On this lovely grey day, we headed across the water just off the western coast of Richmond. We got reports that there was a group of Orca heading this way, and we were keen on finding them! It wasn’t too hard to spot the large black dorsals gliding through the water on a calm day like this, and we headed over to see who it was. Today’s whales include:

T038C Borrowman (2008)

T099 Bella♀ (1984)
T099B Holly♀ (2007)
T099C Barakat♂ (2009)
T099D Puck♂ (2015)
T099E (2021)

This pod was travelling with a loner whale in our waters. T038C Borrowman has been travelling on their own as of late, but occasionally is seen travelling with their siblings. Both T038A Dana (2000) and T038E Hocker (2017) have both been spotted with their sibling, often popping in and out of other pods. Today was no different! While we didn’t get a clear photo, based on the number of animals present, we believe that younger sibling Hocker may have been present as well. T038C Borrowman is a very distinctive whale, due to a unique spot on the dorsal. However, this isn’t totally unique, as big sister T038A Dana also has a matching spot, but on the opposite side! Check out their pictures below, taken from one of our commonly used resources online, the World Wide Killer Whale Database.

Here you can see both animals have the same unique spot. But from what? We’re not entirely sure. However, an orca in New Zealand sports a similar marking as a result of a boat strike accident, so maybe something similar happened to these two siblings.

Spending a few minutes with this pod plus one (or two!), we noticed that they quickly picked up speed, heading towards Richmond. The hunt was on! They quickly spread themselves out and started circling whatever caught their attention. Because orca use echolocation to hunt their prey, they are top predators, even in murkier waters. This pod made quick work of their hunt, taking down some sort of marine mammal with ease. While it was probably a harbour seal, we can’t be certain because we only say the leftovers as they floated to the service. A warning to squeamish readers, there are entrails in the following photos. Big Boy Barakat even took it upon himself to have a little bit of fun with his lunch, dragging a set of lungs with him as he swam along.

We left the murder oreos to their feast and headed out in search of Humpbacks. This is a great time of year to whale watch, as we often see both species on one tour! Today we came across two Humpbacks hanging out together, BCY0770 Snoopy and BCX1704 Vivaldi. Snoopy also has a few other names, and also goes by Lunar or Gibbous, for the distinctive white entanglement scar seen on his fluke. Another easy whale to ID! These two were hanging out very closely and we got a couple of good flukes out of them. Before our trip finished, we swung by Stinky Rocks on the way home to check out the Stellar Sea Lions and the Harbour Seals. These two pinnipeds are always great to watch, and are often a highlight for guests! Coming home, we were treated to a lovely sunset as we wound through the gulf islands before pulling back into the Nanaimo Harbour.

Photos by Marine Naturalists Aly Kohlman and Desarae Poier.

August 25, 2023, 3:30 - T099s with T038C together plus Snoopy with Vivaldi

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