July 15th - Three humpback whales in beautiful conditions, including Heather and her new calf!

On the 15th we found a single Humpback, Windy, doing deep dives East of Valdes island. After spending some time with her the boat headed south towards Galiano Island where we found Heather and her new calf hanging out. It’s always exciting to see the calves every summer.

Below are some excellent photos of the whales and other wildlife we saw on our trip, taken by our Naturalist Ryan Uslu.

Did you know the Salish Sea is home to the largest population of Bald Eagles in North America. This is largely due to the abundance of food, in particular, the Salmon that run in the spring and the fall.

It’s a day for wildlife babies! This little harbour seal pup will rely on moms milk for only 3-4 weeks. Born at about 35 lbs, these little seal pups can swim within hours, and will double in size before they wean off moms milk in only a month.

KEY0001, AKA Windy, hanging out near Valdes Island doing some deep feeding dives.

KEY0001 AKA Windy.

BCY0160 Heather (front) and her new calf (back)!

Heather has been hanging out in the Salish Sea for about 10 years now. She has been documented with 2 other calves that we know of, BCY1068 AKA Split Fluke was born in 2006, and Dalmation was born in 2015. Split Fluke has her own calf, Valiant, making Heather a grandma! We are very excited to see her back again this year with another little one in tow.

This calf was born in the tropical waters around Mexico or Hawaii at nearly 1 ton and 10 to 15 feet long. The little one will rely on Heathers milk for up to 1 year. This milk is very high in fat, typically 45-60%, and is often pink in colour due to the amount of krill Humpbacks eat. This little calf will drink up to 158 gallons of rich milk per day until it’s doubled in size!

Humpbacks make excellent mothers. They swim close enough to their calves that they are almost always touching. Often stroking their calves with their fins in what appears to be gestures of affection.

We are happy to be offering daily tours at 1 pm, with Covid restrictions.
To see Humpbacks and other incredible wildlife book your tour today.
Tours can be booked through our website, through email at info@vancouverislandwhalewatch.com, in person at our office in Nanaimo, of over the phone at 250-667-5177.