October 1st - Starting off the month with lots of humpback whales!
October already, wow! This season has just flown by and we are still baffled by the number whales we have seen so close to Nanaimo. The “humpback comeback” we experienced all summer continues into October, which is traditionally known as one of the most humpback-full months of whale watching in the Salish Sea!
One of our boats saw 6 humpbacks and the other saw 4 humpbacks during their tour! Using telephoto lenses and a handy ID catalogue, our crew were able to match up dorsal and fluke patterns and get IDs on these whales. Each whale’s tale is unique like a fingerprint and our naturalists have been memorizing these patterns for years!
The individuals that were encountered were Honu (KEY0030), Sherwina (KEY0034) and calf, Zig Zag (BCX1193) and calf, Corona (KEX0022), and Scorch (new this year!). Here is a link to Keta Coastal Conservation’s free online humpback whale ID catalogue (http://www.ketacoastalconservation.org/keta-catalogue-the-salish-sea) - see if you can match up the flukes!
Here are some of the best photos taken during the tours by our marine naturalists Cheyenne and Val:
Photo by Cheyenne Brewster
Photo by Cheyenne Brewster
Photo by Cheyenne Brewster
Photo by Cheyenne Brewster
Photo by Cheyenne Brewster
Photo by Cheyenne Brewster
Photo by Cheyenne Brewster
Photo by Cheyenne Brewster
Photo by Cheyenne Brewster
Photo by Cheyenne Brewster
Photo by Cheyenne Brewster
Photo by Cheyenne Brewster
Photo by Cheyenne Brewster
Photo by Val Watson
Photo by Val Watson
Photo by Val Watson
Scorch! Photo by Val Watson
Photo by Val Watson
Photo by Val Watson