Written by Bethany
on May 30, 2022

May Bigg’s Killer Whale Sightings! Whale Report

May Bigg’s Killer Whale Sightings! Whale Report

We can’t believe that it is already the end of May already! The first two months of our whale watching season here in the San Juan Islands have gone by quickly but every day, we’ve been having some amazing wildlife sightings. From Bald Eagles, to harbor seals, to sea birds, humpback whales, and killer whales, each trip so far has been a unique and exciting adventure. Here are just a few of our favorite killer whale encounters from the past couple of weeks.

We’ve had an unusually cold spring this year but that hasn’t stopped us! Sometimes the trips with the darker weather yield the best encounters and that certainly was the case for this day! Naturalist Alison captured some beautiful photos of a group of mammal-eating Killer Whales (Bigg’s Killer Whales) as they traveled along the Orcas Island shoreline in the rain. This family of four, included the mother, T75B who was born in 1995 and her three calves ages 7, 4 and 1.

T75Bs surfacing along the Orcas Island shoreline

They were accompanied by T49A1 “Noah”, a 21-year-old male who is quite the impressive whale!

T49A1 “Noah”

A few days later, we spotted the same group of whales, the T75Bs and T49A1 again, but this time they were traveling with another two families of Bigg’s Killer Whales, the T34s and the T37s. These two families often travel together and are led by T34 “Grace” and T37 “Rocky”. It was a beautiful afternoon watching the ~12 killer whales socialize and travel together. The soft, overcast lighting and gorgeous flat-calm waters added to the dreamy conditions.

T75Bs

T49A1 “Noah”

Later on in May, one of our trips was treated to a very special encounter with a very special whale, T63 “Chainsaw”! This male has one of the most iconic and easily recognizable dorsal fins in the population! There are several large slashes which is where he got his nickname from. We’re not sure how he got these big slashes in his dorsal fin. This adult male is one of the older males in the population at ~44 years old which is beyond the average lifespan of male killer whales and he travels with his supposed mother, T65 “Whidbey”.

T63 “Chainsaw”

We’ve had some incredible trips out on the water this month and as we head into June, we can’t wait to see what else we might encounter!

Email: inquire@orcawhalewatch.com
Phone: 360-378-5315

Written by Bethany
on May 30, 2022

May Bigg’s Killer Whale Sightings! Whale Report

Latest Blog ...