Killer Whales, Dolphins and Burger and Beer Night info
Reports of Orca that seem to appear in numbers then disappear. With the calm waters, you’d think it would be difficult to lose track of them, but it happens. In the meantime, Pacific White Sided Dolphins have been having some good feeding runs in the Georgia Strait while putting on a show for some lucky fishermen. In front of Powell River, we have three commercial draggers operating, so I don’t anticipate Cetaceans in the close proximity, unfortunately. We also have a great Humpback Whale report from Hawaii. It’s always exciting to receive reports from farther afield.
For those of you in the Powell River area, or planning to be: Our Burger and Beer Night tickets will be available at our information table in the Town Center Mall, in front of The Brick, on Saturday, February 28th. We’ll have Whale and Dolphin photos and video clips running on a 60" TV screen, courtesy The Brick. The Burger (beef or veggie) and Beer (or wine) tickets are $15 each. The event is being sponsored by the Savoury Bight Restaurant and Pub at Beach Gardens, who also have tickets available. This is a fundraiser for our First permanent Live Web Camera and Hydrophone system installation. We have many great Toonie Toss and Door Prizes, all donated to help us raise the funds needed. We look forward to seeing you there!
Susan MacKay & Lynne Cracknell, Whales and Dolphins BC
Have you seen a whale, dolphin or porpoise?
We are the non-profit Wild Ocean Whale Society
UNIDENTIFIED KILLER WHALES
Feb 22:
2 pm Approx. I was paddling north in Hunter Channel (15 km. from Bella Bella) and a family of Orcas was heading south. We watched them approach and then move on to the south for 30 minutes or so. The male(?) had a very tall dorsal and came within 20 m. and between us two Kayakers while the other adult and what appeared to be two young stayed well to our port. The calves played, breached and splashed with the mother(?) close at hand. Very enthralling and humbling for us humans on a bright, sunny day, glassy calm sea. I was too excited to work my camera.
I managed to do a screen capture from the few seconds of video that I have of the male Orca. Derek, my paddling partner has a few seconds of one of the calves breaching. His kayak was about 15-20 m astern of the whale! (video clip not submitted – SM)
Video Frame Capture of Orca
February 22, 2015
Vic Gladish, Bella Bella
Here’s a few more details….Date – Sun., Feb. 22 at approx. 2:00 pm Weather – sun, windless, approx 10 deg Celsius.
4 Orca – family grouping by all appearances – 3 together were perhaps mother and 2 calves; 1 separated from group and had a very tall, pointed dorsal fin. He swam between me and my paddling partner and surfaced astern of us. The entire group travelled from North to South in Hunter Channel at a leisurely pace. As I watched them into the distance I could see the male keeping to centre of the channel and the other 3 staying closer to the Campbell Island shore.
There has been several sea lions in the Bella Bella/ Lama Pass vicinity for several weeks. We spotted 2 close to shore in Hunter Channel shortly after the Orcas passed us.
Vic Gladish, Bella Bella.
Feb 22:
9:00 am: A friend reported Orca off the Comox ferry, no numbers, no direction given.
Grant Rainsley.
Feb 22:
3:53 pm: About fourteen Killer Whales Southbound in Discovery Passage by Brown’s Bay, Vancouver Island.
(from radio)
Feb 22: The Orca passed us. We got to Seymour Narrows at 5:10 pm and spoke to someone who said they were southbound one and a half hours ago. So we turned south and burned to Cape Mudge, but they were gone. A friend posted on my wall that at around 5:10 pm they were somewhere by the Big Rock…so close!
Nick Templeman, Campbell River Whale and Bear Excursions.
Feb 15:
5:42 pm: Reports from a friend fishing the Hump that there are 50 plus Orca with 5 or more babies heading north in Discovery Passage. The Hump is just south of Cape Mudge on the Vancouver Island side of Quadra Island.
Aaron Webber, Campbell River Whale Watching.
HUMPBACK WHALES
Feb 20:
Message from Maui! Hey, it’s wild, there are Humpbacks! Lunging and breaching so close to shore. Honestly, I could have been paddle boarding or swimming right where they were. Every day like this. Have never seen them so close. You should come here for Professional Development!
Feb 21: Got another amazing show yesterday afternoon at about 4:00 p.m our time. Like non-stop antics! Couldn’t have paid for a better seat on a boat. We sat with many others sipping our cocktails and KABOOM out flies a Humpback, then another and another…
Lorraine Redpath, Sayward.
PACIFIC WHITE SIDED DOLPHINS
Feb 19:
1:17 pm: About one hundred Pacific White Sided Dolphins off Blubber Bay, on Texada Island.
Susan MacKay, Whales and Dolphins B.C.
February 19:
3 pm About 50 dolphins seen heading SE past Myrtle Rocks, Powell River. They were moving along fast, then stopped and milled around, with seagulls overhead, then they quickly headed off again in the same direction.
Holly Roy, Powell River
Feb 17:
11:50 am: Dolphins one half mile south of Albion Point, Powell River. There were approximately 50 of them heading east into the fog bank.
Laura Johnson, Powell River
Pacific White Sided Dolphins
February 17, 2015 – 2 photos
Laura Johnson, Powell River
February 17:
I saw what I believe was a large group of dolphins about 4:30 this afternoon. I was on Palm Beach and they were over by Northeast Point and lighthouse on Texada Island. Through binoculars I could see lots of splashing and could barely make out bodies lunging just above the surface but no high leaps. Dozens of splashes at a time. They were centred around the lighthouse and I viewed them for 10 minutes or so then they disappeared.
Terry L. Brown, Palm Beach, Lang Bay, south of Powell River.
Terry L. Brown, Palm Beach, Lang Bay, south of Powell River.
Feb 17:
On Monday afternoon (yesterday 16th) there were Dolphins going south past the Donkersley Beach/Black Point area. I was woken up by Eagles and Sea Gulls this morning, looked out at the sunrise and saw possibly the same pod of Dolphins playing/feeding out front in Donkersley Beach, then they headed north again.
Kimmy Faerie, Powell River.
Feb 16:
5:00 pm: I saw between 7 – 15 Dolphins in Howe Sound offshore from White Cliff Park, West Vancouver.
Naomi Gould. West Vancouver.
Feb 15:
1:54 pm: 60 – 100 Pacific White Sided Dolphins by Grant’s Reef, off Savary Island.
2:54 pm: They are now headed towards Mitlenatch Island in Georgia Strait and in the direction of Campbell River on Vancouver Island.
Radio
February 15:
2:30 – 3:30 pm Around 100 Pacific White Sided Dolphins off Grant’s Reef and towards Savary Island. There was lots of jumping totally out of the water. Then they’d create a bunch of white caps. They were a bit farther off from us fishing, then they headed towards Mitlenatch Island.
Jeff Winter, Powell River
LINKS
In a deeply retrogressive move, China looks at buying Orca from Russia for captive entertainment purposes.
The death of a Beluga whale at Sealand brings more attention to the many issues surrounding captive whales:
A very lucky break for a Humpback off the coast of Hawaii as it is freed from entangling fishnets after an epic eight day struggle to save it’s life:
Nothing to do with whales, but this amazing encounter between a Harbour Seal and an Octopus in the waters off Victoria, British Columbia is well worth reading and seeing.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/13/seal-fights-octopus-canada-photos-bob-ianson_n_6681588.html
And a proposed increase to protected habitat for Right whales in the Atlantic. A step in the Right direction?
Have you seen a whale, dolphin or porpoise?
Every sighting report is valuable!
We are the non-profit Wild Ocean Whale Society
