April 18, 2024 - T-party time in Howe Sound

The sun was bright and shining as we headed out onto the water. We had caught word of a group of orca travelling in picture-perfect Howe Sound and we were eager to go find them.

Before we made the crossing though, we had a quick stop at Entrance Island to see some other wildlife. A single Bald Eagle was perched at the top of one of the weather vanes, scanning the waters below. These majestic birds are returning to their nesting grounds in our area right now, and we are so excited to see some new eaglet faces in the area in the coming months!

The sea lions were also busy doing what they do best on Entrance Island - snoozing and grumbling away at each other. There was a fair bit of squabbling amongst some of them today as they fought for the best places to nap on the rocks.

Once we had had our fill of sea lion shenanigans, we turned back towards the mainland and set off. According to the other vessels in the area, this wasn’t just a group of orca, it was a T-party!
A T-party, or a gathering of multiple orca pods together at the same time, is always super exciting. Today there were 3 pods interacting together. We were able to identify the following members from our photos:

T071B Hood ♀ (2000)
T071B1 Zengo ♀ (2013)
T071B2 Tasli ♂ (2018)

T086A3 Tyndall ♀ (2011)
T086A3A (2024)

T124A2 Elkugu ♀ (2001)
T124A2A Agafia ♂ (2013)
T124A2B Litton ♀ (2016)

While reports said the rest of the T086As were in the area, we weren’t able to catch a glimpse of them. T086A3 Tyndall seemed too busy showing her calf off to the other whales present to be worried about where her mother was. The new mom and calf were seen travelling very close with many of the other party members.

In May of 2023, it was discovered that T071B2 Tasli was completely missing his left pectoral fin. In the first photos spotted of this unusual whale, it was noted that there were no signs of lacerations or injuries, so it is possible this little whale was born without the fin altogether. This discovery has led to the adoption of the nickname “Nemo” as a tribute to the happy but quirky whale.

Once we had to say our goodbyes to the whales we turned around and started making our way back across the Strait of Georgia. Once we crossed, we made our way over to Gabriola Island to see the Gabriola Bluffs. While we usually stop here to see our cormorant rookery, there was a different bird species present today - a band of Steller’s jays was gathered amongst the branches. This striking bird is the official bird of BC, but it is very uncommon for us to see them on tours. After departing our birds we turned back towards Nanaimo and dashed home after another successful day on the water!

Photos by Marine Naturalist Vanessa Vereschahen.

T086A3 Tyndall with her new calf T083A3A in front of her.

T086A3 Tyndall, her calf T086A3A, and T124A2B Litton.

A big bushy blow from one of the whales.

T071B1 Zengo with her brother T071B2 Tasli behind her.

T124A2 Elkugu, T071B1 Zengo, and another travelling close together.

T124A2 Elkugu with a friend right behind her.

T124A2 Elkugu - even from this angle her eyepatch is unmistakable!

Look at that water tension from one of the young calves! T124A2A Agafia in the rear with T086A3 Tyndall and her calf T086A3A right beside her.

A very tired looking male Steller sea lion.

Fighting occurs a lot amongst our sea lions.

Jilann LechnerApril 18, 2024WhalesComment