As we rounded the corner of the harbour this morning and the bow of the Alison Maree began to rise and fall, it became clear that we weren’t in for a smooth journey out to the Canyon. The Southern Ocean stuck true to its reputation with the directions of the wind and swell largely disagreeing with each other and creating somewhat of a washing machine effect.
Our journey out was briefly interrupted by a flipper waving around at the surface of the water, belonging to a long-nosed fur seal. While it seemed like the seal was waving to greet us, this is actually a method of thermoregulation, often used by pinnipeds (seals and sea lions). The lack of fur on the surface of their flippers, along with a tight blood vessel network, facilitates heat exchange, allowing them to cool or warm themselves.
Despite the bumpy ride, everyone onboard was still eager and excited as we approached the hotspot, our eyes peeled for any signs of the orca. We came to a halt, scanning the horizon for any action… There was nothing. There was barely even a bird in the sky. So, we headed east, searching along the tips of the neighbouring canyons in search of the apex predators.
After a long morning of scouring the water, Skipper, Craig, spotted a swirl of birds on the horizon. Photographer and keen birder, Dan, lifted his binoculars and at last came the call we’d all been waiting for, orcas!
As we approached the group, the familiar dorsal fin.. or lack of, belonging to Lucky appeared at the surface.
This group is not seen regularly, so this was an exciting encounter!
Especially when the massive dorsal fin of mature male, Koomba rose from the water, leaving us all gasping at its size, looming almost 2m above the surface!
A couple of fleshfooted shearwaters squabbled over scraps of squid at the surface and small oil slicks rose to the surface as the group fed on what we can only guess may have been fish or squid, down below.
Then, for the grand finale, all members of the group, including 4 mature males with impressively large dorsal fins, came together, travelling in a tight group.
17 strong, surfacing as a unit – it was quite a sight!
With that we waved the orcas goodbye and as we made our way toward Glasse Island to pay a visit to the Australian sea lions lazing on the rocks, a pod of common dolphins made a b-line for us and playfully rode our bow and in our wake.
-Naturaliste Charters
This post was adapted from a Facebook post, read the original here.
Photographs capture by photographer, D.
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