April 14 ~ Birding Trip with Maya's Legacy

Sunday, April 14th dawned a somewhat blustery and gray day, but that didn't stop a group of intrepid bird-watchers for heading out on a excursion with Maya's Legacy Whale Watching out of Snug Harbor. The birding started before we even left the docks with singing white-crowned sparrows, a pair of black oystercatchers on the rock in the harbor, and mew gulls foraging along the shoreline. As we slowly made our way out of the bay, we also spotted a great blue heron along the shoreline.

We didn't have to go far for our first "stop" in Mosquito Pass, where as usual in the fall, winter, and spring, there was a lot of bird activity, including bufflehead, red-breasted mergansers, red-necked grebes, and pigeon guillemots. We got a nice side-by-side comparison of double-crested and pelagic cormorants and also spotted what we may often think of as more freshwater species, Canada geese and mallards. Before continuing on into Spieden Channel we spotted a group of 7 of one of the most hoped-for species of the trip: long-tailed ducks!

Long-tailed ducks in Mosquito Pass

While our main focus was on birds, when you're cruising slowly through the islands you're of course going to see all kinds of things, and no trip along Spieden Island is complete without some of the exotic mammals that live there. I have made a lot of on-the-water trips to Spieden over the years, but I don't think I have ever seen as many sheep on it as I did on this day! Hundreds of them.

Mouflon sheep on Spieden Island

We counted more than a dozen bald eagles on or above Spieden, and they weren't just idly hanging around, either. This immature was nonchalantly dive-bombing lambs, making for some very distraught mothers. The eagle didn't seem very serious about the pursuit - perhaps just looking for any sick or injured, or just playing around - but the sheep were taking the threat seriously!

Bald eagle spooks some Mouflon sheep

A little further down the shoreline, four more eagles were huddled around a carcass of some sort (perhaps seal?), along with some northwestern crows.

Eagles and crows scavenging a carcass

When one of the immature eagles took flight, it was amazing to see how much white was on it!

Next we headed over to White Rock, where as hoped for we turned up our first shorebirds: a couple of black turnstones and about a dozen dunlin. There was also another eagle perched on top of the rock, making for a striking image with the harbor seals hauled out below.

Bald eagle and harbor seals at White Rock

Let's take a closer look at one of those seals....awwwwww:

Young harbor seal at White Rock

Next we continued north towards Monarch Head. The way there was a bit choppy, but we started seeing some new species for the day, including rhinoceros auklets and our only western grebes for the trip. At Monarch Head itself the only addition oddly enough was a pair of turkey vultures, but the stunning geology still made the trip worth it:

Cool rock formations at Monarch Head

Next it was over to East Point on Saturna Island where the first sight (and smell) we noticed was all the Steller sea lions:

Steller sea lions at East Point

A closer look at the birds on and near the same rocks, however, turned up four gull species (glaucous-winged, mew, California, and Bonaparte's), harlequin ducks, a couple of black oystercatchers, and another male long-tailed duck. A little south of us we spotted an active bait ball, so we started to head over that way. They mostly settled down by the time we got there, but there were still several dozen common murres, rhinoceros auklets, red-breasted mergansers, and, best of all, Bonaparte's gulls. The few sitting on the rocks at East Point were cool, but the reason they're one of my favorite marine birds is because of how awesome they look in flight. It's late enough in the season now that they also all have black heads, our only black-headed gull in the region.

Bonaparte's gulls in flight near Patos Island

As we cruises from Patos to Sucia, another small rocky reef had an unlikely pair sitting together: a harbor seal and a bald eagle.

It's rare enough that I get over to this part of the San Juan Islands that I didn't even know there was an impressive sea lion haul out on Ewing Island near Sucia. It was incredible to see how high up on the rocks these guys go!

Sea lions on Ewing Island

 Even the harbor seals seemed to want to show off their (admittedly less impressive) climbing skills:

Harbor seals at Ewing Island

Bird-wise there were many more pigeon guillemots, some harlequin ducks, a few surf scoters, and surprisingly our only loon of the day (a Pacific loon), but the best look was of a pair of black oystercatchers that came by to scold us for being in the area:

Black oystercatcher in flight near Ewing Island, with Steller sea lions in the background

We continued cruising south towards Peapod Rocks, where we found more black turnstones but none of the hoped-for surfbirds or plovers. There was plenty of bird activity though with a nice variety of the usual suspects all in one place, including glaucous-winged gulls, pelagic cormorants, harlequin ducks, and several more pairs of oystercatchers.

Peapod rocks

It was time to start making our way back to the home port so we picked up speed for really the first time of the day and wound our way west through the San Juans. We were still just short of 30 sepcies on the day, however, so instead of cutting back through Mosquito Pass, with the seas a little calmer we went on the outside of Henry Island in hopes of finding a peregrine falcon. Success!

Below the peregrine (who was high up but on such a photogenic perch) was a red-flowering currant clinging to the rocks, and amusingly there was a female rufous hummingbird feeding at it! While this is not my first time seeing hummingbirds from a boat, they're certainly not one of the species that comes to mind when you're thinking about marine birds. We were only a few minutes from the dock at this point, but the day list wasn't done yet: as we pulled back into Snug Harbor we also added hooded mergansers and rock pigeons.

Despite the less than ideal conditions it was still a beautiful day on the water. It was a nice change of pace, too, to slowly meander through the islands and enjoy many of the smaller sights that make this place so special. There is definitely so much to see here beyond just all the whales!

A Groundhog Day Visit From J-Pod

Seeing the whales is always a gift, but especially today after a week of gray rainy weather and not feeling well. The sun even came out for a few minutes as we waited for their approach to Reuben Tarte County Park! At first they were spread out and moving very slowly north, but as they neared they grouped up into what looked like a resting line with the dramatic landscape of Orcas Island behind them.

On their last surfacing as they passed us, they made a distinct turn west towards Spieden Channel, so we re-located to a friend's property further north - good decision! The whales were still moving slowly and took their time getting there, but once they did, this was the first surfacing we saw, of two them in the cove just east of where we were standing:

The J17s were in the lead and closest to shore.

J35 Tahlequah and J47 Notch

They were followed closely by L87 Onyx.

L87 Onyx with Spieden Island in the background

Most of the rest of the whales were trailing in a large, slower moving group; it's always such a thrill to see so many dorsal fins at the surface one right after another!

While this wasn't my best photo of the day, I love it because it shows just how much J38 Cookie has grown! That's J27 Blackberry on the left for comparison.

And one farewell tail slap for good measure!

While this was my first time really seeing J-Pod in 2018 (other than a few far away blows, also in San Juan Channel, on January 14th), I got the treat of listening to them on the Lime Kiln hydrophones for nearly two hours on January 28th. Here's a clip of some of the best vocalizations from that evening. And for comparison, just 24 hours earlier the T100s and some of the T124s were also vocalizing on the Lime Kiln hydrophones - hear a clip of their vocals here.

Next up, a change of scenery, a change of climate, and a change of wildlife! I'm sure more blog posts will be coming soon.

October 28-31: An Abundance of Salish Sea Wildlife

The weather this October has just been spectacular, right up through today, the last day of the month. We've had a few windy days and some heavy rain, but the number of clear, sunny days is certainly more than I remember having in recent years. This has provided a lot of opportunity to get out and enjoy this amazing place we live, and in the last few days the wildlife viewing has just been awesome.

On the evening of October 28th, we went out to Lime Kiln for sunset and enjoyed seeing all kinds of bird life passing by over the flat-calm seas.

Great blue heron

Tranquil autumn sunset

On the evening of October 29th, the transient killer whale family the T2Cs were making their way up San Juan Channel. A friend offered to let us hop aboard their boat out of Friday Hrabor, and the result was another memorable sunset!

T2C1 Rocky

When we had a view of Mt. Baker, we got two photo ops of two different cetacean species under the mountain. First, the orcas....

T2C1 Rocky under Mt. Baker

And then a pair of humpbacks passed by heading in the opposite direction!

Humpback whale under Mt. Baker

Then when we were stopped to get our last look before heading back to port, the whales surfaced after a dive right off our bow. 

T2C2 (the whale with scoliosis) and calf T2C4

Calf T2C4

The sunset on our way in

Then on October 30th (my birthday!) we took a hike down at Cattle Point. We came across a harbor seal with a huge salmon.

Nearby was a pair of river otters who were chowing down on forage fish. When one of them caught a larger rockfish, they both came ashore for a bit.

Otter on the upper right has a rockfish

While watching the otters, we also saw some harlequin ducks in perfect lighting.

Then today, the 31st, the sun continued and the waters were calm so we headed out for an afternoon boat trip. We originally thought we might see some sea lions, but they were the only thing we didn't see! We did find several groups of Bonaparte's gulls, which are one of my favorite birds to photograph.

This one has a little shrimp-like creature

A lot of the other winter birds are back too, including bufflehead, red-necked and horned grebes, and surf scoters. But the species that stole the show was a total surprise - the harbor porpoise! Don't get me wrong, I like harbor porpoise just fine, but more often than not they are very difficult to view. You may get just one or two glimpses and then they're gone. The one exception is when you get a large group actively foraging, and today we found just that with more than 100 of them off Green Point on Spieden Island. There were porpoise surfacing in every direction you looked.

We even saw some porpoise porpoising in the distance!

We shut down for a while to listen to their "chuffing" blows, and were rewarded with several close looks.

I've never seen (or photographed) a harbor porpoise swimming straight at me from such close range!

So concludes another beautiful month in the Salish Sea!

July 8-July 16: The Year of the Transients Continues

The first two weeks of July slipped off the calendar with no sightings of Southern Resident Killer Whales in inland waters, which is very unusual. Even with the "new normal" of drastically reduced visits from them in the spring months of April through June, in recent years sightings have at least picked up starting at the beginning of July. Not so this year. We continue to hope that wherever they are hanging out they are finding plentiful food, but in the meantime another amazing phenomenon is unfolding: the marine-mammal transient killer whales are seemingly taking over.

Not only have they been around on a nearly daily basis, but there have usually been multiple groups of transients around this month at times numbering more than 30 whales. It has also become the "new normal" to see lots of Ts in the spring (April-May) and late summer (August-September) but having this many of them around in June and July is also unprecedented. It's been amazing to see, and I've very much enjoyed the opportunity to get to spend a lot more time with this other population of orcas of the Salish Sea. It's hard to believe when I first started visiting the San Juans it took four summers here before I ever even saw transients for the first time!

On the evening of July 8th we headed across Haro Strait to Sidney Island, BC to hang out with the T49As, who took up residence near the San Juan Islands for more than a week. When we first got there they were doing long dives with very sporadic surfacings, making them hard to track, but shortly thereafter they hunted a harbor seal and proceeded to hang out for more than half an hour.

Amazing evening light that only got better as the sun set

All the boats were shut down and it was a peaceful atmosphere as we watched the whales go about their business. If I learned one thing about the T49As in our multiple encounters with them in July it's that they are not at all boat shy - in fact, rather boat curious. Every time I saw them they went over to check out at least one boat, and this evening was no exception as in their circling they made a close pass to pretty much everyone who was there drifting in the current.

The T49As: opposite of boat shy

A close look at mom T49A and three year-old T49A4

Male T49A1

The whales weren't the only one hunting for their last meal of the day. I had to focus for a moment on this rhinoceros auklet and his mouthful of fish to take home to his chick:

Just as the sun set, the light got even more amazing. In a perfect magical moment, the whales swam right into the orange light as a flock of sea gulls took off behind them.

Most of the largest groups of transients lately have been hanging out in Rosario Strait or the Strait of Georgia, generally a bit too far for us to go by boat. On July 11th, however, one group made up of 10 whales (T36, T36Bs, T37A1, and T99s) came up San Juan Channel past Friday Harbor and then headed up President's Channel. After seeing them from shore in San Juan Channel, we hopped onto the boat and caught up with them at the north end of President's Channel, following them to Sucia Island (the furthest east we've ever been in the boat!). 

A peek-a-boo spyhop

T37A1 is a very interesting individual, as he/she has dispersed from their matriline the T37As at a very young age. Dispersal is not uncommon in transients, as in some cases both sons and daughters will leave their mother's side, but usually only when they're adults, when the group size is large, and for the case of females when they start having their own offspring. Just 10 years old this year, this whale regularly flips between traveling with different family groups. His/her appearance is also distinct: a very short, broad fin that's sporting some new scarring this year.

T37A1: a reminder of how much we don't know about these whales

After this group made a kill, they rounded Point Doughty on Orcas Island and grouped up, traveling in a slow-moving tight group through, again, brilliantly colored waters.

T99 and T99B (surfacing)

T99 (left) and T99B (center)

On the evening of July 14, it was the T77s' turn to make their way up San Juan Channel. Again we tried to see them from shore near Friday Harbor, and while they were very close to the rocks, they almost completely bypassed where we were standing on a long dive. We got just one quick look at them as they made on surfacing before diving to our south, giving these surprised onlookers (who had no idea the whales were coming) a memorable moment:

The light was fading but with the whales so close we had to try to catch them from the boat. Enabled in part by them making a turn in our direction, we were able to briefly catch up with them for another sunset encounter.

Male T77B off Spieden Island

That Friday evening proved to be the start of a triple header for the weekend. On Saturday morning (July 15th), we met up with the T34s, T37, and T37Bs near Flattop Island. Soon after we arrived they made an apparent pursuit on a harbor porpoise, though it wasn't clear if they got it. Shortly thereafter they did make a kill near White Rock. It was amazing how close they surfaced to these rocks as a group of wide-eyed harbor seals looked on!

Whales moving in towards the seal haul out

The whales milled around here for quite some time and apparently spooked at least one or two into the water, which they made quick work of. Not only did we see gulls coming down to grab scraps off the surface, but a closer look at my photos later showed meat in the mouth of one of the youngsters here on the right (note the pink - click to see a larger view:

Before we departed, we saw these whales give a close pass to the local sailing ship the Spike Africa.

Then on Sunday it looked as if we might go a day without whales when a group of Ts was picked up nearby heading our direction. We caught up with the T37As off Henry Island on the evening of July 16th. This group is made up of mom T37A (mother of the young dispersed whale T37A1) and the three of her offspring that travel with her. She's a very successful young mother, at age 23 having already given birth to 4 surviving offspring. I wonder if her birth rate of a new calf every 2-3 years has anything to do with her oldest dispersing so young. At any rate, she's got her work cut out for her as the only adult and a family of 4 to feed!

At first all 4 whales were traveling together, but soon mom and her oldest non-dispersed offspring completely disappeared for 15 minutes while the two youngest - four year-old T37A3 and two year-old T37A4 played together at the surface. It was like she left them to entertain themselves while going hunting!

No mom in sight while these two little ones frolicked right off the shoreline of Henry Island - so close to shore it looked like they were practically touching the rocks!

Eventually mom did come back to pick them up, and the family booked it over to Open Bay, where they again stalled out. It wasn't clear what they were doing as they were loose and surfacing every which way, looking more like the residents that often forage in this same location.

A young transient dwarfed by a passing container ship

After a long period of milling, they suddenly grouped up again and chose a direction - a direction that happened to be right past us! Their close surfacing startled me enough that I jumped, but I still had composure enough to point the camera in the right direction and click the shutter, capturing another magical sunset whale moment:

I have a feeling we're in for some more transient killer whale encounters in the near future, but next the Southern Residents finally returned to inland waters after a 17 day absence when, on July 17th, part of L-Pod made their way in. Their stay was short, but we did get to see them - those photos in my next blog post!