It was an absolutely beautiful afternoon for whale watching as we set out in search of giants! Luckily we found quite a few amazing humpbacks including Smiley (BCY0995), Valiant (BCX1773) and Trooper (BCX1854). On top of the 3 whales we knew well we also found an unknown whale. We are still working on identification for this animal. Every single humpback has a unique dorsal fin and fluke. Typically the easiest way to identify a humpback is by looking at the ventral (under) side of the fluke. It ranges from all black to all white with different scars and markings. While our mystery whale was lovely and showed us their fluke, it was simply not a whale we recognized or could find in any of our immediate catalogues. We did notice that the whale was relatively small so it may be a very young animal that isn’t in our catalogues yet! Don’t worry though, we will continue to scour humpback catalogues to see if we can solve the mystery!

One of the whales we got to spend time with was a company favourite named Valiant. You may have noticed while on the boat that Valiant’s fluke was different than all the others we saw today. This is because Valiant was attacked by orca as a calf. When you look at the photos below you will notice that they are missing large portions of their fluke on either side. You will also notice the white lines by the missing chunks. Those lines are called rake marks and were left there by orca teeth. Mammal-eating orca often wait for the humpback and grey whale migrations and try to snag themselves a small calf. While it might seem cruel to us, orca must hunt to ensure their survival as well as their own calves’ survival. That being said, Valiant seems to have never forgiven the orca for what they did because you can often see Valiant (who is now full-grown) go out of their way to chase orca whenever the chance arises. During the winter there were rumours that Valiant had had a calf of their own in Mexico. We patiently waited and hoped to see a little baby with Valiant but so far no calf. It leads one to wonder if Valiant did have a calf that didn’t make it past the orca or if the calf never existed.

It’s not just orca that humpbacks have to worry about as we can see with Trooper, another whale we encountered today. In 2018 Trooper was in Howe Sound when they were struck by a boat leaving a deep gash behind their dorsal fin. Orca, boats and nets are all an unfortunate reality for humpbacks in the Salish Sea. Despite the constant adversity these animals face, they are making a comeback in our waters! Humpbacks were once extirpated from the Salish Sea during the whaling era. For decades you wouldn’t have seen a single humpback out there. In 1997 that all changed when a female humpback named Big Mama was spotted. We don’t know how she ended up here but we’re sure glad she did because since 1997 she has lived up to her name and has brought back 7 calves. She now also has grand calves and even great-grandcalves! Knowing that not long ago we wouldn't have had the opportunity to see a humpback (let alone 4) always makes us feel extremely grateful to get to spend time with the gentle giants.

It’s not only humpbacks we are grateful to spend time with! On our tour today we were fortunate enough to hang out with some furry and feathered friends including Harbour seals, Steller sea lions, cormorants, Pigeon guillemots, Bald eagles and even baby gulls! You can check out the photos from our awesome trip below. All photos today were taken by Marine Naturalists Lucy Willis and Des Poier.

July 15, 2024, 3:30 pm - A Whale-y great afternoon!

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