6-25-17 J Pod and Others All Day Long - Part 2

June 25th - Part 2 
...all day the whales went up island, then back down island, up island, and back down...
...it was a stunning day...but how one describes it isn't that easy.
...filled with close passes along the shore line - like they used to do...
.....with family groups tightly together - like the used to do...
......with energetic, playful-looking groups...
.......moving with an electricity that seemed to come from them to us.

When you see the whales doing what they used to do, after having watched them for the last few years in a very different and concerning way, it brought this person hope - hope for the whales.

But in reality it all has to unfold and may it please unfold for them with salmon, salmon, salmon - that is what they need - more than anything.

Here are some images from the day:

...

...

...and it wasn't even noon yet...soon they went back up island...

...

...the K14s chose the shore side...

...yes, it was a most extraordinary day, a day we haven't seen like this in a very long time...many possibilities for reasons why, but for now we're just very glad to see the whales getting food to sustain them...may that trend continue...

...and tomorrow?   MORE SALMON PLEASE!

 

8-17-16 Morning Passby - Awesome!

Wednesday, August 17th
...Granny was in the lead...way in the lead...

...then Lea K-14 and her oldest, Lobo K-26 came along next...

...Kelp K-42 came along but not in as close to shore as some others...

...video of Granny J-2, some approaching close in (then I switched to images) and off shore were the K16s and Cappuccino K-21...

...some of the images when they came past the lighthouse...

...off shore were Lea K-16, Sonata K-35, and Cappuccino K-21 - they are on the video clip...
...so now all of K Pod was in the inland waters with the K12s and the K13s already north...the whales are heading toward the Fraser River...reading the reports on the Fraser River and the salmon runs, things are looking really bad...
...really bad for what?  really bad for 137 species that reply in part or in whole on their well being...yes, 137 species.
                                 ...by the way...humans are on that list.
   

8/25-29/14 Talk About Mixing It Up - Whew!

Monday - Thursday, August 25-28
...there have been times in past years - the whales go up and the whales go down - they stay in their 'nice groupings' - well, that appears to be a thing of the past!...at least for this season...and it is getting more crazy...

Monday, August 25th
...on Monday morning I heard that some Js, some Ks (there could only be three because all the rest had gone north the day before), and some Ls were seen west of Race Rocks, somewhere, and they were heading west..bye-bye...

...and on Monday Group A, the K12s, K13s, and K14s family groups and the J10s (Oreo's group)...none of them were seen anywhere!...and there was a question as to where Onyx L-87 was - north or south??? - no one was sure...
...and were the J16s with them? - not sure on that one either...

Tuesday, August 26th
...Ts, Ts, and more Ts (see 2 posts prior to this post)...no Residents anywhere...
...that is until I got a call that Granny J-2 was seen up near the Campbell River!
-okay this is getting freaky...

Wednesday, August 27th
...it was late afternoon, on Maya's Westside Charters, shortly out of the harbor we saw a mom and 2 of her kids...raccoons that is!
...and then we get the call - lots of whales and they were not far...in Haro Strait, in bound and coming toward the island...

...I was so curious as to who was present...
...Blackberry J-27...(notice the sunshine)

...Mako J-39 and...

...the J17s are here...

...and so are some of those L pod whales from the other day...

...and bingo - Onyx L-87!!

...so is it still 'breaking news' now that he has done this twice this season...I think that somehow J-27 plays a role in this...maybe Onyx wants to hang out with other adult males other than Mike J-26 who is very clingy to his mom...
...Nugget L-55 and her group travel with three other L pod family groups...I saw others in her group...

...and I saw Nigel L-95 from one of the other groups...

...we didn't see all the whales who had come in, but I talked with one person who said for sure they saw Cappuccino K-21, Opus K-16, and Sonata K-35 - those would have been 'icing on the cake' to have seen them - they've been MIA since August 11th!...
...still in question are the J16s, who I had heard had gone north with the others a few days ago...

Thursday, August 28th
...bright and early in the morning...
Granny J-2! - yes, here they came back down from the north...but the challenging seas didn't help matters...and fog was trying to interrupt the day...

...I did see enough whales to be pretty sure those who I knew had gone way north a few days ago had come back down...some of who I saw: Granny J-2, some of the J14s, DoubleStuf J-34, Tika K-33, and Shachi J-19...well, she was so cool...

...but looking back north...

...and down they went into some very nasty seas...

...then late in the day whales began coming up island...I did manage to get a picture of Granny J-2 as she had just turned to go back down island...and we needed to get out of those rough seas!

Friday, August 29th
...more than once whales came up island...didn't make it to the lighthouse in the a.m....couldn't tell who and they weren't within hydrophone range - strange how the HPs don't pick them up when they are that close, but they don't...

...then later in the day...this time I wasn't at the lighthouse, cause I didn't think they would make it...this time they did!...well, I think it was 2 of the three - Granny J-2, Shachi J-19, and Eclipse J-41...and they were echolocating and vocalizing over the hydrophones...

...I'm already wondering how the season will 'end up' - there used to be a 'rhyme and reason' for it all or so we thought...actually there is, and the whales know what it is...

7-29-14 That Seal Got That Salmon

Tuesday, July 29th
...morning at the park waiting and looking for the whales to come up island...and instead of whales we were treated to these two harbor seals and their salmon...

 ...I couldn't figure out the second seal...it wasn't eating on the salmon, nor was it trying to take it away...I would guess a pup, but it looked too big to be a pup...I guess they were two very cooperative seals...

...close to noon the whales came up island, the first two whales I saw were Marina L-47 and her youngest, Mystic L-115...they appeared to be near the leaders...
...as we continued moving up island on Maya's Westside Charters others came into view...Slick J-16, Mike J-26, Alki J-36, Echo J-42, Shachi J-19, Eclipse J-41...Lobo K-26 (which meant that the rest of his family would be present)...Onyx L-87...the J14s...and Surprise! L-86 and Pooka L-106 too!
...Onyx L-87 was back with Group A, and it looked like Granny J-2 was way up in the lead... and now there were some L pod whales and some K pod whales 'hanging out with' Granny's Group...
...all these whales had just about made it out of view at Kellett Bluff, when a few turned around...
Mike, Marina, Mystic, and Muncher all started to come back down island...then they stopped and they appeared to be foraging...

...now if Mike came back down island with these L pod whales where would the rest of his family be?...

...we had to leave the scene, but came back out about a half hour later...and saw five whales heading down island...they were the five L pod whales who had come up...Muncher, Marina, Mystic, Surprise and Pooka...Mike J-26 was no where to be seen...since the seas were not looking nice down island, we turned back toward the north and eventually saw Mike and his family - the J16s, steadily moving north...but they were a few miles behind Granny's Group - Group A and the K14s...who we went on up to see...

...as Group A and the K14s got farther up Swanson Channel, the whales momentarily grouped up just as a sea plane landed...it reminded me of when this occurred before in this same location - see that post - this time however, they didn't linger like they did the previous time...I wonder what sound they are hearing from a sea plane landing (or taking off), and if it would cause them to pause...maybe, maybe not...sea planes are very loud above the surface...but what about under the surface?...it would have to happen many times to be sure that it wasn't just circumstantial... ...they were moving at a steady pace and after a while they entered Active Pass...and so did we!...it can be a spectacular place to go through, even when there are no whales...but add whales and the ferries...oh, my!!

...there are people on that rock just about every time the whales go through Active Pass...

...on the way back toward the harbor we searched for the J16s, but couldn't find them...then I learn that the J16s (Mike and family) had gone up Boundary Pass (north east) and hadn't followed behind Granny and the rest of them up Swanson Channel (north west)...but they would meet up sometime during the night, most likely...


...and those L pod whales who went back down island?...well, they passed by at the park, heading back down island to where the rest of the L pod whales were (not the L12s - they were not in here), and to where J pod Group B and the rest of K pod was - oh, about 50 whales...

...the salmon is sparse...the whales are using all their tactics for flushing out the salmon and they are masters of that...now if enough salmon will just continue to slowly move in that would be great...or for that matter 22,000,000 salmon would be even better...but that official prediction is just about to be squelched...unfortunately...

7-22-14 Onyx And Others Not Present Today

Tuesday, July 22nd
...when daylight came and the whales came down from the north, here's who was present...
Granny J-2, Samish J-14 and her kids and grand kid J-49, Slick J-16 and her kids, and Lea K-14 and her kids...now that's an unusual combination...a few of the whales who had come down...

...many searched many areas but no other Southern Residents were seen today at all, anywhere...
now this is getting to be very unusual...



Update on Onyx L-87:
This is the second full day that Onyx L-87 was not with Granny's Group, and we don't know who he is traveling with right now.
He has traveled with J pod since August 2010 for four years.
Prior to that he traveled with K pod for four years.
Prior to that his mother was still living.