This week the endangered southern resident orcas made their first fall foray this year into inland Puget Sound, according to a press release from the Orca Network.
The Whidbey Island-based nonprofit’s whale sighting network confirmed on Tuesday that orcas present in island waters were members of J pod, a family of fish-eating orcas whose main food source is salmon, primarily Chinook. With the region enveloped in dense fog, achieving a proper headcount was challenging and made confirming ecotype difficult.
Late in the morning, Washington State Ferries first reported to vessel Orca Network 2 that there were northbound orcas seen on the Edmonds/Kingston route. Mid-afternoon brought the next reports of about seven southbound orcas that traveled as far south as South Bainbridge Island before turning back to travel north.
With a group of Bigg’s orcas inland just days prior and reports hovering around seven orcas, it was still unclear which were present. Whale Sighting Network Coordinator Alisa Lemire Brooks met the lead whales just as they arrived off Shilshole Marina/Golden Gardens. As more and more orcas arrived, widely spread in all directions, it became clear they were endangered Southern Residents.
In the fall, after spending summers foraging for salmon out in the Pacific and more northern waterways in the Salish Sea, southern resident orcas travel further inland to their Puget Sound habitat following the fall and early winter salmon runs, an important food source for them.
Brooks noted that the scene with the orcas was beautiful “under an early October sky as the setting sun nestled in behind the Olympic Mountain range.”
“The anticipation in the local community this time of year is palpable,” she said. “We are so fortunate to live in such a remarkably beautiful place with a plethora of nearby shorelines to watch these majestic, intelligent, social beings. It’s always a gift to say hello in person to familiar orcas as they travel this urban part of their home range in search of food they are dependent upon. It is heart-warming to watch matriarchs lead their families while calves spend time spy-hopping, tail lobbing and rolling around, and older family members forage and socialize, including the adult and sub-adult males who often flank the sides and rear.”
J pod stayed overnight in Puget Sound. By evening of Oct. 5, the pod slowly made its way up Admiralty Inlet, leaving Puget Sound for now, and showed up off the west side of San Juan Island early morning on Oct. 6.
Fall and early winter months offer many opportunities to observe J, K and L pods along the many miles of shoreline. Whidbey Island, the Kitsap and Olympic Peninsulas and the inland waters of Puget Sound proper offer wonderful public viewing options from shore. For 21 years, Orca Network’s Whale Sighting Network has encouraged whale-watching from shore and other platforms such as Washington State Ferries. A public interactive viewpoints map assists people in finding a land-based place to watch whales. The map can be found on Orca Network’s website and Facebook page.
