) at Main once more. It took a while longer but groups were actually on the move to the west if ever so gradually. By 9:46am the Cliff camp saw orcas coming out of Robson Bight (had they rested there after all the nighttime activity?) and a small group of five close to the Cracroft Island shore heading west. From Noon on we attempted to track the not very vocal whales on both shores with the remote cameras. At 12:1pm several passed Kaizumi. First seen going east! Soon they shifted back to the west showing some indecision or at least some hesitancy on their part. This may have been the A23s. By 12:30pm these orcas were angling over to the Cracroft side where other orcas, including Bend from the A50s, were already milling. A group could be seen continuing west along the Hanson Island shore. There was so much going on! Later we were to learn from Jared that the I35s and I68s went west ÒoutÓ Cormorant Channel by 4pm. Before that at 1:19pm faint echolocation, which became quite strong, was heard at Main beach. It was a bit of a surprise to realise that the orcas were still so very spread out throughout the Strait. A rub followed this echolocation at 1:20pm. There were no definite calls to help with identification and as mentioned before we do not have a surface camera there this year so we were a bit handicapped. We suspect the A54s as we heard A30 calls later at 4pm further west near Kaizumi beach knowing that the rest of the A30s were still on the Cracroft Island shore. Things became a little clearer when the groups began to collect and vocalize more intently off the entrance to Blackney Pass around 4:30pm. The A50s, A54s, A23s and A73s then went north through Blackney Pass between 4:38pm and 5:05pm. We followed them west on the Flower Island remote until 5:25pm. A little over an hour later they were back. But the current was against them and they didnÕt try too hard to fight it. Getting partially into Blackney Pass they turned back to the north a 6:47pm They had been favouring the Hanson Island side when they came in and once back in Blackfish they continued along this shore. By 8pm the glare from the setting sun was pretty bad and we lost them. Dolphins who had been following the orcas chatted for a bit at 7:45pm as a nice postscript to a pretty complete, busy day. We were left wondering what happened to the A35s and the A42s? Did they leave to the east after that midnight rendezvous off of the rubbing beaches? Was that what all the fuss was about? Or did they manage to slip off to the west like the I35s and I68s? We are going to have to just wait and see. 
OrcaLab
28 Jul 2022 08:27:06 PDT
Posted by at No comments:

Tuesday, July 26, 2022




July 26 2022 Orcas: A50s, A54s, A23s, A35s, A56, A73s, A42s, I35s, I68s Humpbacks: Stitch, Argonaut Pacific White-sided dolphins The I35s and I68s made the journey back from the central portion of Johnstone Strait where they had spent the better part of the day and around midnight they were westbound to Cracroft Point and the entrance to Blackney Pass. The other groups, the A30s, A5s and A4s, had themselves gone west earlier. By midnight after travelling through Weynton Passage they were in Blackfish Sound where they started calling vibrantly. Instead of drawing the I35s and I68s into Blackfish Sound the exact opposite happened. The As travelled Blackney Pass and into Johnstone Strait and connected with the I35s/I68s just after 3am. Freddy, who was in the Lab, had checked outside and heard blows twenty minutes earlier after hearing loud A30 calls on the Parson Island hydrophone. She heard some as the rest of the As followed through the Pass before.The large wake of a cruise ship confounded her ability to listen for long. One has to ask why they just didnÕt wait in Johnstone Strait rather than spending all that energy making a huge circle around Hanson Island? Perhaps it is all about timing and the need to always be on the move anyway. Did they have another reason? Once all the groups were in Johnstone Strait they coordinated their movements to the east in the direction of the Ecological Reserve but not before some of the As accompanied the Gs closer to Vancouver Island. From 4am onwards the whales kept to the area east of Cracroft Point between Boat Bay and Robson Bight. They had a lot to say to each other. Their calls waned and waxed past 6am by which time some of the whales had edged in even closer to Robson Bight and then dropped ÒdownÓ to Strider beach by 6:24am. A series of rubs began at 6:30am at Strider. The first one ended at 6:39am, the next one started at 6:45am and lasted thirteen minutes with whales heading west. Another group slipped by into Main but did not rub and probably turned west soon after as well.. Another, much shorter rub at Strider followed at 8:34am. Nancy had managed most of this activity on her own. Though relief arrived with the next shift Nancy commented that the intensity of the moment had made her feel alive! Whales can do that to someone! The morning was foggy, very foggy. By listening we understood that at least the A30s came back past Kaizumi and up to Cracroft Point. We even managed to use the remote CP camera by 10:30am when some of the fog began to burn off. Bend (A72) and others paced back and forth for a while before the fog once again obscured them. At first we thought they were going west but later revised this when we saw these same whales at Strider some time after a very long rub had started at 12:39pm. The rub lasted two hours and involved all of the groups in a succession of appearances. It was even nuanced by a rub at Main beach as the groups looked to have their own turn at rubbing. Using both beaches was a great solution. Nancy jumped in again and worked the camera at Strider and Eli took a turn writing copious notes. Lucy took over from Nancy when she finally acknowledged that she really did need some sleep. Eventually the rubs showed signs of subsiding as groups peeled off once again to the west. Just when we thought they were done another group showed up!. To our astonishment one of the last groups turned out to be the A42s! Lucy was amazed. We had no idea they were around. The last we had heard the A42 family was still way up on the north coast. Had they come in during the midnight sojourn in Blackfish Sound? Was that the reason the orcas had circled round? In the confusion of whales rubbing we may have even caught a glimpse of Current (A79) and Surge (A66) in the crowd. Then there came the moment they had Strider to themselves. It was a good moment especially for Lucy who was at the controls of the remote camera. At 2:39pm the rub was finally over and all the whales were westbound. Even Springer (A73) and her two young one passed through Strider after having been at Main beach. It was a long slow trek ÒupÓ the Strait. The whales were spread from shore to shore passing Critical Point and Robson Bight from 2:48pm on. At 3:52pm whales passed Kaizumi and even did a flyby rub on the way without really stopping.The A23s were definitely on the Cracroft Island side around the same time as those passing Kaizumi. For a moment they looked like they might head into Blackney Pass but then carried on with everyone else toward the western end of the Strait by 6pm. This then gave everyone the opportunity to go through Weynton Passage once again, this time with the I35s and the I68s! They started to come out the Blackfish Sound side after 7:11pm. They really didnÕt spend a lot of time in Blackfish and soon started to move east. At first they were quite spread out and we followed individuals or small groups with the remote camera. While doing so closer to Flower Island at 7:50pm, a Minke Whale surfaced near the orcas going in the opposite direction. That was a surprise! Dolphins also darted and dodged among the orcas. There had been dolphins with the orcas since before the long afternoon rub. The eastbound orcas soon compacted themselves into their family groups as they entered Blackney Pass. In came the A30s, the A42s, the A23s, the A4s and the I35s. Nice pass, the ocean was mirror calm, humpbacks breaching, the orcas quiet until they reached Parson Island and the entrance of Blackney Pass. Unfortunately, a lone zodiac zipped through Blackney after the whales and spoiled the beautiful calls that were happening and interrupted the rare undisturbed moment the whales had been experiencing just before. On arriving in the Strait at 9:13pm the whales curled east and formed a long line as they began to cross the Strait. We left off using the remote camera as the shape of their blows became softer and less distinct in the fading light and the whales moved further away. Before 11pm the orcas were off Robson Bight and soon approaching Strider once again. What unfolded next was rather remarkable. The whales came very close to both Strider and Main but did not rub! The A30s were the most prominent but the A5s chimed in too. The G clan whales held a presence while the A4s, who seemed further away, only occasionally contributed. But this chorus was to take many shifts past midnight when there was even a surprise visitor too. 
OrcaLab
27 Jul 2022 08:38:43 PDT
Posted by at No comments:



July 25 2022 Orcas: A54s, A50s, A23s,A73s, A35s, G clan group (I35s?) Humpbacks: Argonaut, Stitch Pacific White-sided dolphins Midnight brought the pleasant surprise that the A4s were back. The restlessness of the A54s was now explained. They had been simply pacing all day waiting for the arrival of ÒnewÓ groups. We wouldnÕt know until the whales went through Weynton Passage just who had come in. More surprises. Not only the A4s but the A5s, the A50s and a G clan group as well, possibly the I35s. Just before 2am, these groups started to arrive in Johnstone Strait. The hydrophones with the longest reach, Strider and this time Main registered their calls. Other stations then soon came into play. At 2:13am Cracroft Point was picking up the calls and by 2:37am Kaizumi contributed to. The whales were definitely eastbound. A cruise ship attempted to mask the distant calls but by 2:44am the calls on Strider were getting louder as the whales moved closer. Over the next hour Tomoko and Momoko in Japan pretty much figured out who was there and helped guide the Lab as to what was happening based on their experience and knowledge of the whales and our system. There were a lot of whales to keep track of. At least the groups were unified and headed in the same direction which could not be said later in the day! How remarkable that the A50s (confirmed visually later in the day) had finally returned bringing company into the area. Where had they found each other? How do they do that? The faint calls became up close and beautiful around 4am when the G clan group neared Kaizumi. The other groups seemed to be further offshore. No one rubbed at Kaizumi but then the height of the tide was still very low. The G clan calls stayed clear and close until 4:16am. A few of the A30s and A5s came after and leant some close calls into the mix as well. From there the whales continued east toward the Ecological Reserve. By 5am the lead whales were already off Main beach. Other groups stretched all the way back to Robson Bight. There was general excitement among the groups. Within the hour there were several other close calls as the whales passed each of the stations in the Ecological Reserve. There was even a rub at Strider beginning at 5:35am and ending at 5:39am. The tide was still low but the geography of this beach is a bit more generous and allowed for this quick rub. But it was here that the story began to change somewhat. The other groups began to separate from the G clan group (again we think it was the I35s) continuing moving east while the others stayed their progress, paused for a rub between 5:49am and 5:52am and eventually went back to the west. They had a few dolphins attending as well. Later that morning a group of six Northern Residents, probably the G clan group, were seen off Port Neville. Despite the morning being shrouded in fog we managed to find the now westbound orcas on the Kaizumi remote camera between 7:15 and 7:37am. A while later at 7:54am orcas were seen on the Cracroft Point remote just as they turned into Blackney Pass. We attempted to watch them through the fog head north from 8:16am until 9:04 when they disappeared into Blackfish Sound. The fog really didnÕt help our efforts to identify individuals but we guessed that the A23s, A50s, A54s, A35s and A73s were together. Afterwards these groups pretty much stayed near the cusp of Queen Charlotte Strait and Blackfish Sound until the afternoon. Alex reported them off Donegal Head around 10am and Jared Towers noted that the A23s, A50s,A54s, and A73s (now fully identified) were in a resting line in the same area at 10:44am. Sometime after 2pm the majority had moved into Weynon Passage. The A23s and the A73s lagged behind and were seen near the Plumper Islands by Will, Emma and David on the Sonic returning to Hanson from Alert Bay at 2:30pm - good piece of the puzzle! The reunited A50s and A54s travelled east in Johnstone Strait after reentry as did the A35s. However, the A30 groups turned into Blackney Pass at 3:35pm while the A35s continued east along the Cracroft Island shore in Johnstone Strait. While the A35s milled about in the Strait the A50s and A54s slipped into Blackfish Sound where they paced, foraged and waited for the A23s and A73s to rejoin them. The A35s, meanwhile, were making occasional calls and not really committing to a direction either. There was a lot of milling on both sides. In Blackfish the groups shifted closer to Burnt Point just around the corner from the Lab by 6:45pm. Finally, the A23s made a definite move and came into our view at 7:48pm but three minutes later they returned to Blackfish. They then very politely allowed the A50s and A75s to lead them back in. In clustered groups the parade began.The A23s came in after the A50s and A75s. The A73s followed and finally the rest of the A54s. It was characterized by long dives between surfacings. The A35s could be heard coming back toward Cracroft Point ahead of the others travelling through to the entrance of Blackney Pass. It was getting on to 9:30pm and the light was fading. The whales probably didnÕt go very far, staying in the general area between Kaizumi and Cracroft Point over the next while. At 10:24pm Lucy heard telltale echolocation at Main beach followed by G clan calls. The G group had returned from the east and were inclined to have a rub first at Main starting at 10:34pm and at Strider at 10:41pm. The rub at Main ended at 10:44pm and the one at Strider a couple of minutes later. From there the G group went west toward the others whose calls had become increasingly distant as they too moved west further ÒupÓ the Strait. Everyone, once again, was moving in the same direction. From 11pm until midnight the calls of the various groups, both A and G clan, were fairly distant. Even the echolocation made by the G group off Robson Bight at 11:08pm was not strong so perhaps they had moved offshore by this time before reaching Cracroft Point. The day was almost over. The As would continue west in the Strait and ÒoutÓ through Weynton and back to Blackfish Sound and wait for the G group to come up to the entrance to Blackney, to have a chat and perhaps a reunion - but that might be a spoiler for tomorrowÕs summary! 
OrcaLab
26 Jul 2022 10:05:26 PDT
Posted by at No comments:

Monday, July 25, 2022




July 24 2022 Orcas: A54s, Biggs (?T069s) Humpbacks: Stitch, Meniscus (first sighting for 2022), Argonaut,Guardian Pacific White-sided dolphins This day was a merry-go-round! The A54s did serious laps around Hanson Island and in Johnstone Strait. At midnight they were in Johnstone Strait after traveling from Blackfish Sound via Weynton Passage. One of our hydrophones, Strider, hears very far west and seems to reliably capture the calls of orcas soon after entering the Strait. Given how long the distances are, calls can remain distant and faint to our ears for a very long time. Even when they got further ÒdownÓ the Strait their calls remained distant even when passing offshore of Kaizumi from 1:54am to 2:35am. But they did make progress and just before 4am they were actually closer to Strider as evident by the now close calls and echolocation. They hovered here, some shifting closer to the Main beach further east. At 4:25am to 4:33am there were very loud calls on Main but no clear evidence of a rub. However, a couple minutes later there were very loud calls at Strider and in another couple of minutes at 4:37am someone made a brief pass over the pebbles. Their time here was then up, they turned and went back to the west. By 4:46am their calls ceased making tracking difficult. Calls heard on the Kaizumi hydrophone at 7am offered better proof that they were on their way west, followed by more solid evidence when their calls became loud on the Parson Island hydrophone at 7:13am They were on their way ÒinÓ and at 7:16am they were in view of the Lab heading north through Blackney Pass. They travelled quickly to Blackfish Sound then slowed, milled about and foraged for a time before continuing west. We lost track after the last faint calls at 8:22am and the last sight on the remote camera at 8:35am when they were very far away. In the ensuing break, when we were not hearing calls or obtaining reports about the A54s whereabouts, the Cliff camp spotted four orcas travelling west past Strider at 11:51am. It was obviously not the A54s but a group of Biggs, possibly the T69s. By 1pm these orcas were opposite Kaizumi. For a while we followed them on the remote cameras as they charged west mid strait. Well surprise! At 2:50pm the A54s turned up once again in Blackney Pass. As they were going north again we had to assume that they had silently circled around from Blackfish Sound via Weynton Passage and had travelled all the way to and into the entrance to Blackney Pass. It took them over 50 minutes to pass through, much longer than their previous jaunt at 7am. There was a lot of stopping to forage as they moved along. Even at 3:45pm orcas had not totally cleared our view. Most of the activity finally shifted into Blackfish Sound where they remained. After over an hour the A54s had decided they had had enough of Blackfish and they began to double back in the direction of Blackney Pass. From 5:21pm until 5:53pm they moved through Blackney Pass. This was quicker than before and this time there was not much stopping and starting. They were fairly spread out and before they all cleared our view their calls were already echoing through the entrance to Blackney Pass to Cracroft Point. They had become quite excited and made lots of calls demonstrating this change in mood. They came on to the remote camera at Cracroft Point by 6:15pm. The current wasnÕt in their favour - it hadnÕt been in Blackney either - and they struggled somewhat as they tried to get across to the Vancouver Island side. We believe they gave up and ended up going off to the west for another go at Weynton Pass. Round and round. The A54s were certainly restless. They didnÕt even go for one of their usual two plus hour rubs. Instead there was a lot of foraging. Something was definitely changing. At 10:22pm we heard them once again distantly. This time they were probably well west of Blackfish Sound and by midnight there was the hint of the possibility of new groups arriving. One other note. Jordan managed to take a picture of humpback MeniscusÕ fluke. On checking with Jackie Hildering of MERS it was confirmed this was the first sighting of Meniscus in this area.
OrcaLab
25 Jul 2022 10:58:42 PDT
Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)