We view pacific white-sided dolphins both in Knight Inlet on our grizzly bear tour as well as when whale watching in the area of Johnstone Straits.
Whale Watching
We’re not all about the bears, whales are abundant here too!
Killer whales and humpback whales are often seen during our wildlife tours. There are resident whales and transient whales that can be seen feeding and playing in our waters.
Purse seining
A whale-watching safari does not only include wildlife it means stopping to watch and explain all things of interest. From log booms towed by tugs to seine fishing. Seine fishing is a method of fishing that employs a seine or dragnet net. A seine is a fishing net that hangs vertically in the water with its bottom edge held down by weights and its top edge buoyed by floats. Once there are sufficient salmon in the net both ends are pulled together at the back of the boat and the bottom of the net held down by the weights is closed by pulling a draw string the same way one would close the top of a purse. Thus the name purse seining. The salmon are then bailed into the boat using a long handled net on ropes and a hydraulic wench. The nets are set and left open for about an hour but we try to watch the more interesting part of bailing the salmon this is not difficult to do as there are normally several dozen vessels fishing in the area at any one time. The time frame of this picture it was a “food fish” for the local native people of Alert Bay.
Excellent eagle photo
One of the guides, Glen, captures an eagle picking up a fish. You know that it is a good photo when you can zoom in on the eye and it is still sharp and in focus. Eagles are abundant in all our tour areas during the spring and summer; however the numbers decline once the salmon arrive in the local river and the eagle move for closer access to the salmon. That just means there are more eagles on the tour to the grizzly bears on the Glendale River and we have to look a little harder to locate them on a whale watching tour.
Perfect day for pictures
It does not matter what the subject of you photo, when you are on the water, you do not want a bright sunny day. Guests in the lodge are often upset as most mornings are overcast with the clouds burning off by noon. That is the nature of the north coast and that is good. Bright sun reflecting off the water makes for a poor picture whether of a grizzly bear on the shore, eagle in a tree or orca swimming. Most afternoons on the water are spent maneuvering the boat so the sun is at our backs to improve your chance of a good photo.
Humpback whale identification
Humpback whales are identified by “Researchers (who) use photographs of the ventral surface of the tail flukes to identify and track movements of individual whales and to estimate abundance. Patterns of pigmentation, scarring and shape of the flukes are unique to each individual.” If you Google “Humpback whale identification” and scroll down to the Fisheries and Oceans Canada site titled “Photographic Catalogue of Humpback Whales in British Columbia” and once in the site scroll to “Photographs and data may not be used without permission. Please refer to “Conditions of Use”” and click on the Conditions of Use and you will have access to their catalogue identifying humpback whales in the lodges viewing area.
Bald eagle
An almost white headed bald eagle. The Hancock Wildlife Foundation site states “Bald Eagles are not bald at all, but have a white head. Hundreds of years ago the English word for WHITE was BALDE and the word piebalde meant mottled with white, so the eagles with white heads were called Balde Eagles.” I use this quote to mention the Hancock Wildlife Foundation so if you are interested in bald eagles Google their name to arrive at their site where they have live webcams of an eagle’s nests.
Orca dive Set 2 of 2
Continuation of yesterday’s post. Can’t think of a thing to add just enjoy?
Orca dive Set 1 of 2
One of my favourite sequence or photos provided by Rob White from Australia. I told him I had to have a set of the photos and was so happy when he obliged with an email. The sequence shows an orca aka “killer whale” passing close to the boat and a guest with a good eye and a fast finger. I have never seen another set of photos like this and I have had many guests over the past twelve years.
Killer Whale?
Sitting and waiting is often one of the best strategy during a whale-watching safari. Orcas like their cousin dolphins are curious and will often approach a boat if it is stationary and quite. This orca is on its side looking at the boat as it passes by if it weren’t its dorsal fin would be visible above the surface. Not an every day occurrence but often enough to get good pictures.
Orca Tail Slapping
Tail slapping or lob tailing creates loud sounds above water and under water as well as providing a dramatic photo opportunity. It is said that orca may do this to relieve an itch, as their outer skin layer is continually sloughed as they swim. The growth of killer whale epidermal (skin) cells is about 290 times faster than that of a human forearm. Studies also suggest that killer whales are curious, with great tendency to “play” and to manipulate objects. The killer whales in our viewing area, the Johnstone Strait, rub their bodies along the pebbly bottoms of shallow bays or “rubbing beaches” located in the Robson Bight. It is assumed they do it for tactile stimulation, or it may help remove external parasites and their outer skin. The reason is secondary the sight is s spectacular.
