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Whale Sighting Report  

In This Issue
Upcoming Events
Photo of the Day
Southern Resident orcas
Transients (Bigg's Whales)
Humpbacks
Orca Network recommends:
The Lost Whale, by Michael Parfit and Suzanne Chisolm  
An intensely personal story...but this person is a young orca.  

Lost Whale book...ver scaled  

 To learn more about orcas: 

Orcas in Our Midst, volume 3, by Howard Garrett

Orcas in Our Midst,

Vol. 3: Residents and Transients, How Did That Happen?

Click here  

to order YOUR copy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~

The bestseller about orcas in captivity.

Death at SeaWorld, by David Kirby 

   DeathatSeaWorld


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orca Lolita/Tokitae,

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in 1970, somehow surviving in a small tank at the Miami Seaquarium ever since.

Tokitae looking up at us from her tank in Miami, FL in the late 1990s 

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October 28, 2013

We are watching and visiting the whales in their home~

Please observe, love and respect them from a distance.

Having trouble viewing this Sightings Report? Archived Reports can be found HERE.
Members of J pod, K pod and possibly some of L pod cruised down Admiralty Inlet Sunday at least as far as south of Edmonds by sunset Sunday, then showed up heading north in Saratoga Passage on Monday morning. Fanned out between Whidbey and Camano Islands, they made it almost to Penn Cove before turning back south past Langley, around Possession Point and back into Admiralty Inlet. It was a delight to finally get out to see the whales. We found them first across the road from the Greenbank Post Office as they headed south by Mabana Beach, Camano Island, then down to Whale Bell Park in Langley as the bell was repeatedly clanged, to a view of Sandy Point, where many breaches lifted all spirits, to Glendale, and some very close approaches to shore, and finally to a high bluff over Possession Sound, where they curved their course NW toward Point No Point and Admiralty Inlet in the sunset. There were probably over 30 in all, with some groups up to 8 or 10 together for short times, but mostly spread out over miles, usually hundreds of yards between each one, moving in unison in response to acoustic signals, occasionally foraging as they swam through the whitecaps stirred up by steady winds. It was fun to meet and greet many wonderful whale folks out there, in person on the shoreline and in running commentaries on Facebook, sharing the joys of having orcas as neighbors!

 

Near Victoria Transients/Bigg's Whales were encountered many times over the past few days, and humpbacks have arrived in record numbers, confirming they've discovered the Salish Sea habitat and found it suitable for lengthy visits, nearly a century after being decimated by the whaling industry.

 

Howard Garrett
Susan Berta
Orca Network
Photo of the Day
J17 Princess Angelina coursing close to shore near Glendale, Possession Sound.
Photo by Susan Berta, October 28, 2013.

Southern Resident orcas
October 28
5:54 - We just left the whales swimming off toward the sunset, looks like they were going to head out Admiralty Inlet.
Orca Network

October 28
5:49 - Maybe headed towards Hansville now. I had a nice breach after my last message. As we birders say it was a "lifer" for me, ending a 30 year streak.
5:41 - I am at Hines Warf Park north of Edmonds and seeing very distant whales along the west side of Whidbey, headed northish.
Josh Adams

October 28
5:10 - Alice Lindahl saw lots of orcas passing Possession Point in a long procession of small groups, many breaching over and over.

October 28
John Crawford of Glendale, south of Clinton, called at 5:10 pm to report 2 large bulls heading south, at Possession Bait (near Possession Point Park).

October 28
5:45 - from atop a high bluff in north Edmonds I saw what appeared to be much porpoising. I thought Admiralty too...glad to know you were there with them.
5:00 - Pam Ren and I watched them approach Possession Point traveling very close to Whidbey, some hugging shoreline. Blows lighting up against the dark waters of the Sound and Whidbey. I am going to move south to try and see which way they go.
Alisa Lemire Brooks

October 28
5:03 - The whales are just passing possession point now. They are close to the whidbey side and moving pretty quick exhibiting foraging behavior. Looks like they are going to round the tip of the island maybe.
Nicole Woltersdorf

October 28
4:40 - On the ferry to Clinton-just saw them!
Lyn Gray

October 28
Debi Freal called at 4:35 pm reporting a Superpod off Columbia Beach near Clinton, heading south. Spectacular!

October 28
4:30 - We live on Columbia Beach on Whidbey Island and watched a large (at least 20) pod of Orcas going south past our home this afternoon. They were spread out across the water from our buoy line into the ferry lanes and beyond and seemed to be enjoying themselves immensely - one even breaching into the air and putting on quite a show.  They were absolutely spectacular!
Lynne Malecki

October 28
4:25 - just watched at least a dozen Orcas pass by my house across from Hat Island in Clinton. They were heading toward the ferry dock.
Susan Hanson

October 28
HUGE pod......we watched from the beach just south of the ferry in Clinton. What an awesome sight to see so many. They put on a great show.
Gwendine Ellis Norton

October 28
4:22 - Thanks! Sitting in car waiting to board and got a picture through my window! Clinton dock.
Vicki Frerichs

October 28
4:21 -  My husband just got video from the ferry of a big pod.
Laura Stangel Schmidt

October 28
4:09 - Clinton ferry dock now!!!
Christy Korrow

A So. Resident orca breaching south of Langley.
Photo by Susan Berta, October 28, 2013.

Another breach south of Langley.
Photo by Susan Berta, October 28, 2013.

October 28
4:08 - Orcas are heading south in Possession Sound, in the ferry lanes, so some lucky ferry riders will get a fun whale watch from the ferries!
Susan Berta

October 28
4 pm - Large group of orcas frolicking off Sandy Point on Whidbey Island and heading south. Watched them as far south as the Mukilteo ferry crossing.
Melanie J. Sceva Hill

October 28
3:27 pm - Sharon Harper-Peck called to report 5 - 8 orcas in Saratoga Passage off downtown Langley, mid-channel, heading south. There were a lot of people watching them from shore with binoculars. (We were among them).

October 28
3:27 - Large pod of Orcas just passed Langley Marina heading towards Sandy Point. Had a few breaches. Good show.
Ed Young

October 28
3:20 - A loose pod of orcas cruised south down the middle of Saratoga Passage at about 3:20 PM. The crowd mentioned that they'd been passing for a while, but I didn't hear a count. We saw several (at least a half dozen?) in the few minutes we were able to watch.
Tom Trimbath

October 28
 2:52 pm - at the Langley Marina with Marie Lincoln, seeing spouts coming south toward them.
Sandra Pollard

October 28
2:25 - Six or more orca are headed south in mid Saratoga Passage between Fox Spit and Bell's Beach.
Steve Runo

October 28
2:10 pm - Watching orcas in Saratoga Passage, from Greenbank, headed south toward Langley, looks like the Southern Residents from yesterday!
Susan Berta

October 28
1:43 - Mid channelish, but closer to Camano. Passing Camano State park now. Spouts easy to see without binoculars.
1:29 - More like 20! So cool
1:19 - Slowly moving south. They all disappear for several minutes, then come up as a larger group. At least 10 or more.
1:10 - At least three large dorsals and many others, in a group!
1:08 - just spotted them. At Cama Beach.
Rachel Haight

October 28
12:39 - There is a large pod of orca's between Camano Island and Whidbey Island. They are closer to the east side of Whidbey Island. I live on Camano Island above the beach at Camp Comfort/Indian Beach area. There is also a boat following them way too close. They seem to be heading in the direction of Camano Island State Park (going South).
Pete Moe

October 28
12 noon - Are there only 4? They appear to be congregated -- and this is an educated guess given the distance from my home -- off Snakelum Point...give or take...or to say it another way, they appear to be a couple of miles south of Coupeville.
11:10 - Just spotted them west off Cama beach. They are spread out. Very exciting!
Steve Rothboeck

October 28
11:52 - Dick Snowberger and Florian Graner both report orcas in Saratoga Passage just south of Penn Cove, heading north, mostly on the Whidbey side.

October 28
10:30 - Orcas headed north toward Cama beach close to shore in Camano island side. More passing by but in the middle channel now. Moving quick, lots of ups and downs. Lost count at 10.
Danelle Murphy

October 28
10 am - Connie Barrett called to report seeing 3-4 orcas from Cama Beach, Camano Island, which is north of the previous report at Mabana Beach. She says they are actively feeding and moving slowly northward, toward Penn Cove.

October 28
9:55 am - Saw them! Orcas on the move north at Bells Beach, Whidbey headed toward Baby Island.
Angela Johnson Zink

October 28
1:30 - They are between Cama and Camano State Parks.
11:11 - Really cruising at a good clip heading north towards Oak Harbor. LOTS of them! they have moved closer to mid channel.
10:38 - They are still near Cama at this point. What a treat!
9:52 - I can see the spouts from my house (above Hidden Beach, north of Greenbank)!
Nancy Culp Zaretzke

October 28
Just sighted a pod of about 8 to 12 Orca whales including two young juvenile orcas. The pod was traveling north in Saratoga Passage. We saw them pass East Point at about 9:45am this morning' They appeared to linger in the current back eddy of East Point to feed before continuing north. One individual breached about 75 yards north of East Point.
George Cook

October 28
9:40 - Dodie Markey called from Mabana Beach, Camano Island to say she's watching many orcas in Saratoga Passage, foraging, heading both north and south.

October 28
About 9:30 AM, several orca were spotted a few hundred yards off the eastern shore of Whidbey Island just south of Fox Spit in Saratoga Passage. The orca were moving slowly north along the shore and appeared to be feeding. Several remained in the area for over 20 minutes. Further south, in mid-Passage, a few other orca were also observed.
Steve Runo

October 27
Mid Channel Buoy directly across from President Point Kingston, approximately 3:30 pm. Very windy, lots of white caps but it appeared they were on the hunt. Lots of Splashing, spy hopping, They were heading north.
Margaret Steen

October 27
12:38 - Seeing several SRKWs surfing in the waves off Richmond Beach. Multiple animals, closer to the Richmond Beach / Shoreline side.
Dave Haas

October 27
12:30 - First time on my pleasure craft seeing killer whales! We were just south of Point no Point we found ourselves forced to kill the motor and wait for the 15-20 whales to pass us leaving some great photos. A great supprise for a windy day!
Larry Dallmann

October 27
12:13 - There are several (least one male) just north of the ferry, which has turned presumably to give them space.
Kate Stovel

October 27
12:10 - Just saw a fin north of Edmonds ferry.
Rachel Haight

October 27
Noon - sighting of 4 orca off Edmonds just past noon. Saw only dorsal fins and blow spray on 3 that were close together. Saw full side body markings and dorsal on 1 that was separated.
Patricia Desmond

October 27
I observed 4 Orcas around noon while on the ferry from Kingston to Edmonds.
Shar Willis

October 27
11 am - Just spotted a couple between Eglon and the south tip of Whidbey, mid-channel.
Rebecca French Gerke

October 27
10:49 - Heading south angling back toward the east after rounding the point incredibly close to shore at Point No Point.
Connie Bickerton

October 27
From 10-10:30 AM a pod of 20-25 Orcas slowly worked their way south past Point-No-Point. The North wind had picked up,the tide was coming in strongly-the group gave the impression of riding the wind and tide. One of the larger adults breached-coming almost completely out tof the water. The first eight individuals were about 1/2 mile offshore. The balance of the Pod passed only about 1/4 mile offshore.
Steve Giles

October 27
Here are some photos I took this morning from shore at Pt. No Point. We saw lots of blows mid-channel when I first arrived 10:30. I'm pretty sure I saw Samish J14 and her crew along with many others (but it was hard to say with the chop). Then we had a mixed group come by about 10 minutes later right off shore (from 50-100 yards). I saw the J22s for sure, J27, J39, and J16 and crew. Also pretty sure L92 was there (it's hard to miss that dorsal of his!) and also I'm pretty sure K16 and K35. They were all moving south at a fast clip.
Sara Hysong-Shimazu
I see J14, J26, J27, J34, J35, J38, J39, J40, K14, K16,  and maybe L106 (behind J39 in one of the two pics he's in) in those eleven photos.  Looks like a good day to be taking pictures from shore! -Dave Ellifrit
Taken from Point No Point.
Photo by Sara Hysong-Shimazu, October 27, 2013.

Point No Point.
Photo by Sara Hysong-Shimazu, October 27, 2013.

Point No Point.
Photo by Sara Hysong-Shimazu, October 27, 2013.

Point No Point.
Photo by Sara Hysong-Shimazu, October 27, 2013.

Point No Point.
Photo by Sara Hysong-Shimazu, October 27, 2013.

Point No Point.
Photo by Sara Hysong-Shimazu, October 27, 2013.

Point No Point.
Photo by Sara Hysong-Shimazu, October 27, 2013.

Point No Point.
Photo by Sara Hysong-Shimazu, October 27, 2013.

Point No Point.
Photo by Sara Hysong-Shimazu, October 27, 2013.

October 27
9:57 am - A lot of splashing and action off Foulweather Bluff, south side of Hood Canal entrance - must be finding some salmon!
9:40 - Orcas are very spread out - leaders are nearing Pt. No Point, Kitsap Peninsula, and we're still seeing more just south of the south end of Marrowstone Island - all still heading south, LARGE group of Residents!
9:30 - we're seeing the orcas heading south, just south of Bush Pt, west Whidbey Island!
9:25 - Visual confirmation from Orca Network. We see them now, spread out across Admiralty Inlet between Bush Point and Point No Point, heading south.
Susan Berta

October 27
9:20 - Justine Buckmaster on the Victoria Clipper reports seeing a large number of orcas off Bush Point, Whidbey Island, heading south, ID'd as J's, K's and L's.

October 27
9:15 - A number of orcas are going south past Bush Point. They are just south of the buoy, closer to marrowstone island than bush point. The victoria clipper has stopped to watch them. 
Alex de Soto, Bush Point

October 27
8:15 am - Benye Weber relayed a report from her husband John who saw orcas from the Coupeville/Port Townsend ferry.

October 27
7:30-7:40 - heard what I thought were SRKWs on Port Townsend hydrophone! My volume was down when the loudest call came through, then ferry noise. The vocals of whatever animal (s) continued but were so faint. All SRKWs were reported in Sooke yesterday and from pictures at least some appear to be heading away from the sunset . Keep your eyes on Admiralty Inlet.
Alisa Lemire Brooks
J27 east bound off of East Sooke passing by a humpback.
Mark Malleson, Prince of Whales, October 26, 2013.

Transients (Bigg's Whales)
October 26 
Constance Bank (Strait of Juan de Fuca). The T46Bs and T46Cs had been milling around Constance Bank since around 10:30AM, and when we got there in the afternoon, they were still prowling around, not really traveling definitively in any direction (possible interesting side note: members of J, K, and L pods were at one point about 8NM to the west of where the Biggs/transients were, possibly preventing the Ts from making a comitment to go west ... not to mention in the mix with the ressies were multiple humpback whales! wow!).  
Nevertheless, these expert hunters picked off one harbour seal while we were with them, possibly two. We left them milling and trending NW toward William Head.  
Tasli Shaw
T46C1, T46B/B3/B2/B1 getting ready to take down a seal.  
Photo by Tasli Shaw, October 26, 2013.
 
T46B1, T46B, T46B3, and T46C1.
Photo by Tasli Shaw, October 26, 2013.
  
October 26 
(Includes transients, residents, and humpbacks)  
Mark set out with reports of eight transient killer whales at 11am, but there was much more in store. Captain Jeff on Ocean Magic followed at 12:15pm and picked up the same group of transients. It was then that we heard our two favourite words in the English language over the radio: "Residents inbound" All three pods of resident whales zigged and zagged around as they came in with the tide. There was resting, foraging, and socializing, all in the same group! But the humpbacks were not to be out-done. Throughout the day at least 7 or 8 individuals were spotted, including Split-Fin and Heather. They are offspring of some of the original humpbacks to return to these waters after they were hunted out. 
Prince of Whales Whale Watch

October 26 
So we had to go to Victoria, Canada to do it, but on my last day of being on the boat a couple of us Friday Harbor people saw Orcas today! I'm so happy I got to see them. T46b and c group. There were also about 20 humpbacks out there AND Residents about 20 miles west of where we were milling off of Vancouver. Super great day, I knew it would be  
Heather MacIntyre
T46b and c group off Victoria.
Photo by Heather MacIntyre, October 26, 2013
Humpbacks
October 27
Humpback whales - 5 individuals (2 were juveniles), entrance to Beecher Bay BC. Moving in circles - staying in the same general location. Sighted between 1100 and 1300 Appeared to be resting and travelling slowly. Whales have been sighted here previously. Too far away for IDs or photos.
Dave Tyre

October 27
But we did match our previous record for humpback sightings!!! Mark set out at a full boat at 10am in search of humpbacks and he didn't have to go far. These whales have been loving the areas between Victoria and Sooke. That gives us lots of time with the animals, but also time to find more! All in all we spotted 17 humpbacks again today. The humpbacks in this area typically spend the summer here, instead of going all the way to the Alaskan feeding grounds frequented by most humpbacks in the North Pacific. Most of the whales we've been seeing recently have been the migratory ones, so not ones we recognize. This just makes the numbers more impressive, because that's not including our "resident" bunch.
Prince of Whales Whale Watch

October 25
Mark Malleson broke his personal humpback record. A radio transmission came through at 11:45am, less than an hour into Mark's trip. He was blown away by the incredible visibility, thrilled about the conditions, saying everything was "gorgeous!" In three hours on the water Mark saw no fewer than 17 individual humpback whales! This was truly a once in a lifetime trip. A peak whale day, during peak humpback season, during an exceptional humpback year. Naturalist Rhonda noted that there was even a humpback inside Race Rocks Ecological Reserve; most likely rolling through the kelp and feeding on invertebrates. There is evidence humpback feeding habits could more be diverse than originally thought, and this observation certainly supports that.
Prince of Whales Whale Watch

October 25
Saw what I thought might be a Gray Whale (possibly a humpback) around 12:30pm off of Pt. Wilson. Slowly rolling/moving through the water, saw it spouting(?), no dorsal fin, heading in to Puget Sound. The one day I didn't have my spotting scope and I see something!!!\
Doug Bullis
ABOUT ORCA NETWORK  
Orca Network is a 501 c3 nonprofit organization, dedicated to raising awareness about the whales of the Pacific Northwest, and the importance of providing them healthy and safe habitats.

Orca Network's Whale Sighting Network involves citizens in helping researchers track the movement of whales, and encourages people to observe whales from their homes, businesses, ferries, and beaches.
Whale reports are sent in to our Sighting Network and emailed out to researchers, agencies, and citizens on our network, and posted on our website (MAP of sightings also on website). Whale reports and observations are sent in by a variety of sources, and Orca Network does not guarantee the accuracy of any report or whale identification.

 

TO REPORT WHALES, CALL: 1-866-ORCANET (1-866-672-2638), email info@orcanetwork.org, or post sightings on our Orca Network Facebook page.

 

*BE WHALE WISE! BOATERS - NEW FEDERAL REGULATIONS IN EFFECT AS OF MAY 16, 2011:

 "The new rules prohibit vessels from approaching any killer whale closer than 200 yards and forbid vessels from intercepting a whale or positioning the vessel in its path. This doubles the current approach distance of 100 yards. The rules go into effect May 16 and apply to all types of boats, including motor boats, sail boats and kayaks, in Washington"

 

For more information on the new Federal Regulations, visit the NOAA Fisheries website

 

 
To report harassment of whales in US waters
, call NOAA Enforcement: 1-800-853-1964;

In Canadian waters, call DFO's Observe Record and Report (ORR) Violations Hotline: 1-800- 465-4336

Report the boat name &/or a description of the boat, & get photos if at all possible.