Another gorgeous day with calm seas in the Salish Sea. Our vessel Cascadia set off the dock at noon and started searching south throughout the Gulf Islands. We cruised around Thetis Island in Stuart Channel and then around Saltspring Island and even though we saw lots of breathtaking scenery, we weren’t finding any whales! That is part of the fun though - every day is a new search and completely unpredictable. A couple of hours into the trip we heard reports of a pod of orca near the Canada/US border in Boundary Pass so we headed in that direction. Just after 2:30 we arrived on scene to see the T123’s, one of our favourite pods!

The T123’s were traveling slowly and close together, making for some beautiful photographs and peaceful moments. The leader of this pod, the matriarch, is T123 “Sidney”, a mother of three who was born around 1985. Even though she’s the oldest and leads the pod, it’s her son Stanley, T123A, that usually steals the show with his giant dorsal fin. A full grown male orca’s fin can get up to 6 feet tall! Stanley was born in the year 2000 and his fin has a distinct notch about 1/3 of the way down.

There was quite a gap before Sidney had her next surviving calf, T123C “Lucky”, in 2012, and then her newest, T123D “Darcy”, in 2018. Now this family of 4 travels and hunts as a tight family group and we are fortunate to see them in the Salish Sea all throughout our whale watching season.

While we were on scene with these animals we noticed a NOAA research vessel trailing behind the whales looking for… POOP! These scientists are trying to collect fecal samples to analyze for microplastics and hormones. (https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/researchers-probe-orca-poop-microplastics-part-1). Microplastics are plastic particles 5mm or less in size and they are one of the most threatening ocean pollutants. They can be ingested by animals as small as zooplankton and work their way up through the food chain to these Apex predators. The chemical contamination from these microplastics is one of the major threats to young whales as it could potentially be affecting their or their mother’s hormonal levels, ultimately causing lower birth rates or miscarriages.

This is a great, non-invasive study that will hopefully provide insight into this population’s health and highlight the importance of reducing microplastics. We love seeing science in action and educating our guests about the threats these whales are facing and what is being done to help them!

Enjoy these photos taken by marine naturalist Rebeka Pirker and if you are interested in joining us for an adventure, we have daily tours departing from Nanaimo at 12pm!

May 13th - The T123's traveling in the Gulf Islands

© Vancouver Island Whale Watch 2018-2024. All Rights Reserved.