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EncDate:12/09/24 

EncSeq:2

Enc#:92

ObservBegin:12:53 PM

ObservEnd:03:00 PM

Vessel:KCB III

Staff:Dave Ellifrit, Michael Weiss

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

Pods:Bigg's killer whales

LocationDescr:Rosario Strait

Start Latitude:48 31.04

Start Longitude:122 41.54

End Latitude:48 34.29

End Longitude:122 51.75

EncSummary:

After we left the whales in Encounter 91-1 off the southeast tip of Lopez Island, we headed up toward the other group of Bigg’s that had been heading west in Guemes Channel. The whales passed Anacortes, and we got on scene at 1253, north of Shannon Point. There was one small group and some spread out peripheral whales. The main group consisted of T100, T100C, T100F, T37A, and T37A2 and they were pointed west. About a quarter mile north of them, we found T37A4 and T100E milling around together. T101 was also nearby. They formed a loose threesome that headed west before turning southeast back toward the main group who was still heading west toward Thatcher Pass.

T101A and T101B had been reported to have split off to the north and were closer to the south shoreline of Cypress Island. We eventually caught sight of the pair and headed that direction. T101A and T101B were traveling west across Rosario Strait and were loosely spread. They joined up tight once or twice before loosening up again as they traveled toward Thatcher Pass. They passed Lawson Reef and headed into Thatcher Pass on the Blakely Island side. The other whales were also making their way into the pass with most of the whales taking the north side, a few whales in the middle, and T100, T100C, and T100F on the north shoreline of Decatur Island. We moved over to the T100s as most of the other whales turned north-northwest on the Blakely Island side. The T100s turned north off the northwest tip of Decatur Island and passed close to the Frost Island eastern shoreline. The T100s were the westernmost whales while the others were more mid-channel as they turned northwest towards Upright Head on the north tip of Lopez Island. Most of the whales were now loosely spread out and heading slowly northwest a little east of the Lopez ferry landing and we ended the encounter there at 1500.