We found the same T-party as the day before, but today they had brought the party to us! We found Eider, Hutchins, and Sabio traveling with their kids near Ladysmith. The party travelled all the from Ladysmith to the cliffs of Gabriola Island in the morning, and from Gabriola Island to Snake Island in the afternoon.

The group was full of energy in the morning, porpoising and traveling fast, but calming down and getting a bit sleepy towards the end. When we found them a bit later they had woken up and had begun spy-hopping and tail slapping. Spy hopping is a great way for whales to get a view of what’s going on above the water, while tail slapping is an excellent way to get communicate, getting everyone’s attention!

We’ve loved watching these groups interacting and hope this little T-party continues. Seeing big Laurel next to so many little ladies makes him look extra impressive, and we have to wonder if he’s trying to woo one of the ladies himself. Laurel won’t try and breed with his own mom or sisters, and Sabio has her hands full with a young calf right now, but Eider is in her prime and hasn’t had a calf in 6 years. Tyndall is also at the age where female orca are known to start reproducing. Sabio was 12 when she gave birth to her calf and would have gotten pregnant while she was 11, so there’s no reason Tyndall couldn’t do the same. It’ll be about 18 months before we know if Laurel was successful in wooing either Eider or Tyndall.

Enjoy the photos taken during today’s tours by naturalists Rebecca Stirling and Vanessa Vereschahen.

June 17th - The party continues!

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