Around 11 AM on Tuesday morning, a report was posted on Orca Network's Facebook page. A few orcas had been seen off of Eagle Cove on San Juan Island! Eagle Cove is just South of my house so I quickly headed out to scan from shore to see if I could spot them and get their direction. I suspected that if I were to see the orcas that they would be elusive marine mammal eating Transient orcas. I was surprised when I immediately saw multiple blows far offshore of me, and even more surprised to see Eclipse J41 and J51 pop up closer to shore! We had seen J pod a week prior on March 18th, and it is likely that between the 18th and 24th J pod spent some time up in Northern Georgia Strait looking for Chinook/King salmon, their favorite type of salmon to eat. Unlike the Transient orcas I mentioned, the Southern Resident orcas (J, K, and L pod) only eat salmon. Soon after the quick viewing from shore, I was out on the water with some friends and joined the leading members of J pod off of Hannah Heights as they slowly made their way North.
In the lead was Slick J16, an adult female born around 1972. She foraged on her own for a bit offshore but we soon saw her two daughters, Echo J42 and J50, making their way towards her. Echo J42, who had been doing some babysitting, then passed off J50 to mama Slick J16 and headed far inshore, joining adult female Shachi J19. Either Shachi J19 or Echo J42 spy hopped soon after. Slick J16 continued to forage, often back tracking and zig zagging in search of salmon. J50 would either surface beside her mother or pop up off by herself and then swim back to mom. At one point, Slick J16 abruptly turned around and went to collect J50, who was somewhere off on her own again. We could see the two beelining for each other and once they met up, Slick J16 pushed J50 around at the surface with her head before the two swam off together towards the shoreline of Lime Kiln State Park.
Eclipse J41 and J51 soon appeared but our attention was turned to a huge splash well offshore of us. This turned out to be a well known humpback whale called Big Mama BCY0324, and she proceeded to cartwheel, tail slap, and pec slap her way South down Haro Strait. We watched her for a short time before we turned around and headed back North to find more J pod members.
In the lead was Slick J16, an adult female born around 1972. She foraged on her own for a bit offshore but we soon saw her two daughters, Echo J42 and J50, making their way towards her. Echo J42, who had been doing some babysitting, then passed off J50 to mama Slick J16 and headed far inshore, joining adult female Shachi J19. Either Shachi J19 or Echo J42 spy hopped soon after. Slick J16 continued to forage, often back tracking and zig zagging in search of salmon. J50 would either surface beside her mother or pop up off by herself and then swim back to mom. At one point, Slick J16 abruptly turned around and went to collect J50, who was somewhere off on her own again. We could see the two beelining for each other and once they met up, Slick J16 pushed J50 around at the surface with her head before the two swam off together towards the shoreline of Lime Kiln State Park.
Eclipse J41 and J51 soon appeared but our attention was turned to a huge splash well offshore of us. This turned out to be a well known humpback whale called Big Mama BCY0324, and she proceeded to cartwheel, tail slap, and pec slap her way South down Haro Strait. We watched her for a short time before we turned around and headed back North to find more J pod members.
Big Mama BCY0324 tail slaps offshore of San Juan Island.
Up ahead, we spotted Blackberry J27, an adult male born in 1991. A little further inshore, we also saw Granny J2, an adult female born around 1911 and Onyx L87, an adult male born in 1992 who travels with J pod (mainly Granny J2) though he is from L pod. At one point, Granny J2 tail slapped. Soon after, Onyx L87 split off from her and joined Blackberry J27. The two males rolled around with each other for a moment before continuing slowly North. We then aimed back inshore and found the Slick J16, Echo J42, and J50 again North of Lime Kiln State Park. The three moved back and forth very close to shore and Echo J42 playfully draped kelp over her tail flukes. Off to the South towards Lime Kiln, Alki J36 and Mike J26 surfaced. Shachi J19, Eclipse J41, and J51 then popped up near us again and hugged the small island off of the County Park before continuing North. Either Eclipse J41 or Shachi J19 cartwheeled a few times and then they headed offshore and dropped back South of us while we were with Slick J16 and family again.
Slick J6 and her two daughters continued North while we waited for a nice social groups that had formed to make their way slowly towards us. The first group was made up of Princess Angeline J17, Shachi J19, Polaris J28, Tsuchi J31, Tahlequah J35, Eclipse J41, Star J46, Notch J47, and J51. The group was in an active mood with lots of tail slaps from Princess Angeline J17, Shachi J19, Tahlequah J35, Eclipse J41, Star J46, and Notch J47. Star J46 was goofing off with Notch J47 for most of the time and Princess Angeline J17 rolled onto her back and did an inverted tail slap. It was great to see J51 getting to know other pod members.
Slick J6 and her two daughters continued North while we waited for a nice social groups that had formed to make their way slowly towards us. The first group was made up of Princess Angeline J17, Shachi J19, Polaris J28, Tsuchi J31, Tahlequah J35, Eclipse J41, Star J46, Notch J47, and J51. The group was in an active mood with lots of tail slaps from Princess Angeline J17, Shachi J19, Tahlequah J35, Eclipse J41, Star J46, and Notch J47. Star J46 was goofing off with Notch J47 for most of the time and Princess Angeline J17 rolled onto her back and did an inverted tail slap. It was great to see J51 getting to know other pod members.
J51, born in February of 2015, surfaces in the middle of the social group.
We hung out with this group for a little while before turning our attention to the other one, which was just off the bluffs of Henry Island now. The second group was made up of Samish J14, Oreo J22, Mike J26, Doublestuf J34, Hy'shqa J37, Suttles J40, and Ti'lem I'nges J49. This group was in an active mood too, but it seemed that almost everyone got active once they slowly rounded Henry Island. Hy'shqa J37, Suttles J40, Samish J14, and Doublestuf J34 were the tail slappers in this group. Suttles J40 and Ti'lem I'nges J49 spy hopped, Doublestuf J34 and Ti'lem I'nges J49 did inverted tail slaps, Samish J14 and Hy'shqa J37 aerial scanned, Oreo J22 dorsal fin slapped, and Ti'lem I'nges J49 breached. Off in the distance, Mako J39 and Se-Yi'-Chn J45 were goofing off together with Mako J39 aerial scanning and tail slapping, and one of them also breached a few times.
Sprouter male Doublestuf J34, born in 1998, with his mother Oreo J22, born in 1985, and Suttles J40, a female born in 2004.
Ti'lem I'nges J49, a male born in August of 2012, spy hops.
As we were watching this group, another small group appeared nearby. It was made up of Shachi J19, Tsuchi J31, Tahlequah J35, Eclipse J41, and J51 (who had all split off from the first social group) and Blackberry J27.
J51 surfaces beside Eclipse J41.
This group pushed North at a good speed and we decided to spend to spend a little more time with the previous group before heading home.
Adult female, Samish J14, tail slaps. She was born in 1974.
What a fabulous encounter with J pod!
Please do not use my photos without permission. Just ask :)
Please do not use my photos without permission. Just ask :)
