Cover Image: A rare sighting of a nearly white Biggs calf (T46B1B) off of Nanaimo Val Watson, Vancouver Island, BC Making news this week is a sighting of a young Transient Orca that is pale-grey coloured. The whale was spotted around Dodd Narrows south of Nanaimo, causing much intrigue and delight to observers and biologists.…
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Cover Image: Biggs, including T037As, T049As, T101s & T124As, south of Campbell River Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours A large pod of Transient Orca appeared on May 19 in Georgia Strait and made its way northward to Campbell River over the afternoon and early evening. The pod numbered around 20 animals…
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Cover Image: Humpback tail slapping across from Fawn Bluff Jos Krynen, Eagle Eye Adventures Humpback whales are returning to various inland waterways and they are displaying common behaviours such as breaching and tail-slapping. Humpback whales are Baleen whales, meaning they have no teeth. Instead, they have long protein bristles hanging down from the top jaw…
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Cover Image: Bigg’s hunting a seal lion off of Mitlenatch Island Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours Transient Orca have been sighted in various waterways from Malaspina Strait and Georgia Strait up through to Calm Channel and Discovery Passage. On at least two occasions, Transient Orca were observed actively hunting their prey.…
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Cover Image: Transient Bigg’s Killer Whale spyhopping near Junction Point Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours Over the past two weeks, many Orca have appeared in various inland waterways from the mouth of Knight Inlet in the north to Howe Sound in the south. Many of these Orca were identified as Transient…
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Cover Image: Bigg’s surfacing together heading around Harwood Island Spit Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC Orca have appeared in many waterways such as Nodales Channel, Discovery Passage, Malaspina Strait, Howe Sound, and surprisingly in Sechelt Inlet. Many of these Orca are the Transient Orca (mammal-eating Orca) and some observers were able to see them hunting…
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Cover Image: Transient Orca by Separation Head on Quadra Island Jerry Weldon, Campbell River, BC Spring has arrived and so have the Cetaceans! Cetaceans have been observed with a higher frequency during the past couple of weeks, and will continue to increase as the season progresses. Sunny and calm weather certainly makes it easier to…
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Cover Image: One of the oldest Bigg’s male, T087, heading north near Black Creek Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours Over the past two weeks, Orca have appeared as far south as the Sunshine Coast near Gibsons and as far north as Phillips Arm. Some of them were identified as Transient Orca…
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Cover Image: Pacific White Sided Dolphins jumping about on a foggy day Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours Starting on Valentine’s Day, a number of Pacific White-Sided dolphins appeared off of Powell River, and many of them were spotted on and off for over a week between Powell River and Texada Island.…
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Cover Image: Northern Resident Orca heading north past a snowy Grief Point Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC Northern Resident Killer Whales, the A23s and possibly even some others have made an appearance this winter. This is not a common yearly practice for them. Last year around this time we only confirmed the A42 family up…
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Cover Image: Orcas tail slapping in unison Jos Krynen, Eagle Eye Adventures An exciting part of whale watching is seeing the tails (called flukes) of whales coming out of the water as the animals dive. Some whales like to perform tail slaps, that is an animal will raise its tail out of the water and…
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Cover Image: Two Killer Whales breaking the surface for a breath Jos Krynen, Eagle Eye Adventures Weather seems to play a part in the number of reports that come in to our system, and we have had weather. Between storms, downpours, and fog, we still managed a few beautiful days to see whales and dolphins.…
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Cover Image: Humpback fluking off of Powell River Westview Harbour Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC Happy New Year! Whales and dolphins have been sighted around Nanaimo, Powell River, Lund, and waterways around Johnstone Strait. Many of these sightings took place from land; with patience and diligence in scanning waterways from land, one can often see…
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Ever wonder what whales do during stormy weather? So do we, but what we have seen, is how some appear to enjoy playing in rough seas. We’ve seen Humpbacks crash head on into waves over and over, which may be a good method, as is breaching, to rid themselves from any parasites. Orca, being a…
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Cover Image: Three Humpbacks surfacing together near Myrtle Rocks Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC Of the 74 sightings included in this issue, 50 sightings (over 70%) are of Humpback whales. Humpback whales have remained, and makes us wonder if some of them will stay over the winter and thus year-round in the area. During the…
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Cover Image: Humpback and Bigg’s together between Savary Island and Harwood Island Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC Whalers in the past would shout out “Thar She Blows!” when the spouts of whales were seen, creating excitement and action for the sailers to go out to catch the whale. Presently, “Thar She Blows!” can indicate to…
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Cover Image: Bigg’s heading south by Sliammon Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC Mark your calendar for our World of Whales 2018. two day event November 16 Presentations and Workshops on the 17th. Deadline for workshop registration has been stretched till noon Nov. 9th! We hope to see you there.A number of Transient Bigg’s Orca families…
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Cover Image: Humpback feasting on krill Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours Humpback whales have stayed in the area and have expanded their range with many appearing in Desolation Sound, off of Powell River, and some as far south off of Bowen Island. Many Humpbacks were observed in Sutil Channel similar to…
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Cover Image: Humpback poking its head out near Sentry Shoal Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours Looking at our maps, there is a definite area that the Humpback Whales are favouring. The area where there are minimal to no sightings are where the commercial draggers have been running. What do the draggers…
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Cover Image: Bigg’s heading towards Cortez Reef Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours The ocean is full of life that we often do not see from above the surface. Unlike most marine life, Cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises) surface to breathe and are observable. Those who are fortunate to see Cetaceans in…
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Cover Image: Bigg’s spyhopping off of Coho Point Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC There were many Transient Orca last week in various waterways and channels. Some pods of Transients were observed hunting and feeding on their prey. Transients feed on marine mammals, such as seals, sea lions, dolphins, and porpoises. When hunting, these Orca do…
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Cover Image: Bigg’s passing by in Seymour Narrows Jos Krynen, Eagle Eye Adventures Many Transient Orca have appeared earlier in the week in various inland waters. One pod, the T002C group, was off West Redonda Island on Sunday and on Monday was observed in the Desolation Sound area. Many Transient Orca were also observed in…
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Cover Image: Humpback fluking near Harwood Island Candi Little, Texada Island, BC Humpback whales continue to remain in the area and the number of reported sightings of them have not decreased. Many Humpbacks have been active at the surface by breaching, feeding, and tail slapping. When Humpbacks dive for longer periods of time, their flukes…
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Cover Image: Humpback fluking near Pinnacles in Georgia Strait Andrew Rice, Campbell River Whale Watching Humpback whales have spread further southward from their usual locations of Calm Channel, Sutil Channel, and Discovery Passage as many Humpbacks whales were observed in Malaspina Strait and around Powell River. A one-day tally yielded a count of about 25…
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Cover Image: Bigg’s travelling together during the summer Stan Novotny, Eagle Eye Adventures The A42 pod from the Northern Resident Orca population was again observed in the area as they travelled past Powell River last Thursday. They continue to remain in the area as they were seen over the weekend. Transient Orca were observed in…
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Cover Image: Southern Resident Killer Whales off of Kitty Coleman Beach Shea Majbroda, Campbell River Whale Watching Some of the Southern Resident Orca forayed into upper Georgia Strait last Wednesday (Sept. 5th), travelling past Powell River and Comox before heading south back to their usual hunting areas in lower Georgia Strait and Puget Sound. One…
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Cover Image: Humpback fluking off of the Green Can Buoy at Cape Mudge Andrew Rice, Campbell River Whale Watching Many Humpback whales continue to be in the area from Sutil Channel down to Jervis Inlet and around Texada Island. They are easy to observe especially when they perform a number of different surface behaviours, such…
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Cover Image: Two Northern Resident Killer Whales up close off of Marina Reef David Gauci, Campbell River Whale Watching Northern Resident Orca -specifically, the A42 pod- have been up and down Sutil Channel and upper Georgia Strait for over a week now. Other members of the Northern Resident Orca have been sighted at the north…
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Cover Image: Northern Resident Killer Whales passing by Atrevida Reef Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC Members of the Northern Resident Orca population have remained in the upper Georgia Strait area and many inland waters. Some of these Orca travelled as far south as Powell River this week before turning around and heading northward. Other members…
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Cover Image: Bigg’s heading south off of the ferry line off Comox Ferry Terminal Jos Krynen, Eagle Eye Adventures Some members of the Northern Resident Orca have made their way into inland waters such as Nodales Channel, Discovery Passage, and the upper Georgia Strait area. Over the weekend, some of these Orca travelled further south…
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