Written by Alison
on Aug 16, 2023

Whale Report: August 2, 2023 PM – Whales, Puffins and Pelicans!

Whale Report: August 2, 2023 PM – Whales, Puffins and Pelicans!

August 2, 2023 PM – It was great to have a report of Bigg’s Killer Whales near the south end of San Juan Island when we left the dock.  The T46’s where swimming against a big flood tide which kept them in almost the same location for an hour and a half!  When we encountered them in the middle of Cattle Pass in the raging flood tide.  It was as if though they were on a treadmill, not really making much progress, until they finally headed to an area with less current and they slipped out of the pass.  The matriarch of this family,  group, named ”Wake,” has not been seen for several months.  She is estimated to be 57 years old.  She may be traveling elsewhere or has passed, either way she has a great legacy.  She was one of the last whales captured in 1976.  By the time of her capture there was enough public outcry to Orcas in captivity that she was released.  This one whale currently has 17 living offspring!  Today we had T122, a 41 year old female who is believed to be closely related to T46 and has always travelled with her and her sons, T46D, 23 year old “Strider”; T46E, 20 year old “Thor” and the youngest son who is now 11.   After this amazing encounter we still had lots of time left to check out other parts of the Salish Sea.  We headed to Smith Island and found several Tufted Puffins, then it was off to the SE corner of Lopez were we checked out the narrow passage between Lopez and Castle Rock.  There, we spotted a few Harbor Seals and some Pigeon Guillemots.   Our final stop was at Whale Rocks where we were lucky enough to see 9 Brown Pelicans, which are a somewhat rare bird for our area!  They are so big and towered above all of the Gulls and Cormorants that surrounded them.  We also got to see lots of Steller Sea Lions being there usual rowdy selves.  From here we headed for home after another beautiful day in paradise!

 

Photographer and Naturalist: Alison Engle – Instagram: @Alisonengleart – Website: www.alisonengle.com

Western Prince Wildlife Adventures – Instagram: @Westernprincewildlife – Facebook: Western Prince Whale Watching

Written by Alison
on Aug 16, 2023

Whale Report: August 2, 2023 PM – Whales, Puffins and Pelicans!

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