ADDED on April 28, 2018 at 5:30 a.m.: I put the date and time because this is the first time I have heard those 'fish sounds' in a very long time. After the hydrophones had been moved, farther out and deeper down, a couple years ago, those sounds just about disappeared. But was it due to the different location of the hydrophones or was it due to the lack of fish or what, I still don't know. Maybe those aren't fish sounds at all. Will the whales show up in the next 12 to 24 hours? We'll see what, if anything, unfolds.
~~~
I've noticed this in previous years, but this winter it has been obvious, to me...thought some might find this interesting...
March 10,
2015 San Juan Island, Washington
Observations
by Jeanne Hyde regarding fish sounds and the appearance of SRKWs.
Based on my
observations, there is a suggested relationship between the burp (fish) sounds
and the appearance of SRKWs during the winter months. These observations are based on listening to
the Lime Kiln hydrophones, Orca Sound hydrophones and sometimes the Port
Townsend hydrophones and sightings of SRKWs in the inland waters.
The winter
of 2014 has been especially noticeable regarding hearing the burp sounds of
fish and the soon after appearance of SRKWs, so much so that I began tracking
when I did or did not hear the sound in question and the appearance of the
whales.
There are
days that go by without a single burp sound being heard. There are others when some of the burp sounds
will be heard over the Orca Sound hydrophones, but the most often and most
frequency are the Lime Kiln hydrophones, and rarely over Port Townsend
hydrophones.
The in between
times of the appearance of SRKWs, the hydrophones were basically void of any
burps. However, the other sounds
commonly heard continued to be heard. That’s when it started to really get my
attention.
How to
quantity the burps is difficult. So I
ended up considering the frequency of hearing them.
From
November through January I recorded the sounds, making mental notes of the appearance
of the Southern Residents. It was
February that I got more detailed in my note taking.
Indicator #1 of a ‘Relationship’
between SRKWs showing up and fish sounds heard over the hydrophones (notes became more detailed in
February)
11-25 burps
11-26 J, K, and L pods showed up. They were
present on 11-26 through 11-19 SRKWs in the inland waters: Juan de Fuca Strait to Puget Sound
11-29 burps
11-29 J and K pods were seen at the junction
of Spieden Channel and Haro Strait. J
Pod went north and Ks went down island.
Indicator #2 of a ‘Relationship’ between
SRKWs showing up and fish sounds heard over the hydrophones
(Other days
during the month there were few to none in the way of burps).
The burps
always occurred prior to hearing/seeing the whales, sometimes many hours prior.
12-7 burps
(Lime Kiln HPs)
12-7 K pod calls on Lime Kiln hydrophones at
4:00pm and later on PT HPs
12-12 burps
(Lime Kiln HPs)
12-12 J Pod heard on Lime Kiln hydrophones
12-14 burps (Lime
Kiln HPs)
12-24 J Pod in San Juan Channel up and west
through Spieden Channel
12-25 burps
(Lime Kiln HPs)
12-27 burps
(Lime Kiln HPs)
12-30 J Pod going west in Spieden Channel, up
Haro Strait and into
Swanson Channel. They were seen heading west in Juan
de Fuca Strait
on 1-12-15.
January,
2015 - Based on my note taking, or lack there-of, January was quieter.
Indicator #3 of a ‘Relationship’ between
SRKWs showing up and fish sounds heard over the hydrophones
The most
recent example occurred starting on February 9, 2015.
Prior to
February 9 the Lime Kiln hydrophones had little to none of these burp sounds.
2-9 at 9:22
a.m. 1 burp
2-9 at 11:04.a.m.
1 burp
2-9 at 5:04
p.m., 5:07 p.m. and several at 5:33 p.m.
2-9 at
midnight and in the night lots of burps
2-10 (day
away from hydrophone) more burps in the night
2-11 at 5:00
p.m. and 9:15 p.m. burps
2-12 in the
morning lots and lots of burps
2-12 6:40
a.m. J Pod heard very faintly over LK
HPs. By 1:00pm they were passing Lime
Kiln lighthouse going up island.
As of 2-13
at 10:40 p.m. no burps have occurred over the LK hydrophones since the prior
day.
2-14 A few
burps were heard and I started to think I was totally off base with this. However, at 1:00 p.m. K and L pod whales were
seen at Beechy Head heading west. It is
not known how far they had come in before they turned to go back out. (any relationship?)
Indicator #4 of a ‘Relationship’ between
SRKWs showing up and fish sounds heard over the hydrophones
There were
some burps during the afternoon and lots at around 5:00 p.m.
2-14 No more burps heard after 6:11 p.m.
2-15 a few burps throughout the day and in the
night.
2-16 in the morning a few burps
2-17 burps on OS today for a short while today as
well as on LK.
2-18 9:25 a.m. burps – a few
9:40 a.m.
the next one
5:00 p.m. burps – a few
5:41 p.m. – fish – one or two
6:00 p.m. J
POD COMING DOWN ISLAND – currently on OS HPS.
6:54 p.m. J Pod on LK HPs calls intermittent until about 7:41
7:45 p.m. a few burps
2-19 Burps
continued, throughout the night, intermittently into the morning
of 2-19.
NOTE: Instead of
continuing on, as they had done on every other occasion during this observation
period, J Pod came back up island. They were heard at about 4:00 a.m.
over the LK HPs, and 4:30 a.m. over the OS HPs, and last heard over OS at 6:25
a.m. They continued north at that time,
going up Swanson Channel at 9 a.m. The burps
on LK and OS had already stopped.
No burps from 9 to 10:43 a.m.
No burps – 12:10 p.m.
2-19-15
J Pod had continued north through Swanson Channel, Trincomali
Channel and Porlier Pass.
No burps all evening on 2-19
2-20 no burps
in the night on LK.
7:15 a.m. – OS – burps
11:00 a.m. – LK - no burps (all day
til 11)
3:47 p.m. – OS burp
2-14 6:00 to 7:30 pm – lots of the harbor seal
thrashing sounds?//again at
8pm
9:15 p.m. no burps
2-21 No burps. 12:30 p.m.
No burps 4:23 p.m.
5:03 p.m. – LK – burp; 5:10 p.m.
2-21 5:28 p.m. LK is that shrimp?
5:32 p.m. LK – burps
6:00 p.m. no burps
9:23 p.m. burps
2-22 6:30 a.m. – OS – one burp - nothing else
after that one (now 9:20 am.)
12:10 p.m. no other burps
4:22 burps on OS – one sound - may
have been a few on LK in
afternoon
2-23 last night (2-22 8:30 p.m. to 5:30 a.m.
2-23) internet was out
7:30 a.m. a couple burps
4:50 p.m. no burps all day
5:00 p.m. – possible shrimp popping
sounds
11:00 p.m. – no burps nor shrimp
sounds since 5pm
2-24 middle of night a few burps
7:20 a.m. – popping sounds – is that
shrimp?
1:30 pm – LK – a few burps
9:30 pm – no burps
2-25 only a couple burps all day – now 9:20 p.m.
More burps during the night (not
lots, but more than zero)
2-26 7:00 a.m. sounds like popping shrimp again
6:00 p.m. and before, heard some burps
during the day
9:00 p.m. – no burps for a while now
2-27 last night about 1:00 a.m. some burps. Then quiet most of the day.
7:50 p.m. burp
2-28 no burps all day
3-1 burps on OS 6:30 a.m. and before
OS-burps - 6:46 a.m./7:01 a.m.
11:00 a.m. – LK- burps
5:00 p.m. - LK- harbor seal slaps? - at 8:30 p.m. no burps
3-2 6:03 p.m. - first time all day heard burp
sound
7:40 p.m. – burps – OS LK - apx 9:00 p.m.
3-3 6:4 5 a.m. OS burp
7:18 a.m. – burp – LK
3:08 p.m. burp not sure if OS or LK
Evening – LK several times harbor
seal type slaps and splashes?
3-4 J Pod, who had been up north since 2-19, was
spotted in Porlier Pass
going back north on 3-4. Had they started to come down and then
looped
back up?
3-5 not heard much on 3-4 or 3-5
3-6 shrimp maybe? –5:45 p.m.
3-7 7:00
p.m. burps
3-8 not much
3-9 5:00 a.m. - group of burps- more at
5:10 a.m., 7:00 a.m. (this
was the most in several days)
7:50 a.m. sounds like shrimp??
Noisy and rough seas most of
day.
Burps being heard more this
evening
At about 7:30 a loud burp sound on LK
Apx 9:00 p.m. J pod calls,
first on OS and then LK. J Pod heard until close to 11:00 p.m. on both LK
and OS – intermittently.
About 11:00 p.m. burps
3-10 in the night – nothing and lots of ship
noise
3-10 8:30 a.m. – burps
No more burps after about 8:30 a.m. …it’s
now 10:30 a.mm….none …
now 2:20 – now 4:50 p.m. and heard only one burp all day.
The most
significant occurrence, to me, was on 2-18 and 2-19, when J Pod came down and
turned around and went back north at the same time that the burp sounds were
continuing. Then there was silence.
What’s the
meaning of it all? Just that there is
the potential, during winter months, to anticipate the arrival of SRKWs when
these burp sounds start to increase in frequency, from zero a day to possibly
10 or more a day. It isn’t a lot but it
is a change. Within the next 12 to 24
hours, after the whales have left the area, it seems that the burp sounds stop altogether.
The sea is a
wonderful place. Let us all preserve it for the people of the land and the
people of the sea.
Jeanne Hyde
Blog: Whale
of A Purpose
3-10-15
Contact
email: whaleofapurpose@yahoo.com
