7-2-16 The Number Encountered Increased By 100%

...but first it's back to Friday, July 1st...
...returning from a most spectacular display from the T137s and T65Bs we meet up with the T77s...they were close to shore along Henry Island and soon went into Spieden Channel...we only had a few minutes with them...I hadn't seen them in a while...there are five in this family group...
...a friend sent me an image of the right side of T77B, the male...he has rake marks (from orca teeth) and a long gash at the base of those rake marks...it looked to be quite the gash...good thing they live in salt water as it is a good healer...of course it is full of toxins...hope the salt water wins over the toxins...
...T77B's right side, front edge of dorsal fin, had only a small indication of something but nothing like the other side...

 ...Saturday, July 2nd
...off the dock on Peregrine with Capt. Jeff at the helm and no word of whales anywhere...
...we thought it might be a harbor seal, eagle watching sort of trip, which can be great with the new harbor seal pups sometimes seen riding on mom's back...when my phone rings..."there's one orca coming up island."
...thank you!
...it was T124C...

...T124C is a bachelor...that's what some of the males in this regional transient (Bigg's) killer whale community do...they disperse from mom and their family and become bachelors - really!...they will be seen alone, like today, with other bachelors like he was the other day, traveling with other groups, and sometimes seen with his mom and other immediate family members...you just never know where they might show up!

...by the afternoon we increased our whale encounter numbers for the day by 100%!...we went from seeing 1 orca to seeing 2 orcas!

...on our way up north to see T124C with Capt. Jim at the helm we stopped to see a habor seal pup and mom...

...Capt hears something and soon we are making a u-turn :)...that means something new is 'up' !
...word was there were 5 or 6 orcas coming out of those nasty seas and coming our way...and now we were on our way...

...two transient bachelors showed up coming up Haro Strait...the others had gone back into nastier seas...

...finally I get these two on my camera - T125A and T128...I saw them a year ago but was on a research boat and the images didn't belong to me because they were taken under federal permit...so today - yay!
...and the transients just keep on showing up...just like the Residents used to do...
...it is a worrisome time...sadly there isn't much we can do about the present but there is a lot we can do for tomorrow and all the tomorrows into the future...How to Help the Orcas  
...everyday we can make choices...make your choices in a manner that will be positive for the environment now and into the future...