July 8, 2024, 3:30 pm - The T086A3s and T124A2s at UBC, and some Humpbacks on the way home!

We were eager to push off the dock today and once again continue our search for whales. After hearing a report of orca close to Vancouver we began crossing the Strait of Georgia. Conditions couldn’t have been better - while travelling at speed we were able to keep cool, and the seas were as flat as glass, leading to perfect cruising conditions. We crossed from Nanaimo, across the Strait, and pointed directly at UBC. We slowed down and began scanning around, looking for the mischievous whales. Suddenly, they were spotted, and they began picking up speed. It appeared that they found their ‘dinner’ and were in pursuit. It seems like they had a very fast (and successful) hunt shortly after while we were on the scene with them, as one of the boats was able to spot a bit of red in the water. The orca also began porpoising, tail slapping, pectoral slapping, and we even saw a spy hop from matriarch Elkugu! Playful behaviours such as these can be seen while whales are socializing or celebrating a good meal.

We ID’d these individuals as the T086A3s and the T124A2s:

T086A3 Tyndall ♀ (2011)
T086A3A (2024)

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

Tyndall and her young calf are always amazing to see, as we have been watching the little one grow bigger and stronger as the year progresses. Seeing the kids grow up is one of our favourite parts of our jobs!

While we usually identify our orca from their dorsal fins, saddle patches, or eyepatches, Agafia is a rare exception - in many of our encounters with him he ends up upside down tail slapping. His fluke is very distinct, and we have sometimes confirmed his ID (including today!) from this! You can see his unique shaped fluke in the photos below!

Soon it was time for us to say goodbye to our orca and we continued on our trip. There had been many humpbacks spotted nearby in an area we have lovingly begun referring to as “Humpback Land”, so we quickly made our way over to test our luck.

It wasn’t long before we saw blows, backs, and the occasional fluke from a group of Humpbacks! We were excited when we discovered that these whales were Divot (BCX1057), Divot’s 2024 calf (BCX1057 calf 2024), and a new-to-us whale - Backsplash (BCY0892), a known Male whale! Backsplash was making quite the scene while we were watching this trio. He was repeatedly pectoral slapping, or bringing his massive pec fins out of the water and crashing them onto the surface. While we are not entirely sure why he was doing this, he could have been “flexing” on Divot to try and woo her for the next breeding season. It is still pretty early in the year for mating displays though, so it was an interesting encounter all together!

Divot didn’t seem to be very interested in his displays though and kept on diving and avoiding him. Her calf was also keeping a safe distance away from the strange male whale. This continued for a bit until another duo of whales joined in the fray - they were identified as Split Fluke (BCX1068) and Dandelion (BCY1107). Split Fluke, another known Female whale, turned into Backsplash’s new focus as he made his way over and started pec slapping around her instead.

Once we had spent some time with the humpbacks, and the sun was beginning to set, we began the journey back towards home port. Our boats split up, one heading south into the Southern Gulf Islands and the other staying north outside in the Strait of Georgia. Our southern boat made a quick stop at “Stinky Rocks” where they saw some Steller Sea lions grumbling, growling, and snoozing away the afternoon. Our northern boat stopped at “Seal Rocks” to see Harbour Seals meandering in the sunshine. To wrap up the night, both boats had one last stop at the Gabriola Bluffs. This area is a known Cormorant Rookery, so we always like to check out what the birds (and their chicks) are up to. We also took a small detour to visit an Eagle nest we have been observing, where we saw the young Eaglet out and branching. It won’t be long until this little one leaves the nest to start fending for itself now!

After our stops to view the birds, we turned back towards Nanaimo. As the sun was ducking behind Mt. Benson we crossed back into the harbour, ending another wonderful trip out in the Salish Sea!

Please enjoy these photos taken by Marine Naturalists Cheyenne Brewster and Aly Kohlman.

T124A2 Elkugu spy hopping. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

T124A2 Elkugu dipping back under the surface. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

T124A2 Elkugu spy hopping from a different angle. Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

T124A2B Litton surfacing with nearly her entire saddle patch showing. Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

You can see the wave that T124A2A Agafia creates as he swims though the water. Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

A detailed look at T124A2A Agafia’s saddle patch scarring. Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

T124A2A Agafia continues passing us by. Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

T124A2 Elkugu surfacing. You can see her uniquely shaped eye patch. Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

T086A3 Tyndall getting showered by her own exhale. Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

T124A2A Agafia can be IDed by his tail since it’s missing a big chunk! Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

T124A2A Agafia’s tail on the left, with T124A2B Litton in the middle, and Matriarch T124A2 Elkugu on the right. Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

T124A2A Agafia surfacing with his saddle patch visible. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

T086A3 Tyndall pushing through a wave. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

T124A2B Litton surfacing with T086A3A in front of her. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

T124A2A Agafia and T086A3 Tyndall surfacing side by side, with T124A2B Litton slapping their tail behind. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Backsplash with his pectoral fin in the air. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Divot lifting her tail to dive while her calf arches slightly behind and Backsplash surfaces in front of the two. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Backsplash seemed to be hitting Divot with his pectoral fin. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Backsplash lifting his pectoral fin enough to show his ventral grooves. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Backslash’s pectoral fin with Divots dorsal fin just ahead, Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Divot arching her back for a dive. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Backsplashes dorsal fin as he prepares to dive. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

One of the humpbacks heading right for the camera! Photo by Aly Kohlman.

You can see some lice on Divot’s dorsal fin. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

The dorsal side of Backsplash’s dorsal fin. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

You can see the flex in Backsplashes 5-meter long pectoral fin. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

You can see the stark colour difference between the two sides of his pectoral fin. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

You can see Backsplashes chin barnacles just below the surface. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Look at all the barnacles on Backsplashes Pectoral Fin. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Divot (right) and her calf (left) quickly surfacing together. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Divot’s huge tail with her little calf beside her. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Backsplash creating a fluke waterfall. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Split Fluke, Divot, and Dandelion surfacing together. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Divot creating a fluke waterfall. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

The underside of Backsplashes tail fluke. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Split Fluke’s tail has been damaged in the past by orca. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Backsplash with his pectoral fin up, looking to bring it down on Divot. Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

The ventral side of Backsplashes pectoral fin. Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

The pigmentation is unique on the ventral side of each humpback’s pectoral fin. Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

You can see both of Backsplashes pectoral fins in this photo! Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

A very unique angle of Backsplash swimming on his back with both pectoral fins in the air…is this how he got his name? Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

Divot is named for the notch in the right side of her tail. Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

The underside of Backsplashes tail flukes. Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

Some very happy looking Steller Sea Lions in the sun. Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

A couple of harbour seals enjoying the sunshine while keeping an eye on us. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

A black oystercatcher in flight. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Cormorants sitting in the last of the sun. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Greyson seemed like he was trying to find some relief from the heat in this patch of shade. Photo by Aly Kohlman.

Some very happy guests (and Captain) while watching the whales! Photo by Cheyenne Brewster.

The guests on the open boat watching the orca. Photo by Aly Kohlman.