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Upcoming Events:
June
Orca Awareness
Month~ Empty the Tanks Seattle
Sat. June 6th
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~
Empty the Tanks
Coupeville, Whidbey Isl.
Sat. June 6th
Details HERE~ Empty the Tanks
Near You
June 6th
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Puget Sound Whales for Sale: The Fight to End Orca Hunting, by
Sandra Pollard
This important volume recounts the people whose determined efforts ultimately succeeded in ending the captures.
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The Lost Whale, by
Michael Parfit and
Suzanne Chisolm
An intensely personal story...but this person is a young orca.
 ______________ To learn more about orcas: 
Orcas in Our Midst, Vol. 3: Residents and Transients, How Did That Happen? Click here to order YOUR copy! _________________ David Kirby The bestseller about orcas in captivity
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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.
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Sign up for our
Whale Sighting
or Free Lolita
Email Lists
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| June 5, 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.
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June brings the wonderful news that L pod calf L121 is still alive and was photographed near Tofino with her mom L94 and other L pod members on the 1st. At least some of L pod ventured south and turned east in through the Straight of Juan de Fuca showing up west side of San Juan Island early morning June 3rd, the same day L pod showed up there last year. J pod continues their circuitous travels throughout inland waters heading southbound in Haro Strait on the 4th.
The T125s showed up on May 31 around first reported around the south end of Lopez, traveling up San Juan Channel, circumnavigating Lopez and ending the evening back around the south end of the island by evening. This is a very special encounter as this group of Bigg's/Transients (who joined up with the T65As) had not been seen around the islands since the mid 90's.
A large pod of unknown ecotype was reported by several people last night (4th) around Edmonds-Kingston. And this morning reports of a southbound pod near the Tacoma Narrows is looking to be a pod of Bigg's/Transisents. By days end we hope to have ID's on these individuals from the ever growing contingent of south Sound orca watchers in Pierce and Thurston counties.
Orca Network |
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Photo of the Day
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June 1
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| Four-month-old L121 swims along side mom L94 Calypso off the coast of Vancouver Island
Photo by Marcie Callewaert, June 1, 2015 |
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Southern Residents
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June 4
There were some just off County Park (San Juan Island) about +/- 2 Pm.
Super pod of J's & L's?
Peggy Strickland
June 4
1 pm - got a call from the WA State Ferries of about 6-8 orcas heading west in Spieden Channel, just north of Roche Harbor.
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June 3
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| L's came back in today! Just a quick clip of
the L55's off Edwards Point on San Juan Island. We had the L4's, L47's and L95 on the
west side of San Juan Island.
Encounter #40 Video by
Center for Whale Research
June 3, 2015
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June 3
7:52 pm - still hearing them and getting louder
7:33 pm - Hearing some clicks and a couple calls on Lime Kiln Hydro!
Nicole Soulodre
June 3
Great day (and even better evening) spent with the L4's, L47's, and L95 Nigel! They were very social tonight, as opposed to this afternoon where they were very serious about foraging. It was lovely to see them socializing before sunset. So grateful to have seen some of L Pod today, it's been a while.
Heather MacIntyre
June 3
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| L95 Nigel
Photo by Heather MacIntyre, June 3, 2015
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June 3
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| L pod fluke
Photo by Heather MacIntyre, June 3, 2015
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June 3
12:38 pm - Off Pile Pt and Hannah Heights following Nigel, L95, and two more whales. Possibly Fluke and Racer?
Chris Grams
June 3
11:58 am - There they are! L pod on Lime Kiln.
Gayle Swigart
June 3
9:20 am - Some L pod members were seen off the west side of San Juan Island this morning, their first appearance in the Salish Sea this year. More later as info comes in.
Howard Garret
June 3
Surprise! L-Pod showed up on the west side this morning! June 3rd is the same day the first Ls came "in" last year, too. Here's L27 Ophelia with L82 Kasatka - L116 Finn was with them too. It's just like catching up with old friends to see these guys after so many months!
Monika Wieland
June 3
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| L27 Ophelia with L82 Kasatka
Photo by Monika Wieland, June 3, 2015
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June 1
L Pod was reported traveling South off Blunden Island around 2:15 pm today (June 1, 2015). They were off Wilf Rocks an hour later. Around 4:15 pm they were off Frank Island. When we caught up to them just after 5, they were past Cox Point. Despite their fast travel they were having a blast in the chop and were breaching, spyhopping, tail lobbing and cartwheeling.
L121 was sighted and was even seen in the care of L41, Mega. Also identified with the pod was L25, the presumed mother of Lolita, who is in the Miami Seaquarium.
We left the pod as they reached Long Beach, around 6:20pm.
Marcie Callewaert/VMSC
June 1
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| L pod off west coast of Vancouver Island
Photo by Marcie Callewaert, June 1, 2015
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June 1
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| L121 and L94
Photo by Marcie Callewaert, June 1, 2015
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June 1
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| L Pod spyhop
Photo by Marcie Callewaert, June 1, 2015
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June 1
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| In the overcast and rainy lighting you could really see the difference in the
amount of orange on J52 compared to J50. Little J52 pictured here.
Photo by Tasli Shaw, June 1, 2015
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June 1
Photos of J Pod traveling north through Boundary Pass, heading for Active Pass. J50 sandwiched in between her sister J42 Echo and mother, J16 Slick. You can really see the rake marks on her tiny little fin here, which is why I cropped it so close. I'm so grateful she survived whatever experience she had to go through to be brought into this world.
Heather MacIntyre
June 1
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| J50 sandwiched in between her sister J42 Echo and mother, J16 Slick
Photo by Heather MacIntyre, June 1, 2015
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June 1
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| L87 Onyx
Photo by Heather MacIntyre, June 1, 2015
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June 1
Spent some time with J pod in Canadian waters which was very spread out, very choppy so hard to get nice clear shots, but confirmed J27, J28, L87...also got 2 babies, possibly J50 and J52....not 100% on that yet. Looks like they were all up there, I think I got Granny, too, she was leading the way with Onyx a little way behind her.
Janine Harles
June 1
A good start to Orca Month - off we went to find orca. We traveled in between the San Juan Islands out towards Stuart Island, and found J-pod! They were spread out in small groups - our first whales were the J16's with 5 month old J50. Even though the seas were a little choppy, we had great views of them, and also caught up with Granny, Onyx, Doublestuf, Princess Angeline and many other whales. What a privilege to see these amazing whales, and the light rain we encountered didn't faze our enthusiastic passengers. A great day again
Jill Hein, volunteer naturalist.
June 1
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| J-36 Alki with J-52
Photo by Jill Hein, June 1, 2015
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June 1
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| J2 Granny
Photo by Jill Hein, June 1, 2015
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June 1
A couple of shore based shots from encounter with J Pod. All
J16 matriline whales, but pretty cool that you can see these guys up close
from the beach!
Jeff Hogan, Killer Whale Tales
June 1
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| J16 and J50
Photo by Jeff Hogan, June 1, 2015
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June 1
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| J36 and J52
Photo by Jeff Hogan, June 1, 2015
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June 1
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| J26 Mike
Photo by Jeff Hogan, June 1, 2015
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June 1
I played a hunch today and caught the early ferry over to San Juan Island and caught Big Mama (see humpback section) and J pod at Lime Kiln. Then I headed out on the water in the afternoon and saw J pod again. It was a lovely, lovely day---if a bit damp.
Sara Hysong-Shimazu
June 1
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| Granny (J2), Oreo (J22) and Doublestuf (J34)
Photo by Sara Hysong-Shimazu, June 1, 2015
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June 1
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| Polaris (J28) and Star (J46). Taken from shore at Lime Kiln State Park
Photo by Sara Hysong-Shimazu, June 1, 2015 |
June 1
11:14 am - Just heard some calls on Orcasound.
Jill Clogston
June 1
10:40 am - Freighter fading into the distance and silly J Pod calls on Lime Kiln
Connie Bickerton
June 1
S4 calls at 10:38 and whistling starting at 10:40
Intermittent echolocation starting at 10:23, along with approaching cargo ship.
Gayle Swigart
June 1
11:06 am - echolocation now on OrcaSound hps
10:39 am - Loud S4 calls on Lime Kiln hps
6:05 am turned on Lime Kiln and pretty sure hearing distant J pod calls. Heard them for about 15 minutes.
Alisa Lemire Brooks
June 1
3:20 am - I heard them (orcas) pretty loud on Orca Sound around
Connie Bickerton
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May 31
8:00 pm - Hi, My family and I spotted a pod of Orca last night (May 31) while sailing just south of Point Roberts Marina. The Pod was fairly widely dispersed, we believe that there were a minimum of 10 and I'd guess more like 12 - 15 were present. They were in pairs or individuals spread over approx 1 mile of area. We were approx 48d 57.8N, 123d3.2 W and the pod was all around us, traveling east towards White Rock, BC.
We saw them around 8PM We didn't get close enough for any detailed descriptions. We did see one Orca Breach 4 or 5 times, and another one flip it's tail completely over it's head.
Amazing creatures.
Andrew Green
May 31
Hi we were boating towards the ferry strip tonight around 7:30pm and we became surrounded with 10-15 Orcas. We were in our 19 foot boat and the Orcas were swimming southeast close to Point Roberts. It was amazing. I would say there was 2-3 pods. There was a massive Orca with a 4 foot fin plus a mama with a calf. The calf was small like a newborn. They were magnificent- majestic- beautiful. The mama & calf came the closest to our boat 50 feet away. The massive Orca with 4 foot fin was about the same. We were the only boat...I will NEVER forget this experience. Wish I had pictures for you!
Karen Conley-Giles
May 31
Here are a few shots from a nice day in calm waters with all of J-pod, in the Georgia Strait a handful of miles of Entrance Island (Nanaimo, BC). Lots of socializing and activity!
Andy Scheffler
May 31
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| J-pod in the Georgia Strait
Photo by Andy Scheffler, May 31, 2015
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May 31
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| Photo by Andy Scheffler, May 31, 2015
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Transients/Bigg's Whales
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June 5
7:15-ish am - Orcas traveling south, passing under the Narrows Bridge.
Counted five (?) total. There were a handful of boats sitting under the bridge fishing as the Orcas approached, all kept their motors off
Beth Blankenship
June 5 |
| Orcas southbound under the Tacoma Narrows Bridge
Photo by Beth Blankenship, June 5, 2015 |
June 5 |
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Two large, one small; zoomed and cropped, photo taken from
Salmon Beach, Tacoma Narrows.
Photo by Beth Blankenship, June 5, 2015
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June 4
8:39 Headed back north. But still south of Kingston. I couldn't even begin to tell you who it was but there was probably at least 10-15. I lost them after they turned north. 8:23 Kingston - Edmonds Ferry riders... Orcas are on your right! Looks like they're just milling around. Just south of the ferry lane.Laura Finch June 4
8:28 pm - Pod of at least 6 individuals heading generally south off of Jefferson Point in Kingston. Going forward, then sometimes heading back close to other individuals. Maybe cruising (or feeding?) Teri Munter June 4
2:23 pm - Just saw a pod of 4+ orcas while on the port Townsend ferry...Looked like they were headed west, maybe slightly northwest.Jason Weigner ******************** June 3
Very unique T encounter yesterday. At least 20 whales, including the exotic Ts and fan faves T65As and T137s. PLUS!!! The T124As, T86A1, and T100B. Their behaviour was very cool and perplexing. Social milling is the only way I could describe it. They barely moved a quarter mile the entire time we were with them, they were basically all in one clump, but not necessarily touching each other like you might expect from social KWs.Very little surface activity like spyhops or tail slaps. They were just spinning around each other in a big clump. Maybe somewhat of a cautious greeting/inspection toward the T125s? Lots of playful speculation that the ladies were drawn in from far and wide to meet these handsome strangers from Alaska to help maintain a strong gene pool down here if you know what i'm saying~ Tasli Shaw June 3
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| Transient traffic jam!
Photo by Tasli Shaw, June 3, 2015
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June 3
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| T125A1 and T127 with little T137D
Photo by Tasli Shaw, June 3, 2015 |
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| It was that kind of evening! T127, Strait of Georgia.
Photo by James Maya, June 2, 2015
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June 2
So so exciting to see the nearly-mythical T125s finally! Them and the T65As were on form chowing down in nearly the same spot for the whole encounter. Lots of activity and great vocals on the hydrophone!Andy Scheffler June 2
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| T127
Photo by Andy Scheffler, June 2, 2015
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June 2
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| Photo by Andy Scheffler, June 2, 2015
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June 2
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| I am beyond stoked that I got to see these guys! T128 and T127 near Saturna Island today.
Photo by Sara Hysong-Shimazu, June 2, 2015
(Taken with a 400mm lens and cropped)
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June 2
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| Photo by Sara Hysong-Shimazu, June 2, 2015
(Taken with a 400mm lens and cropped) |
June 2
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| Super mom T65A
Photo by Tasli Shaw, June 2, 2015
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June 2
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| T127 pec slap
Photo by Tasli Shaw, June 2, 2015
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June 2
11:04 am - A pod of orcas is just swinging by our place now, boundary pass, South PenderJennifer Conkie ************************ May 31
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| 6:30pm - Approximately 14 whales in the group at the south end of Lopez Island feeding, hunting, socializing and playing for over an hour at sundown.
Photo by Michael Kundu, May 31, 2015
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May 31
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| A very cool encounter with some of our
regular Bigg's Killer whales, the T65A's
along with some very rare visitors. According to Dave Ellifrit from the Center for Whale research, the T125's have not been seen in the area since the 90's! What a remarkable and interesting looking group of orca! T125's consist of T125, T125A, T127, T128.
Video by Traci Walter, May 31, 2015
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May 31
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| The T65As continue to be one of my favorite family groups, hands down.
They are so interesting and always up to something.
This was taken in Rosario Strait while they traveled with the T125s.
Photo by Katie Jones, May 31, 2015
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May 31
And a little more info. about the encounter from Dave: We left the T65A's and T125's at 1700 pointed east in Rosario Strait after they had traveled deep into Lopez Sound and then exited through Lopez Pass. To my knowledge, this is the first time the T125's have visited the area since the early 1990's. Dave Ellifrit of the Center for Whale Research reports that the Transients they were with this afternoon in the San Juan Islands are the T125s, who he has never seen before (and Dave has seen a LOT of Transients!).May 31
May 31
We found these guys (T125s and T65As) near the South end of Lopez Island. At least 3 males, and one youngster about 2 years old maybe? We also found 2-3 humpbacks South of that area on our way back home! Great day on the water! Janine Harles May 31
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| Photo by Janine Harles, May 31, 2015
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May 31
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| Photo by Janine Harles, May 31, 2015
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May 31
Noon Sunday, May 31st, tight group of 8 orcas slowly cruised past the southend of Lopez Island, going east to west. Two distinctive male dorsal fins, Chainsaw(?) (turned out to be T125s and T65As) who has several notches and other with one larger notch near top of fin. Several whale watch boats with the orcas, so specific ID will likely be available from their reports. Sally Reeve
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Coastal orcas
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June 2
Izzy Menendez who works for the Quilieute Tribe reported seeing 2 orcas about 100 ft. from the mouth of the Quillayute River this afternoon around 2 - 3 pm this afternoon. Visitors at the resort there got some good photos so he was going to try to get the photos sent our way. June 2
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| Here are a few photos of the orcas reported to us off the Quillayute River on the WA Coast- How awsome is this?! An orca family in the Quillayute River!
Photo by Joo Lee, June 2, 2015 |
June 2
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| An orca family in the Quillayute River!
Photo by Joo Lee, June 2, 2015
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June 2
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| An orca family in the Quillayute River!
Photo by Joo Lee, June 2, 2015
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Humpbacks
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June 1
Received a report from Nadja Baker - Deception Pass tours boat was with two humpbacks (mother and calf) a few miles south of Deception Island, heading south around 2:30 pm, then seen milling around Lawson Reef buoy.June 1
The big surprise of the day. Big Mama from Lime Kiln! I was sitting at a bench eating breakfast when I heard a very loud blow and ran to the rocks to find her close to shore and cruising south.Sara Hysong-Shimazu June 1
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| BCY0324 Big Mama
Photo by Sara Hysong-Shimazu, June 1, 2015
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June 1
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| BCY0324 Big Mama on 6.1.15 around 12:30 at Lime Kiln State Park, San Juan Island, WA
Photo by Angie Moulton, June 1, 2015
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******************** May 28
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| These two feeding humpbacks, often surfacing as close as they could get to each other were in Swanson Channel between North Pender Isl and Prevost Isl heading in no hurry towards Active Pass. Humpbacks seem to like this area.
Photo by Peter McAllister, May 28, 2015
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Minke
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June 2
5:30 pm: West Beach Rd, NW Whidbey Isl. between NAS Whidbey & Partridge Pt, John Hartley reported one whale heading south, with a light colored small dorsal fin, possibly a Minke.
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Dolphin
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June 4
Saw a lone dolphin while kayaking at Dick Gilmore park, Tacoma/Browns point area around 8 pm tonight. Very close to the shore. Wasn't very active. Maybe lost/sick. (There have been several sightings of two, and now a lone Pacific White-sided dolphin in the south Puget Sound for about a year)Tim Larson
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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.
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