July 16, 2024, 3:30 pm - Bundles of bouncing babies!
We had all three boats in the fleet out this afternoon. We headed south, with one boat out in the Strait of Georgia, and two going inside the Gulf Islands. Our semi-covered boat was lucky enough to happen across Harbour Porpoises in the Strait, and true to their name, they were porpoising around us; their bodies rising above the water as they quickly moved by. Soon after, the same boat managed to find Phi/Corona (BCX1416) and her 2024 calf not far from Vancouver.
Humpback moms and calves are starting to come back into our waters from their breeding and calving grounds in Mexico, Hawaii or Central America. We’ve seen a few moms and calves scattered about, and it’s always a fun time watching these little ones grow up. Today we were left babysitting the new calf while mom was doing deep dives. Youngsters aren’t able to hold their breath for as long as adults so we got to enjoy some extra time with our new calf while Phi was eating. We hope to see Phi and her calf again throughout the season! It was such a treat getting to watch them today.
While our semi-covered boat enjoyed time with the Humpback Whales, our two open boats were travelling with a group of five orcas from two families, including another calf! These whales consisted of:
T086A3 Tyndall ♀ (2011)
T086A3A (2024)
T124A2 Elkugu ♀ (2001)
T124A2A Agafia ♂ (2013)
T124A2B Litton ♀ (2016)
First time mom, Tyndall, has been pod-hopping recently with her new baby. Today’s travel buddy is an excellent choice as Elkugu has not only successfully raised two calves of her own, but she also helped her sister, Sabio, raise her niece. Hopefully she’ll share her knowledge with Tyndall so we continue to see this new baby flourish. During our time with these Killer Whales, they lived up to their reputation and participated in a successful hunt. Most of the action took place below the surface but we got to enjoy their celebrations in the form of tail-slapping and spy-hopping.
Our semi-covered boat left the humpbacks to meet up with the orca while the two open boats split up to see if they could find more wildlife. One boat, Keta, headed north, making a stop at Stinky Rocks, while the other, Cascadia, headed east across the Strait. Cascadia also managed to find Phi and her calf who were spending time still near Vancouver. Phi was doing long dives which is typical to see when the humpbacks are feeding. An adult humpback needs around 3,000lb of food every single day, so it’s no surprise humpbacks spend so much of their time eating. Again, the calf was doing slightly shorter dives, since it doesn’t have the same lung capacity as Mom, and they wouldn’t be feeding that deep until later in the season. With one final lift of their tail, it was time for Cascadia to continue back towards Nanaimo in the setting sun.
Stinky Rocks was full of activity today, with the Stellar Sea Lions making a lot of noise as we passed by. It’s pupping season for the Harbour Seals which meant even more babies! These little ones will only nurse from mom for 3-6 weeks before they have to fend for themselves, so it’s always special to see them together during this short time.
The final wildlife stop of the day was along the Gabriola Bluffs. We took a look at a Bald Eagle’s nest where this year’s eaglet is no longer looking so small and was perched above, at the top of the tree. He’ll soon be ready to fledge. The bluffs are also popular with nesting cormorants and we even got a peek at a baby gull close to one of their parents.
Soon, all three boats converged back in the Nanaimo Harbour dropping off their very happy guests and crew. It was such a great afternoon on the water seeing not only a lot of wildlife in general, but all of the adorable bouncing babies!
Please enjoy all of the photos taken below by the onboard Marine Naturalists Des Poier, Hayleigh Hilbert, and Vanessa Vereschahen.
A harbour seal pup and it’s mom laying side by side. Photo by Des Poier.
A harbour porpoise surfacing near Halibut Bank. Photo by Hayleigh Hilbert.
Phi lifting her tail with her calf surfacing beside her. Photo by Hayleigh Hilbert.
Th underside of Phi’s tail flukes! Photo by Hayleigh Hilbert.
T086A3 Tyndall surfacing in front of T124A2 Elkugu. Photo by Des Poier.
T086A3 Tyndall surfacing just ahead of her calf. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
T124A2B Litton surfacing during the hunt. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
T124A2B Litton’s notched dorsal fin. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
T124A2A Agafia surfacing during the hunt. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
T124A2B Litton doing a deep dive. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
T086A3 Tyndall heading through Porlier Pass. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
T124A2A Agafia surfacing with someone’s tail behind them. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
A Bald Eagle came by to try an grab some scraps. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
T086A3 Tyndall creating a wave with her surface. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
T086A3A surfacing with the others as they travelled. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
T086A3 Tyndall surfacing with her calf just breaking the water. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
T086A3 Tyndall and T124A2A Agafia surfacing next to each other. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
T124A2A Agafia has some very distinct scarring on their saddle patch. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
Matriarch T124A2A Elkugu surfacing with Vancouver behind her. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
Tyndall calf in the lead, followed by T086A3 Tyndall and T124A2B Litton. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
A tail wave from T086A3A. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
T124A2 Elkugu surfacing with her eye patch clearly visible. Photo by Hayleigh Hilbert.
The Steller Sea Lions at Stinky Rocks holding onto the last of their Island before the tide takes it. Photo by Hayleigh Hilbert.
Fighting amongst the Sea Lions. Photo by Hayleigh Hilbert.
Some perfectly space Cormorants drying off before their longer flight home. Photo by Hayleigh Hilbert.
Phi’s calf. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
The Italian air force doing an air show over Vancouver. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
The underside of Phi’s tail. Photo by Vanessa Vereschahen.
Bald Eagle perched in the nearby tree. Photo by Des Poier.
Greyson looks ready to fledge! Photo by Hayleigh Hilbert.
Can you spot Greyson (the young bald eagle) in this photo? Photo by Hayleigh Hilbert.
We like to call this feature on the Gabriola Bluffs “underground parking” since at low tide you can get right underneath it. Photo by Des Poier.
A gull with it’s baby. Photo by Des Poier.
The Gabriola Bluffs. Photo by Des Poier.
A Pigeon Guillemot near the Gabriola Bluffs. Photo by Hayleigh Hilbert.