On our journey over to the hotspot this morning, we were pleasantly surprised to be accompanied by a shy albatross that was spotted in the distance, as well as common dolphins that trailed right alongside the boat.
The waiting game was on as we arrived at the hotspot today. It wasn’t until thirty minutes past our arrival at the hotspot that a few individuals of Split Tip’s pod were spotted. Two adults were seen playfully rolling around with a young calf across from the boat. Soon after, members of Split Tip and Tatty’s pod were seen diving in the distance, remaining spread out with very little surface time.
As time went by, we were greeted by Alki’s pod who all swam together and surfaced in unison. When midday struck, her pod did a full 180 degree turn and headed back towards the hotspot. Alki and Nani were some of the orcas who came to say hello to us today.
However, the most exciting greeting of all was from the new 6 month old calf, Moana, who was spotted surfacing almost 50 metres from the boat.
Orca calves often appear to have an orange-like tinge due to the fact that they do not have as much blubber as the adults, making their blood vessels appear more prominent. This orange tinge will remain until the calf grows and puts on more blubber. Moana followed alongside the adults, surfacing more frequently in order to keep up with the pod. We watched on in awe as Mum and calf put on a show.
As the day carried on, Wonks brought his friends to come and say hello to today’s passengers. Following his appearance, the orcas’ behaviour soon changed back to being very widespread, sending passengers and crew looking in all sorts of directions for the next killer whale to pop up in the distance.
A new slick soon formed as deep dives occurred for minutes at a time off the edge of the hotspot. Orcas have the ability to hold their breaths for up to 15 minutes! This often sends the crew on a frenzy looking for them when they eventually surface again.
As we headed back towards the hotspot, Split Tip and a group of 4-5 other members of her pod were identified.
They were seen moving with pace, all in the same direction – it was clear that they were on a mission. With that, we ended the day as we started it, with Split Tip waving us off into the distance as she came to say bon voyage to today’s passengers and crew!
Photos by Nic Duncan, Machi Yoshida and Sara Hysong-Shimazu. Blog post written by Marine Biologist Intern, Myah Darby.
Leave a Reply