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Orca Network 

Whale Sighting Report  

In This Issue
Southern Residents.
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


Quick Links

Click here

to learn about L pod

orca Lolita/Tokitae,

captured in Penn Cove,

Whidbey Island, WA

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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February 9, 2015

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.
Whale sightings have been few in February so far, but yesterday Puget Sound was the scene of a day long visit by about seven Transients/Bigg's killer whales, from mid-channel off Restoration Point on the SE end of Bainbridge Island in the morning, to close approaches off Point Robinson, Vashon Island by late afternoon.

Our knowledge of the whereabouts of J pod comes almost entirely from the beeps emitted from a satellite tag embedded in J27 Blackberry. From the maps below it appears that J27, and presumably the rest of J pod, including baby J50, have not gone very far. After spending a week or two mostly in northern Georgia Strait, in the past 8-10 days they've rambled around the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and north along Vancouver Island, and, interestingly, about 30 miles west of Neah Bay, putting J pod well inside the Naval Training and Testing Ground (page 6). All of the resident orcas tagged so far, from J, K, and L pods, have made roughly the same trip straight out west from Neah Bay, into the northern reaches of the Naval training and testing ground, where active sonors from boats and buoys, mines, and various ordnance are deployed. Perhaps this part of the training and testing range could be considered essential habitat for the endangered Southern Resident Orca community. For more background please see comment letter  Re: Supplement to the Draft Environmental Impact Statement/Overseas Environmental Impact Statement for Northwest Training and Testing.

There are still a few openings for our annual visit to San Ignacio Lagoon in Baja, Mexico to see gray whales, March 3 to 7. It's a magical few days there in the presence of friendly gray whales. All details and registration can be found HERE.

NOAA finally announced their decision to include Lolita, the captive L pod orca performing twice daily in Miami, as a Southern Resident orca under the protection of the Endangered Species Act. The bad news is that NOAA is not inclined to entertain a permit application for Lolita's return home at this time; the good news is that the ESA includes provisions that may make her living conditions fit the definition of "harm or harassment," which would be unlawful.

Now on youtube - Orca Network Ways of Whales Workshop 2015 presentations - all the talks at Ways of Whales 2015. Ken Balcomb, John Durban, Erin Ashe, and John Calambokidis. Music by Dana Lyons. Great information here. Videos by Richard Snowberger.

Correction from the last report: the Photo of the Day in the last report was by Julia Coffey Christman (not by Connie Bickerton). She posted it on the Kitsap Orca Watch page, wedged in there near photos by Connie and Susan Marie Andersson.

Orca Network 

Photo of the Day
February 8
Transients at Pt. Robinson.
Photo by Jessica Pagan
Southern Residents
February 8
8 February update - As of the evening of 5 February when J27's tag turned back on from the day before the whales had continued to remain near the western entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca. By the following afternoon (6 February) the whales had moved southwest to the continental shelf break. The duty cycle on J27's tag reverted back to every day on 6 February such that we were able to follow the whales movements that day and the next as they followed the edge of the continental shelf slope northward before turning east and reaching the coast of Vancouver Island near Tofino. They headed south and were back near the western entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca by afternoon of 8 February.
Northwest Fisheries Science Center 2015 Southern Resident Killer Whale Satellite Tagging

February 5
5 February update - As of the evening of 3 February when J27's tag turned back on from the day before the whales were still out at the the western entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca. By the following morning (4 February) the whales had moved several miles to the east off the southwest coast of Vancouver Island.
Northwest Fisheries Science Center 2015 Southern Resident Killer Whale Satellite Tagging

February 2
2 February update - Based on the trajectory of travel on the afternoon of the 29th J pod was expected to show up in Puget Sound on Friday the 30th. Although they never arrived (but K pod did), by that evening when J27s tag turned back on we observed that they had returned to the western entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca. They spent the next day again meandering around the western end of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Last night (1 February) and this morning's locations continue to show the whales remaining that same general area.
Northwest Fisheries Science Center 2015 Southern Resident Killer Whale Satellite Tagging

February 1
12:10pm - 7-8 Orca approx 3/4nm west of Race Rocks heading east. 12:00pm.
Jason van der Valk

January 30
Recapping the visit by K pod into Sinclair Inet, Susan Marie Andersson writes:

What a thrill to have K pod in our local waters for the afternoon. I'm pretty excited by the fans/eager learners we are starting to see line up on our shores when the whales are near. The car line up on Beach drive in Port Orchard went on and on for what seemed like miles.

I heard that orcas had been spotted off Vashon near the Tahlequah ferry terminal and were headed north up Colvos Passage. A slight detour had me at Manchester park and then Manchester pier around noon after Connie relayed Kelly's report of the orcas "hanging out around an anchored freighter. While looking from the pier, I met the wife of an orca fan who's husband saw them near the Southworth Ferry dock. We waited together for almost 30 min. before members of the whales appeared from behind one of the three gigantic freighters parked off Blake Island. Due to the longshoreman's strike the area north, west and south of Blake Island has been the holding spot for numerous freighters for months now. I'm wondering if these giant ships threw the whales off? It was weird behavior from the get go.

At some point Brad Hansen and the NOAA Zodiak appeared. The ships blocked a lot, and I'm wondering if NOAA attempted a tag in this time frame? Anyway, there was a lot of milling and direction changing by K pod, (pretty sure at that point who we were seeing) but no real foraging behavior that I could tell. K Pod and NOAA started to head toward Restoration Point off the south end of Bainbridge and I turned to leave.

Before reaching my car, which was at a higher vantage point, I saw that K Pod had done a 180 and was headed rapidly back toward Manchester and Rich Passage. It was foggy, and visibility poor, and those damn freighters were like high rise buildings on their sides.

I was still able to stick with them most of the afternoon by following the shoreline from Manchester to Port Orchard. Port Orchard roads are narrow, there are few view point but tons of traffic. I was able to stick with K pod all the way into the Bremerton Navy shipyard where they hesitated. Up to that point they had stayed pretty close together the entire way up from Blake Island. As they reached downtown Bremerton they spread out, and did a lot of back and forth movement, almost like pacing...

At this point word was out and the narrow road along the beach was clogged with traffic. There must have been close to a hundred people or more lined along the shore. It reminded me of a classic summer bear jam in Yellowstone! We all watched from shore as a large male, K25, went over to the Manette Bridge. You could hear an audible gasp from the multitudes of onlookers now lined up along the shore here and there in both directions as far as the eye could see. Many were remembering when L Pod got stuck in Dyes Inlet for 30 days in 1997 and you could hear lots of stories being exchanged. After what looked like a close approach to us on shore, he turned and joined the rest of the pod that were now heading back out and east. Phew, what an adventure!

January 30
Orca sighting in Manette-Bremerton. My dad stopped at Bachmann Park about 2:30pm in the afternoon & bystanders had seen whales.
Ruth Blakeslee

January 30
Orca whales off Bachman Park in Manette/Bremerton
Orca whales off Bachman Park in Manette/Bremerton.
Video by Steve Erland

February 1
12:00pm - 7-8 Orca approx 3/4nm west of Race Rocks heading east.
Jason van der Valk
Transients/Bigg's Whales
February 8
First reported to Orca Network by Maia of WA State Ferries at 11:45am traveling southbound near the south end of Bainbridge Island, we caught up with T087, the T90's & 3 (yet to be ID'd) individuals further south at Dilworth on Vashon Island at 2:45pm. Shortly before, a friend witnessed the pod take an animal and as the video begins you'll see how very relaxed they appear. Nearly two hours later (approx. 4:40pm) they approached and rounded Point Robinson much to the happiness of a very patient, large and happy bunch of humans (and doggies). As they were passing the pod (s) grouped up tight just before going under for long dive, surfacing approximately 4-5 minutes later south of the point. We just had us another beautiful and exhilarating winter's day here in the PNW!
To learn more about these wild beauties please visit:
orcanetwork.org
whalemuseum.org
whaleresearch.com

February 8
Bigg's (Transient) killer whales-Puget Sound Feb 8, 2015 (HD)
Wild and beautiful Bigg's-Transients as they wound their way southbound along the east side of Vashon Island yesterday afternoon. Many folks gathered on the shores and atop the bluffs of Puget Sound in awe as the pod goes about their day.  Feb 8, 2015 (HD).
Video by Alisa Lemire Brooks

February 8
From Vashon Island. They almost look like twins to me.
Photo by Kelly Burns Keenan

February 8
I saw my first Transient kill today. When I met these T's, I was greeted by T087 breeching on top of what I thought was a harbor seal. He then proceeded to either drag or chase it out to the deeper water to where the rest of the pod was waiting. They tail slapped, rolled around, and looked as though they were laying on top of something. There was more rolling and tail slaps. There was a lot of movement in different directions and a couple spy hops. Then a ton of gulls surrounded the whales. I speculated that they killed something. This was a pic of one of the spy hops where the orca shows off it's kill.
Photo by Kelly Burns Keenan

February 8
T090 with a left over SAT tag in the dorsal fin. Point Robinson, Vashon Island.
Photo by Kelly Burns Keenan

February 8
T090C and T087 are shown here passing Point Robinson, Vashon Island today. Along with other members of their pod.
Photo by Kelly Burns Keenan

February 8
Transients at Pt. Robinson.
Photo by Jessica Pagan
Sara Hysong-Shimazu: [The white dot on T90's dorsal fin] is part of a sat tag. She was tagged a few years ago and that is a retained barb.

February 8
Off Gold Beach on Maury Island @ 5:30. Headed south. Probably 5 in close group.
Burt Miller

February 8
4:49 - Their just off Pt. Robinson, been milling around the bay for over an hour.
Richard Johnson

February 8
4:46 - Angie Edgmon At Des Moines marina 4:46 see a large fin passing right in front of Pt. Robinson.

February 8
3:55 - Looking from Redondo beach across, a pod in front of the towers. A large group of people off Pt. Robinson...
Richard Johnson

February 8
3:42 - From KVI beach on Vashon almost due east, mid channel. Way out there. Draw a line from KVI Beach to Sea-Tac Airport and they're just north of that line.
Matthew Brashears

February 8
4:55 - they've past Pt Robinson. Sweet!
4:15 - been seeing blows and fins for a while but still waiting at Pt Robinson for pass by.
2:45 - Transients...very close to Vashon at Dilworth. Approx 7, bull, females and little one. Still southbound but slowed in front of us spyhopping, inverted swimming-rolling, tail lobs etc.
Alisa Lemire Brooks

February 8
2:46 - from three tree pt looking across at the Dilworth towers, very close to Vashon... Lots of play and splashing. Heading south slowly towards Point Robinson.
Jill M Rotset

February 8
2:50 - Still in Dilworth - north east on Vashon the are pretty far out now - slowly and lolly gagging headed south.
2:45 - They are slowly heading towards Point Robinson - lots of tail slaps and spy hops.
2:20 - 6 black fins in Dilworth!!!
Aimee Demarest

February 8
1:24 - Five or six orcas east side of Vashon Island South of Dolphin Point, heading south... From my living room window :--)
Andrew Hollingsworth

February 8
1:10 - David Curtis sighted orcas from the Vashon-Fauntleroy ferry along the shore of Vashon Island, about 150' from the beach, heading south.

February 8
1:00 PM - Orcas off Blake Island. We just saw a pod of 5 or 6 southbound orcas off of the East side of Blake Island! Traveling and maybe feeding.
Rachelle Cohen

February 8
11:45 - Maia of WA State Ferries relayed a report of at least five orcas heading SE, toward Alki, near the Tango Buoy, which is off Restoration Point, SE end of Bainbridge Island.

February 8
Just spotted a small dorsal fin southbound from the 11:30 Bainbridge boat to Seattle...only saw it once...mid channel.
Sue Surowiec Larkin

February 8
10:00 AM - Saw single orca off Fay Bainbridge at this morning heading south.
Josh Smith

***************

February 4
6:29 - Had a report from a friend that there were two orcas sighted around 5 pm from the Vashon Island Passenger Ferry as it was pulling into the dock on the North end of the Vashon - nearer to Blake Island and no direction of travel. The Ferry captain announced the whales and slowed. Hmmmm...T's or???
Amy Carey
Note: ID's were not determined for this sighting.

February 2
11:15 AM - We sighted approximately 7 whales together at Secret Cove on the Sunshine Coast (east side of Strait of Georgia). One baby stayed close to it's mother, two older whales and maybe some adolescents in there! They were very happy, going under our boat (a fish boat with the motor off, prop. not moving!!) They stayed near us playing!!! for about 45 minutes playing and "huffing" loudly! Very exhilirating!
Alexia Norman-Alarie
Note: ID's were not determined for this sighting.

***************

February 1
12:30 PM - Orcas in Boundary Pass. We saw 5 orcas In Boundary Pass at East Point, Saturna Island today. Looked like transients, swimming fast with long dives. Curious that there were no bulls, only females and juveniles.
Maureen Welton
Note: ID's were not determined for this sighting.

***************

January 31
Howie Tom wanted me to send in these photos of orcas he saw January 31st, on his trip out of Tofino to Hot Springs Cove. They have been identified by researcher Josh McInnes as the T109's.
Becky Myerscough

January 31
The orcas were spotted at the mouth of Hot Springs Cove (in the western Clayoquot Sound region of the West Coast of Vancouver Island) heading west.
Photos sent by Howie Tom

January 31
Orcas at the mouth of Hot Springs Cove.
Photos sent by Howie Tom

January 31
Orcas at the mouth of Hot Springs Cove.
Photos sent by Howie Tom

January 31
Orcas at the mouth of Hot Springs Cove.
Photos sent by Howie Tom

January 31
Orcas at the mouth of Hot Springs Cove.
Photos sent by Howie Tom
Humpbacks
February 4
2:20 - Looks like potentially a humpback off Edmonds dog park! Not a grey and looks too big to be minke...Kind of milling around when we last saw it... Has been a lot of small herring and krill around of dog park... Perhaps good dining there.
Toby Black

February 4
There is a humpback off Gig Harbor this morning. Beth Bennett called about 9 am while watching a humpback in Horsehead Bay, facing Fox Island from Gig Harbor. No direction of travel was obvious.

***************

February 3
5:30 - leaving now after watching HB move southward along Edmonds in mostly shallow surfacings...looked to be foraging north then south. Sometimes just roughing up the water. Several robust blows with last surface had HB 100 yards off shore out from north Edmonds (between ferry and Browns Bay).
4:50 - for last 30 minutes have watched HB move back east on Edmonds side .5 miles from shore directly now out from Stamm overlook.
4:05 - finally and by a little luck saw the HB surface a few times out from west end. Off Cultus Bay close to Whidbey side northeast bound.
Alisa Lemire Brooks

February 3
2:44pm - Humpback again west of north Edmonds shoreline. Mulling and sporadic breaching... Camera on the ready.
Stu Davidson

February 3
This whale was seen breaching at 1 pm (Bainbridge/Rich Passage whale) making us pretty sure it is one of the two humpbacks reported yesterday.
Orca Network

February 3
OMG!!!! I just saw blows and whale jumping up into the air, splashing ... just now entering the point at Manchester State Park, moving at a good pace...into Rich Passage ~ westbound toward Port Orchard .. seen from South Colby through binoculars ... heading out now.
Kathe Bradly

February 3
At 1:30 p.m. we saw the whale surface twice relatively close to short in front of our house on South Beach on Bainbridge. It appeared to be heading east and then disappeared.
Lucy Schenk

February 3
12:30 - apparently the whale did change its mind about Rich Passage. Maia called again to say the whale was headed east, toward mid-channel.
10:30 - Maia of WA State Ferries reports a whale [probably a humpback] is off Restoration Point, south end of Bainbridge Island, headed west into Rich Passage.

***************

February 2
13:20 - just saw a humpback in Elliott bay heading out towards Bainbridge. I saw it breach 3xs moving out of the bay. I was at Don Armeni boat ramp when it went by.
Alicia Toney

February 2
4:46pm - humpback heading north close to north Edmonds shoreline. Moving slow and steady northerly.
Photo by Stu Davidson

February 2
5pm - Saw a spray and a tail just north of Edmonds. Did not see a dorsal fin between the spray and tail. Headed north, only surfaced once that I saw.
Dana Brooks

February 2
One Humpback whale traveling south, West side of Whidbey between Lagoon and Bush Points at 1 PM, breaching. It surfaced, rolling a bit, and so what I saw was its underside, and the distinctive furrows (don't know what they're called). It was very close to shore, not much more than a hundred feet.
Deborah Heg

**************

January 31
We saw the whale from scenic beach state park today, Hood Canal, maybe 2:30pm. Does anyone know what kind?
Tish Kingaby
This is probably the humpback that has been seen in Hood Canal several times in the past few weeks.
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.