Part Of L Pod On 6/13/15

On June 11th, K pod was back at San Juan Island for the first time this season. J pod was also with them and the two pods headed up the West side of the island together, through Active Pass in Canada, and beyond. While K pod had arrived, the fifteen Ls (the L4s, L47s, and Nigel L95) had left and I wonder if they crossed paths in the Strait of Juan De Fuca during the night/early morning as K pod came in from the open ocean and Ls went back out. On June 13th, whale watching boats found the Ls inbound in the Strait of Juan De Fuca but this time the L12 matriline was with the fifteen Ls. That evening, I headed out on the water with some friends to see them.

We arrived on scene off of Discovery Island in Canada. Biologists from the Center for Whale Research were also on scene, documenting the presence and health of each individual. The orcas were slowly traveling Northeast towards San Juan Island in two groups. The group in the lead was made up of all the L47s (Marina L47, Moonlight L83, Muncher L91, Mystic L115, and Midnight L110), and most of the L4s (Ophelia L27, Surprise L86, Pooka L106, Nugget L55, Lapis L103, Takoda L109, and Jade L118). The trailing group had Kasatka L82 and Finn L116 from the L4 matriline, Nigel L95 from the L43 matriline, and the L12s (Ocean Sun L25, Mega L41, Matia L77, Joy L119, Calypso L94, Cousteau L113, L121, Mystery L85, Spirit L22, and Solstice L89). We spent time with the leading group first for a bit before heading over to the trailing group.

Nugget L55, born in 1977, and her son Takoda L109, born in 2007, in the leading group. Remember that all photos on this blog were taken with a zoom lens and cropped to show detail.

As we headed over to the trailing group, I spotted L121 surfacing next to its mother, Calypso L94. This was my first time seeing L121 since its birth in February. Its skin is majorly sloughing off, but this is normal and occurs during the first few months of a calf's life. At one point, Cousteau L113 (L121's older sister) spy hopped. As the two groups crossed Haro strait and got closer to San Juan Island, the leading group pulled further ahead and spread out a little.

L121 (born in February, 2015) pops up next to its uncle, Mega L41 (born in 1977). Mega is the oldest and largest male in the Southern Resident community. Look at the size difference!

L121 surfaces beside its mother, Calypso L94 (born in 1995). L121's skin is sloughing off, which is normal for a calf.

Cousteau L113 (born in 2009) spy hops.

We soon caught back up with some of the orcas that were part of leading group but had since spread way out. There were some tail slaps and inverted tail slaps to the North of us and nearby Midnight L110 did a couple of backdives and tail slaps. Marina L47, Mystic L115, and Moonlight L83 were also close by. Eventually all the orcas had reached San Juan Island and everyone fanned out along the shoreline and slowly heading North in search of salmon, Chinook/King salmon being their absolute favorite.

Midnight L110 (born in 2007) backdives.

We slowly made our way North along the island too and spotted more orcas. It was Muncher L91, then Nigel L95 and Mega L41, who were sticking close together for the most part. We then headed back down the island momentarily to see who was furthest South and it seemed that Spirit L22 and her son Solstice L89 were the ones bringing up the rear. We left them foraging off of Eagle Point and continued North again where we saw Calypso L94 and her offspring Cousteau L113 and L121 again. L121 was practicing lots of tail slaps and was pretty good at them! We left them off of False Bay just as Cousteau L113 began babysitting L121 while Calypso L94 went off to forage. Off of the Land Bank/Lime Kiln State Park area we saw Marina L47, Mystic L115, Moonlight L83, and Midnight L110 again. Inshore of them, Mystery L85 and Nigel L95 hugged the shoreline. Mega L41 and Ocean Sun L25 were further offshore.

Mega L41 with Vancouver Island in the background.

At Andrew's Bay, we found the L4s again and off of Smuggler's Cove, we watched as they all changed direction and slowly headed back South which is where we said our goodbyes and returned to the dock. That night, I could hear some of the Ls back outside my house at False Bay, their exhales piercing the otherwise silent night. However, the Ls did not spend the night, as they were seen exiting the area for the open ocean through the Strait of Juan De Fuca the next day.

As the Ls left, J and K pod came down from East Point in Canada and eventually made it back down to San Juan Island. The next day (the 15th), J and K pod were out in the Strait of Juan De Fuca like they were going to leave the area as well, but they turned around and came back to San Juan. J pod then did their Group A and B split and Group A headed North for Canada, while Group B and K pod stayed at the island. The next day, Group A made their way down towards San Juan from East Point, while Group B, K pod, and (surprise!) the L4s, L47s, and Nigel L95 formed resting lines off the West side of San Juan. The Ls must have come back into the area the previous night. J, K, and the fifteen Ls were all leaving the area the next day though. I wonder when they will return?

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