What a great start to the holiday weekend with this beautiful day! We traveled north to meet the whales traveling down the west side of San Juan Island. The nice weather and holiday brought out many boaters who were also excited to observe the Orcas. The Orcas are an endangered species so there are many laws and regulations about boat behavior around them. Soundwatch is local non profit organization that provides boater education to recreational vessels and monitors commercial activity. Today they were extremely busy ensuring that everyone enjoyed their time with the whales in a safe manner.
After reaching the whales we recognized Cappuccino and Raggedy from the K pod. The whales were very widely spread along the west side of the island and traveling south. Even though the whales were far apart they could still remain in communication with each other. We often deploy our hydrophone to listen in to these private underwater conversations. Each of the different pods sound distinct and researchers are capable of identifying the pods just by listening to them.
On the way home we enjoyed watching Bald Eagles soar above us and harbor seals bask in the sun (just like our guests on the deck!) Enjoy the holiday weekend!!!
-The dynamic duo
Sally and Casey