Olivia Ellman | M/V Osprey | Wednesday August 6th, 2025 | 12:30 pm
There were multiple reports of whales when we left the harbor, but all of them were equally far away so we weren’t quite sure if we would be able to make it if they decided to travel the opposite direction. Captain Vaun decided to go for Victoria, BC for our best chance at finding killer whales, so we began heading south. As we passed by Cattle Point, we got to see some harbor seals and many cormorants on Goose Island before continuing towards Salmon Bank. We pushed on across the banks, when suddenly our captain slowed the boat and announced he had spotted a minke whale nearby! Minkes are typically very elusive, so this surprise sighting was very exciting. We got a few great looks at this individual at the surface, before it disappeared and we continued towards Vancouver Island.
We neared Victoria and after talking to the other boats in the area we quickly spotted some dorsal fins in the distance. This group had been identified as the 6 members of the T109A matriline, a family I haven’t seen this season yet! One whale really stood out to us above the rest; T109A4 “Garrett” was way bigger than when we had seen him last summer! This 13 year old was very large as a sprouting male, and Lauren and I could not get over how much he’s already grown. We wonder how big he’ll get over the next few years! As soon as we got on scene, the whales began to showcase some hunting behavior as they neared a small rocky island that had harbor seals resting on it. We could only assume the family had easily snatched one of these seals as they circled the island and were moving quite sporadically. Soon enough they began taking some longer dives and continued traveling north along the coast. We got some fantastic looks at the group as they traveled tightly together, and another standout individual was the newest member of the family T109A8 who was born this year. This baby was extra adorable as they all surfaced together. I love seeing this family thrive in their environment and continue to expand their family, especially since the loss of T109A3 Spong last year and the unknown fate of her calf “Brave Little Hunter”. I’m hoping this family will stick around the area for the rest of the season to get some more looks at them, so we’ll see when they show up next!