Kelly | M/V Sea Lion | September 12th, 2026 | 12:30pm
We curled over the top of San Juan Island on our search for whales and other wildlife. First stop of the day was at Spieden island, the largest privately owned island in the San Juan’s. On this island we found ALL three non-native animals that call it home-mouflon sheep, fallow deer and sika deer. We were even treated to a few of those lovable harbor seals (aka rock sausages) lounging along the shoreline. We next set our sights on Henry Island, investigating a whale report in the area. This report was for two large male orcas known as:
- T060D/Onca — male, born in 2004
- T060E/Lynx — male, born in 2008
As we slowly made our way on scene, we noticed exhales in the distance along Henry Island’s shoreline. Two massive dorsal fins erupting from the water side by side! These brothers are always seen together, opting to almost exclusively travel separately from the rest of their family (mom and siblings), a departure from what is typically seen with this population. Male orcas are known to follow their mothers around for most of their life, BIG time momma’s boys. These two have figured out how to efficiently hunt on their own and have no problem moving on from harbor seal snack to harbor seal snack. That was likely the case today, as we watched these two travel along the shoreline, stopping to mill in the same as they splashed and spyhopped! It is almost impossible to say with 100% certainty what these orcas are up to, but to me it appeared to be hunting behavior. This duo is notorious for traveling close to the shoreline in search of prey and today was no exception. We watched them curl their way into every nook and cranny as they circumnavigated Henry Island, eventually making their way through Mosquito Pass in the direction of Roche Harbor.