Acrobatic Orca'

It was an Orca day today as some of the A Clan families gathered in Johnstone Strait and Blackfish Sound.
The moment we put the hydrophone down lovely, clear vocalizations broadcasted loudly over our boat speaker. These families were chatting up a storm today which mesmerized and thrilled our guests.

Imagine floating on a calm sea, engines turned off therefore whale blows could easily be heard as the Orca surfaced to breath. Observing them from above the surface is one thing, however with the underwater microphone down; we literally can listen in to their world of sound that goes on below the surface, as though we are hearing all their secrets.

These whales were also acrobatic. They spyhopped and tail slapped and at one stage an individual jumped out of the water, as it breached up into the sky giving us a good look at its pristine and white belly. Thankfully one of our guests captured the breach on camera as it is not a common sight. I hope to post these images later today.

Dall’s porpoise were out and about and the Stellar Sea lions continue to gather in numbers. Today we noticed less Bald Eagles so perhaps they are heading deeper into the river estuaries in search of docile spawning salmon. During the latter part of August and into September and October, our local rivers house numerous salmon that are doing their final crucial deed of laying eggs for the species to continue and flourish into the future. They die once they have laid their eggs so it certainly is a necessary grand finale.

The calm and tranquility on the water today was stunning. The grey sky and sea was the perfect contrast against the stunning black and white of our Resident Orca.