May 10th - Humpback whale and T124As!

Another amazing day on the water! After seeing countless sea lions over on Entrance Island, we continued on our way into the Georgia Strait. We ended up coming across a humpback, who performed a half breach! A breach is a leap out of the water, also known as cresting. The reasons behind breaching aren’t completely clear; however, whales are more likely to breach when they are in groups, suggesting that it is a non-verbal signal to other group members during social behaviour. It can be speculated that breaching is used for asserting dominance, courting, warning, stunning or scaring prey, communication, or dislodging parasites or dead skin from their bodies.

Humpback whale breaching... Notice the orange barnacles and worms covering the throat and flippers! Photo by Alanna Vivani

Humpback whale raising its fluke before a deep dive. Photo by Alanna Vivani

Next on our adventure we found a family of five T124As near east point. One of the females was T124A, also known as “Kittiwake,” who was born in 1984, and has successfully birthed at least five calves, ranging from 1996 to 2013. Amongst the family was a playful juvenile who took our breath away!

T124As travelling with the newest addition to the family in the back :) Photo by Alanna Vivani

Mother’s Day is just around the corner, and a whale watching trip would make the perfect present. Luckily there are still some seats left, so call us or go online today to reserve your seats before it’s too late!

Jilann LechnerMay 12, 2018Comment