Finding a pod of orca / killer whales on a days whale watching always adds to the excitement of the day. They are majestic as we keep pace as they travel the waters of BC’s Johnstone Strait. Nothing but a closer visit is as interesting…
Tag Archives: orca watching
Killer whales approaching tour 2 of 2
As usual as the male orca got closer to the front of the boat I moved to the back to allow the guests a better photo opportunity. After all I have seen orca before but the photo’s I have to post are less than dramatic but then I guess you will have to book your dates and bring your camera.
Killer whales approaching tour 1 of 2
Yes it is normal to have killer whales / orca travel in pods that are a complex matriarchal society. Sons and daughters stay with their mother throughout their lives, even after they have offspring of their own. However this does not mean that the larger and older males are always in close proximity they often travel separate but parallel to the family group. For photos it is good to find a large male as they are slower to come out of the water and when the tip of their large dorsal fin shows you have time for a photo. This photo leads to tomorrow’s post….
Orca pod spy hopping?
Ian and Julie’s photo is another first in that is has multiple spy hops from a pod of killer whales. I remember the day but cannot recall the reason for this spy hopping. It obviously occurs when the orca want to see the above water activity which may be a fast moving boat, commercial fishing in the area and even saw spy hopping when one the “Whale Research Vessels” was flying a drone to get some pictures. Also note on shore in the right hand corner the campers on the beach watching the orca pass. There are numerous kayak camps along the shore which are very busy in the summer.
Killer Whale tail slapping
A killer whale’s inverted Tail Lob – while on its back, it raises its flukes above the water’s surface and brings them down with force. This type of behavior is often viewed when the whales are in close contact with their pod or grouped together with other pods and seems to be a form of communication. Whether tail slapping is a friendly or an aggressive form of behaviour is not proved beyond a doubt but a majority of the times it seems to be a playful thing especially within the Northern Resident Whales that are in our viewing area. The sound that echoes after a tail slap can be very loud.
Killer Whale “Fin”
This is a little more graceful looking than yesterday’s post especially when it is coming toward the boat. The dorsal fin of a male killer whale is proportionately larger than that of a female. In adult males, the dorsal fin is tall and triangular. Reaching a height of up to 1.8 m (6 ft.) in a large adult male, it is the tallest dorsal fin of all cetaceans. And this photo is a good example of a large male.
Drifting with Killer Whales
The white dot on land above the guest’s head is Cracroft Point. The area between our boat and the point is a common feeding area for killer whales. A good morning whale watching is to come out a Cracroft Point and find a pod of orca because that means we can turn off our engine and drift while the orca feed. With engines off the orca often surface close to the boat which makes for an excellent photo opportunity.
Marine Mammals Airborne 3 of 3
A Killer Whale tail slapping which is seen occasionally off Northern Vancouver Island in British Columbia. This type of behaviour often occurs when the whales are in close contact with their pod or grouped together with other pods and which seems to be a form of communication. Whether tail slapping is a friendly or an aggressive form of behavior is not proved beyond a doubt but a majority of the times it seems to be playful. The sound that echoes after a tail slap can be very loud especially when the water is calm and there is nobody else in the same vicinity except for the boat that you are on. Again “spectacular” is the word and the reason for the behaviour is less important.
Transient Orca 2 of 2
Yesterdays and today’s photo shows that not all days are ideal whale watching days but it is still possible to get some good pictures. On this day we were trying to keep up with a pod of transient orca with three other boats but we had all lost contact so shut off our motors to wait. We were the lucky boat in that they popped up all around our boat. As today’s photo shows they circled the boat and came quite close. The advantage of the rougher waters is that the orcas tend to come out of the water a little more to breathe.
Resident Killer Whales
Looks like a good photo of some resident killer whales until you look closely and realize that all the dorsal fins are not going in the same direction. Resident orcas are the ones that eat salmon. This was an occasion when they stopped travelling and started to feed. From this point on they stayed in the ripe tide off Craycroft Point and fed on salmon for over an hour. We turned off our engine and sat in the ripe while the orca fed all around the boat.
