After a great morning, we were eager to head back out and see who we could find! We’ve been having a great time with the humpbacks and this afternoon was no different. One of our open boats headed over to Halibut Bank, a known humpback hangout, with the other two heading south to see if we could find whales in the same area as this morning. Both were successful!

Kula and Cascadia came across Kelpie (BCY1276) and Malachite (BCX1210 calf 2021), both seen in the morning but hanging out together this time. These two were a lot of fun to watch, with lots of exciting activity like breaching, pec slapping, chin slapping, and trumpeting. They had lots of energy today! Malachite is usually an interesting one to watch, but this whale was a bad influence this afternoon! First spotted with a youngster this morning (Kappa’s 2022 calf) checking out our boats, naughty Malachite decided to show Kelpie the same thing this afternoon! After watching these two for a little while from afar, they turned their attention to us. Both animals decided to examine the open boat a little more closely. It’s a pretty rare behaviour on a good day, but to see it twice in one day is basically unheard of! This behaviour is never encouraged, and once they were done checking us out they continued on their way and returned to travelling and fluking like regular humpbacks shortly after.

After spending some time with this rambunctious pair, the two boats split up and each found -surprise surprise- more humpbacks! We got to spend some time with Wisp (BCX1333 calf 2021), Split Fluke (BCX1068) and Zorro (BCX0380). These guys were a little more typical to watch, giving us good flukes and spending some time travelling.

Meanwhile, across the Strait, the open boat Keta found some whales of their own identified as Frankenstein (BCX1358) and an Unknown. These two were pretty sleepy, which makes sense if they were resting after a big meal! Halibut Bank is a great place for the humpbacks to feed, as the underwater landscape is a spot where the fish like to congregate. This attracts humpbacks, but also lots of other species like Harbour Porpoise and Steller Sea lions. While searching for whales it’s helpful to look for other indicator species like these two that might be a sign there is food around. Instead of looking down all the time, it also helps to look up occasionally! Often, shorebirds are attracted to the same bait balls the humpbacks are after, so looking for large swarms of birds can also be a great way to find whales.

After leaving these sleepy whales, the open boat found another lone humpback - this whale was Graphite (BCX2077). Interestingly enough, Graphite (2019) is the older sibling of Malachite (2021) who the other boats were with! Seeing a trend in their names? This is no coincidence. Both these whales are calves of Slate BCX1210, a female first spotted in 2011. Sometimes calves are named in relation to their mother’s name if we are lucky enough to spot them together! Both these siblings are a bit too curious about boats, and it has gotten them into trouble in the past. Several years ago, Malachite appeared with some fresh wounds on the top of their tail. While it could be entanglement, it is more likely propeller scars from a boat he got too close to. Looking at the photos today, we saw Malachite’s prop scars have healed well. Check out the blog from 2021, when we saw the scars fresh, back when Malachite was a young calf still travelling with mom. Here’s a comparison from that day, to now:

This is a prime example of the dangers of getting too comfortable with boats. Both Graphite and Malachite still have a keen interest in boats, and their mom Slate was no different! This day, Graphite kept to himself, but we always worry about whales that are known troublemakers.

We always try to check out some other wildlife spots on the tours to see as many species as we can. We stopped off at Stinky Rocks to check out the ever-entertaining Steller Sea Lions, and the Harbour Seals, who are right in the middle of pupping season! Finally, we finished off at the Gabriola Bluffs to check out the Cormorant colony, which is always beautiful in the evening light. What a whale-y great evening!
Today’s photos were taken by Marine Naturalists Cheyenne Brewster, Aly Kohlman, and Hayleigh Hilbert.

August 5, 2024, 3:30 pm -Siblings Across the Strait, and more!

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