Another beautiful day in the Salish Sea! Today was one of those lucky days where we didn’t have to go far from home. We got reports of Orca just off the coast of Gabriola Island, so we headed out to see who we could find. Luckily, we came across a highly recognizable family, the T018s! This pod consists of the following members:

T018 Esperanza ♀ (~1955)
T019 Nootka ♀ (~1965)
T019B Galiano ♂ (1995)
T019C Spouter ♂ (2001)

At 68 years old, T018 Esperanza is one of the oldest, if not THE oldest, transient orca in the population. It’s amazing to see her next to her two full-grown grandsons, T019B Galiano and T019A Spouter. Both of these boys have pretty distinct dorsals, as seen in the photos below, with both having curved, wavier dorsals. These guys were moving pretty quickly and we kept up a good pace as we followed them through the strait. A common trend seen in the family, the group eventually split up, with Galiano and mom Nootka heading one way and Spouter and grandma Esperanza heading another. This family will even split up for a few days at a time before joining up back together again. Female orcas tend to favour their oldest sons, so this could explain the choice of splitting up the way they do. While orcas remain with their families for the majority of their lives, females will eventually leave to start their own matrilines. The males, however, tend to stick with mom for life, and are big momma’s boys! In the local Southern Resident population, studies have shown that females will protect their sons to the benefit of their family, even as the females age and enter their menopausal years. In fact, menopausal females are associated with less scarring on their adult sons, a sign that they may protect their boys from conflict with other orca. Luckily for Spouter, Grandma Esperanza can take on that caregiving role as his mom and brother leave on their own. Lucky boys!

After hanging out with the family for a little bit, we decided to head out to the strait to look for some humpbacks. Nearby, just southeast of Entrance Island, we came across Sherwina (BCY0961). She was doing some longer dives, probably feeding in our cold waters. Luckily she brought that fluke up nice and high out of the water before heading down, which is perfect for IDing! The underside of that tail, also known as the fluke, is as identifiable to these guys as fingerprints are to humans. It always makes our day when we can ID out on the water!

We continued on our way to the strait and found a lovely trio of humpbacks, Big Mama (BCY0324), Scratchy (BCY1022), and Yogi (BCY0409). Every time we get to see Big Mama, we are over the moon! She’s a very special humpback here in the Salish Sea. Big Mama was one of the first Humpbacks to return to the area, after many years of whaling in the region almost completely extirpated the species. Since her return in 1997, she has brought back 7 calves to the area, and has since had 6 grandchildren, and 2 great-grandchildren! A truly phenomenal animal, and we are so lucky we got to see her. She is a celebrity among naturalists and whale watchers alike! She was travelling alongside Scratchy and Yogi, two other whales that also come from Hawaii, just like Sherwina and Big Mama.

After leaving our whales for the day, we headed back slowly, making sure to stop for any wildlife seen along the way. We saw a ton of different bird species, including the Cormorants, Great Blue Heron, Black Turnstones and even a Belted Kingfisher! Being right in the middle of pupping season, guests were also treated to some tiny Harbour seal pups, with a few nursing from mom while lounging on the rocks.

Today’s photos were taken by Marine Naturalists Vanessa Vereschahen, Aly Kohlman, and Desarae Poier.