EncDate:10/07/24 

EncSeq:1

Enc#:70

ObservBegin:01:17 PM

ObservEnd:02:32 PM

Vessel:KCB III

Staff:Michael Weiss

Other Observers:Alondra Caro Ruiz, Taylor Redmond, Arlene Vargas, Rachel John

Pods:Bigg's killer whales

LocationDescr:San Juan Channel and Spieden Channel

Start Latitude:48 36.87

Start Longitude:123 04.34

End Latitude:48 37.60

End Longitude:123 10.36

 

EncSummary:

The team received reports in the late morning of a group of killer whales in San Juan Channel. Around noon, the team heard reports that these whales may be the T109A2s, a family group that does not often come that far east into the Salish Sea. The team deployed and got off the dock at 1252.After a quick transit through Mosquito Pass and Spieden Channel, the team arrived on scene with the whales off Jones Island, headed north. The whales were extremely active, with lots of surface activity and social behavior. They took a northwest heading and got close to the San Juan shoreline before angling into Spieden Channel.The whales mostly hugged the south side of the channel, making photos from offshore backlit. They eventually milled towards the center of the channel, given the team a chance to get on the southeast side of them. The whales stayed very social, rolling and splashing on the surface. On a few occasions the whales vocalized above the surface while spyhopping or breaching. Their rolling allowed the team to confirm a the sexes on the younger whales in the group: T109A2C is a female, and T109A2D is a male.The whales continued west through Spieden Channel, never letting up in their socializing. They stalled out outside Roche Harbor, off Barren Island. With the tide ripping east through the channel, the whales zig-zagged their way up towards the western tip of Spieden. The team took one last pass on them and then headed back home, ending the encounter at 1432.