June 26, 2024, 3:30pm - T-party along Valdes Island, with Humpbacks in the mix?!

This afternoon we decided to head south, since there was a report of whales that were travelling north of off Galiano Island. We didn’t have too many details, but we decided to risk it instead of looking for the same whales we saw during the morning tour. This sure paid off, since we ended up finding about 21 whales! With so many whales around, not only was it hard to get photos of everyone, it was even harder to get IDs. We eventually figured out that there were 5 pods present, as well as a lone female. These were the whales we got photos of:

T036A Leland ♀ (1990)
T036A1 Tierna ♀ (2005)
T036A1A (2022)
T036A2 Kailas ♀ (2012)
T036A3 Storm/Mike III ♂ (2015)

T037A1 Inyo ♀ (2007)

T046B1 Tread ♀ (2003)
T046B1A Tsakani ♀ (2015)
T046B1C ♂ (2022)

T049A Nan ♀ (1986)
T049A1 Noah ♂ (2001)
T049A3 Nat ♂ (2011)
T049A4 Neptune ♂ (2014)
T049A5 Nebula ♀ (2017)
T049A6 Charlie II ♂ (2022)

T065A Fingers/Artemis ♀ (1986)
T065A2 Ooxjaa ♂ (2004)
T065A3 Amir ♂ (2007)
T065A4 Ellifrit ♀ (2011)
T065A6 Callisto ♀ (2018)

T065B Chunk ♀ (1993)
T065B1 Birdsall ♂ (2011)
T065B2 Nettle ♂ (2019)
T065B3 (2023)

T099 Bella ♀ (~ 1984)
T099B Holly ♀ (2007)
T099C Barakat ♂ (2009)
T099D Puck ♂ (2015)
T099E (2021)

It was a true T-party today, and the whales were having a blast socializing! We saw some breaching, tail slapping, and other surface behaviours. The other cool thing that we got to experience during the T-party was the communication between individuals. It’s not very often that we hear the Biggs orca talking to each other since they rely on stealth for hunting, but when they’re in large groups like this hunting isn’t on their mind! Socialization is a huge part of an orca’s life, and they have a very complex social structure. Special parties like this are very important since it means members are able to socialize outside of their own family group.

Orca socialization isn’t just a part of their culture, it’s literally hard-wired into their brains! Research has shown that Orca have highly developed limbic systems (three regions, as opposed to one in humans!), and possess more folds (gyri) than humans do. The limbic system is responsible for how we process social interaction, and emotion and form memories, and is also associated with empathy. Alongside their beefed-up social skills, these guys also possess a highly developed insular cortex and operculum, areas responsible for language, speech and auditory processing. Looking at only anatomy, these highly developed areas suggest an advanced social organization and culture within the Orca species, and anyone who has watched these phenomenal animals regularly will attest to that! It’s incredible to watch different pods interact with each other, and knowing a little bit about all the ways their brains tick makes it all the more interesting! For a deeper dive into Orca brain anatomy, check out this paper published by Marino et al. (2004).

While we were watching the orca, we noticed some different-looking blows nearby. Is that a humpback?! Yes, there was humpback now mixed in with the orca! It wasn’t an attempted hunt going on between the whales, rather it seemed to be a game of tag. One moment the orca was chasing the humpback, and the next moment it was the other way around. These sorts of interactions seem to be increasing this year, given this is the third time we have seen it and it’s only June! In previous years, it would be rare to see this more than once a season, if at all. We were able to ID one of the humpback whales in the mix as Scratchy (BCY1022)! There was another one or two there, but we weren’t able to figure them out.

It can be hard to leave behind interesting interactions like this one, but it was eventually time to leave the whales to it, and we started to head home. We went north from the whales to Stinky Rocks where we saw some Harbour Seals and Sea Lions spending time on the rocks. From there it was back to the harbour, pleased with all the great wildlife viewing we experienced!

The photos from today were taken by the onboard Marine Naturalist Hayleigh Hilbert and can all be viewed below!

Ellifrit, Kalias and Tierna hanging out together.

Inyo is very easy to ID because of the notches on her dorsal fin.

Chunk is the matriarch of her family and today she was hanging out with her sister and nieces and nephews.

Ooxjaa is a full grown male so his dorsal fin can be 6 feet tall!

We can use the dorsal fins on these orca to ID them. The adults in the photo are Ellifrit, Tierna and Tread.

Amir was originally name Amira but that was changed when it was realized he was a male.

The blow (breath) of our whales is often what we use to find them. Look how high that does!

This orca and humpback are not hanging out. We see humpback harassing orca more and more in our area.

A Steller sea lion male with the top spot on the rock.

A harbour seal in a banana pose. This is a relaxation pose.

Jilann LechnerJune 26, 2024WhalesComment