New Year with New Sightings!
The New Year has begun with sightings of Cetaceans around various inland waterways. Transient Orca were observed in many locations, from the east end of Johnstone Strait all the way down to Nanaimo and in Howe Sound near Squamish. Orca were seen breaching on one occasion and on three other occasions, Transient Orca were observed hunting. A few Humpback whales were observed in Discovery Passage and Johnstone Strait. Large pods of Pacific White-Sided dolphins were spotted with one pod numbering approximately 200 members. Keep your eyes open when you are close to the seas and share with us your sightings of whales and dolphins around BC!
The Federal Government (DFO) statement about watching whales in the wild: “To address disturbance in the presence of whales, a mandatory 400-metre vessel approach distance for all killer whales is in effect starting June 1, 2020 in all southern British Columbia coastal waters between Campbell River and just north of Ucluelet. The Marine Mammal Regulations continue to remain in effect year-round, including maintaining a minimum 200 metre approach distance from all killer whales in Canadian Pacific waters other than described above, and 100 metres for other whales, porpoises and dolphins OR 200 metres when the animal is in resting position or with a calf.”
WOWs works throughout the year, so please continue to keep your eyes open, and report your sightings to us.
We thank you greatly for your support!
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In a paper published today in the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, researchers report that the numbers of Chinook salmon in the Salish Sea in summertime are four to six times more abundant for southern resident killer whales than northern resident killer whales….
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The Crown Prince of Dubai released a short clip of the mammal on his Instagram stories. He said it was believed to be a Bryde’s whale….
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This particular bottlenose is known as Patches, and he was first documented off San Diego by naturalist Mark Tyson in 2006. Patches has leucism. Not to be confused with albinism, which is defined as the total absence of melanin, leucism refers to an abnormality in the deposition of pigment in an animal’s skin, feathers, scales, or hair….
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Their largest populations are found in three places – on the West Coast, the south coast near Bluff, and the east coast from Otago to Marlborough….
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On a regular day, Wirth runs Pico Sport, a whale watching company in the Azores. But on this unusual summer day in 2015, Wirth is on a chartered sand barge off the coast of Fayal Island, Portugal, guiding his team as they attach specially molded weights to the flukes of a dead juvenile sperm whale….
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It turns out, the bones belonged to a whale species extinct for about 300 years….
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