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Posts from the ‘MARINE MEGAFAUNA’ category

Mysterious Killer Whales Come Inshore

Mature male offshore killer whale photographed on March 27, 2011 for research purposes by J. Hildering (telephoto lens). Note ragged edge to the dorsal fin – damage from sharks?


Many Port McNeill (N. Vancouver Island, BC) residents were whale watching on the evening of March 30th and they didn’t have to leave their homes to do so!

A group of 12 offshore killer whales was extremely active right in front of the community; even repeatedly spyhopping (popping their heads out of the water). To have whales this visible near your home is a great gift but, all the more remarkable is that these were very mysterious, threatened whales.

“Offshores” are a distinct type of killer whale that does not mate with the killer whales that eat marine mammals (“transients”) nor with those that feed on fish, mostly salmon (“residents”).

About 300 individual northeastern Pacific offshores have been photographed but studying them is usually very difficult. As their name suggests, they are most often near the continental shelf and they are very wide-ranging. Offshores weren’t even identified till 1979 and weren’t confirmed to be a distinct population until 1989.

So little is known about them. Only very recently did the research of Dr. John Ford et al illuminate what the whales might be doing around the continental shelf and why their teeth are worn down so much more than the teeth of other killer whales. DNA analysis of prey samples confirmed that the diet of offshores includes Pacific sleeper sharks (4m+), a species with very abrasive skin that are found around the continental shelf.  In some cases the offshore killer whales’ teeth are so worn down by the the sharks’ skin that it is believed they become dependent on the help of other offshore killer whales to catch and eat this prey. The offshores’ scarred bodies served as a further hint that they may do battle with sharks.

Their diet is believed to also include other shark species (e.g. salmon sharks, blue sharks) and halibut.

Inshore sightings of these whales provide a very unique opportunity to learn more about them e.g. what they are eating when inshore and why they are so full of toxins.  It is puzzling that offshores killer whales appear to becoming inshore more often and this may be due to a shift in diet or range in their prey.

Luckily one of the world’s leading killer whale researchers, Graeme Ellis of the Pacific Biological Station, was able to join the offshores in front of Port McNeill for this research opportunity.  He was alerted to their presence by the superstars at the Orca Lab (Leah Robinson and Marie Fournier) who first heard these whales’ unique vocals in the Robson Bight area on March 25th.

I too was extraordinarily privileged to be able to contribute some ID photographs from sightings on March 27th and . . . I don’t think I’ll ever quite be the same after watching these mystery whales surfing in 3’ waves.

It all just goes to show that you never know who you’ll meet on Northern Vancouver Island!

[Great thanks to residents of Port McNeill and Angela Smith of Ocean Rose Adventures for helping get photos of a lone male offshore killer whale in Port McNeill Bay on March 27].

For more information on offshore killer whales see:


Kaouk – The Next Chapter of “The Steller Sea Lion That Flew”!

[Updates up to April 6th provided below. For more recent updates – including a photo of Kaouk hauled out with other wild Steller sea lions, click here. 

Kaouk bounding unhesitatingly back into the wild. Where is he now? See links below for links to the Vancouver Aquarium announcement and track data. Photo is a video grab by Peter Olesiuk (DFO)

Kaouk was released back into the wild on March 17th, from Toquart Bay on southwestern Vancouver Island (where the herring are bountiful) and  . . . now you can follow his progress!

Kaouk, is the male Steller sea lion that walked into the Port Alice trailer park on December 16th and was flown to the Vancouver Aquarium’s Marine Mammal Rescue Centre. He inspired the students of Port Alice to write a children’s book and will no doubt continue to be a charismatic marine ambassador to we humans; helping us understand his species, when to help wild animals, ad when to leave them be.

For the Vancouver Aquarium’s announcement of his release click here.

The announcement includes the link to where you can follow him via a satellite tag that was attached to Kaouk’s fur with epoxy and will fall off when he moults.

Click here for the direct link to the tracking data.

Click here for a previous blog posting giving background on Kaouk.

And click here for a 1-minute video of his enthusiastic return to the wild, made available by Peter Olesiuk (DFO).

Kaouks wanderings to the morning of April 6, 2011. He has been exploring and hauling out a lot. See text for update.

Update April 6th, 2011.

See the image below – Kaouk has been exploring Barkley Sound and hauling out on a regular basis over the last 10 days, first at Mara Rocks (the largest and only year-round Steller haulout in Barkley Sound – see previous update) and more recently at Wouwer Island (a winter haulout occupied by Steller and California sea lions mainly outside of the May-August breeding season).  He has been frequenting areas knowing to be good herring spawn areas, and areas known to have concentrations of sardines).  Go Kaouk go – eat lots!  Scientist Peter Olesiuk of DFO reports that he needs to eat 15-20 kg per day, which is apparently a challenge. Scientist Peter Olesiuk of DFO reports that about 46% of sea lions don’t make it through their first year.

Click to enlarge. Mara Rock - the Steller sea lion haul out that Kaouk has been frequenting! Image provided by Peter Olesiuk (DFO).

Update March 30th, 2011

Kaouk is with his own kind!

Since the evening of March 25th, he has been hauling out and foraging around this haulout on Mara Rock. Peter Olesiuk of DFO kindly shared that Mara Rock is the largest Steller sea lion haulout in Barkley Sound and that it is the only site that is occupied year-round (600+ animals, including lots of juveniles like Kaouk, at this time of year). Images below provided by Peter Olesiuk show the Mara Rock haulout and, in the satellite tracking image, Mara Rock is in the bottom left corner (note how consistently he has been at this site). Most of his dives are reported to be between 20 to 50 m with a few in the 50 to 100 m range.

Click to enlarge. Satellite image from AM of March 30th. Note the concentrated activity in the bottom left of the image. This is Mara Rock - a large Steller sea lion haulout!!!

Update March 19th: If you have been looking at the satellite data for Kaouk, please note that the locations are only updated once a day (data is not real-time) and that locations are not very “refined”. The map below (provided via Marine Mammal Rescue) gives a far more accurate look at Kaouk’s adventures. It looks like he hasn’t even come ashore in his first days in the wild! He has been actively diving and hopefully filling himself up with herring.

Kaouk - March 17th to +/- 09:00 March 19th. Image via Vancouver Aquarium Marine Mammal Rescue.


Steller visits!

Screen grab from Steller encounter 2011-02-12

Screen grab from the video.

While diving yesterday, we had a visitation from two juvenile Steller sea lions.

I’ve put a 1-minute clip of the encounter on-line, in a gallery with other videos of when these magnificent mammals have chosen to do a swim-by.

Note that I do not “target” marine mammals while diving (this is in fact stipulated as being illegal in Canada’s draft marine mammal regulations)  i.e. I do not jump in near sea lion haul-outs as I do not want to put pressure on the animals nor contribute to their becoming habituated to humans.

Therefore, when we see them there is always an element of surprise and, of course, extreme privilege.

See this link for the video clips.

See this link for a previous blog posting that includes the natural history of Steller sea lions.

Note: “Steller” is for the nautralist Georg William Steller who was doctor and naturalist on Vitus Bering’s second Kamchatka Expedition that also sailed to Alaska and the Commander Islands (1740 – 1741?).

You Win! You Lose?

You win some and you lose some . . . or do you?

On January 19th, I had the extreme honour of receiving the Vancouver Aquarium’s Murray A. Newman Award for Excellence in Aquatic Conservation. In the thick, wonderful soup of positive emotions associated with this, I delight in the award being known as The MAN Award.  Yeah, I got a MAN award! (For my acceptance speech, see the link at the bottom of this post).

Photo by Vancouver Aquarium’s John Healey. The Marine Detective among Drs. Left to right: Dr. Randall Peterman – winner MAN award for Science; Dr. Murray A. Newman – the award I received is in his honour; founding director of the Vancouver Aquarium; Dr. John Nightengale – President Vancouver Aquarium.
Humpback Comeback Results
The final AVIVA voting results in our funding category (to $25K). Click image for close-up.

On January 25th, it was announced that the Marine Education and Research Society’s Humpback Comeback Project would not receive funding dollars from the AVIVA Community Fund. (I am a cofounder of or MERS and have had the joy of 7 years of volunteer effort in studying local humpbacks.) The competition result was a shock as this small local project succeeded in getting the third highest number of votes out of more than 520 in our category (7,113 votes total, more than 1,100 votes ahead of fourth place).

After the intensive on-line voting, the projects were judged and Humpback Comeback was determined not to best meet the AVIVA criteria/priorities. Observations are that “build ’em” and human-to-human projects such as playgrounds were more successful in meeting the criteria of this generous and PR-savvy insurance company.

It was a shock yes, but there are far more similarities between winning the MAN award and the AVIVA result than just my exclaiming “Oh man!” at the end of both.

I could not have achieved what was recognized by the award without the opportunities and support provided by the people of Northern Vancouver Island.  The astounding community support and encouragement we also received for the Humpback Comeback Project provided an equally potent affirmation of purpose.

Losing?  Every time someone voted for our Humpback Comeback Project or that we had a media opportunity, awareness was created for whales and for the threat of entanglement; positive attention was focused on our area and its remarkable biodiversity; and people responded to an opportunity to create positive change.  There are those that have now even decided to support the Project through donations or by helping to find alternative funding sources (donations made via http://www.mersociety.org).

Sometimes life deals a challenge that only intensifies focus, strengthens resolve, and enhances creativity to achieve what you believe in.  Oh man, I assure you that this is the case with the Humpback Comeback Project!

Great thanks to you all for the support.
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For my acceptance speech for the Murray A. Newman award, see this link (15 minutes). It is apparently laughter and tear inducing with the ultimate message being – be relentless in creating positive change. Includes lots of my images of the marine biodiversity of Northern Vancouver Island.

 

 

 

Kaouk – The Steller Sea Lion That Flew

Kaouk at the Marine Mammal Rescue Centre. Photo: Hildering

Below, please find a link to a slide show update on Kaouk, the juvenile male Steller sea lion that walked into the Port Alice (BC, Canada) trailer park on December 16th, 2010.


I had the privilege of visiting Kaouk at the Vancouver Aquarium’s Marine Mammal Rescue Centre on January 20th and was amazed at the improvement in his health.  A decision will soon be made about his return to the wild.


See this link for the 3 minute slide show (available in two sizes for ease of viewing).

See this link for a background story in the North Island Gazette.

The Humans Behind “Humpback Comeback”

Update: See this link for the results of the Humpback Comeback Project in the AVIVA competition.

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With just a few more days left to vote for the “Humpback Comeback” Project in the AVIVA Community Fund’s competition, I feel I need to crack.

I need to crack and respond to the many questions about who “we” are, the humans behind the Humpback Comeback Project.

We haven’t wanted to answer because of course, it isn’t a comfortable thing to put yourself “out there”; it’s been a broad community effort where we can’t mention everybody involved and; we didn’t want to detract from what the Project is about  – the whales and understanding the risk of entanglement.

But with all the remarkable support the Project has received, I feel we owe you.  Maybe too, in revealing the human element, the dedication behind the Project will be even more apparent and you’ll know all the more that your votes have been well invested.

So who are we, the volunteer effort behind the Humpback Comeback Project?  Below I include the biographies provided in our submission to the AVIVA Community Fund competition. Please realize that the information was written with the purpose of relaying our commitment to the Project and to our community. Self-promotion is difficult and awkward but the we did it to help the chance of success in the funding competition.

In complete self-mockery, we also include photos of ourselves so you can see the human faces behind Humpback Comeback. The photos were taken when we were out looking for humpbacks last week, on the cold Northeast Pacific. We recognize that the photos wouldn’t serve us well on Plenty of Fish but that’s not their purpose . .. for us, it’s about plenty of whales!

Please know too that there are so many more who have contributed time, resources and sightings – local whale watching companies (e.g. Stubbs Island Whale Watching began the data collection effort); Dr. Alexandra Morton (shared all the humpback data she had collected since the 1980s); our fellow members of the Marine Education and Research Society (Caitlin Birdsall, Leah Thorpe and Heidi Krajewsky) and many more from Northern Vancouver Island, B.C., Canada.

Thank you so much for caring and for your support.

Vote #5773!

Chrisite McMillan. Vote 5 . . .

 

Christie McMillan (Alert Bay, B.C.) has spent two years as a Humpback Whale Studies Research Assistant and member of the Atlantic Large Whale Disentanglement Network at the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies in Cape Cod, Massachusetts.  Working with some of the world’s experts in entanglement research and humpback whale biology, she has gained skills and expertise in both of these fields.  She has also worked as a Cetacean Research Technician for Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and an environmental educator and Naturalist for various non-profit and eco-tourism organizations.  She has played a key role in collecting, processing, and analyzing our humpback whale data since 2005.

Jared Towers. Vote 7, 7 . . .

 

Jared Towers (Alert Bay, B.C.) is a Cetacean Research Technician with Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and has been operating boats and studying wild whales off the coast of British Columbia for the past 23 years.  He also is the Founder and Past President of the North Island Marine Mammal Stewardship Association, an organization dedicated to finding the balance between sustainable eco-tourism and marine mammal conservation.  He is a skilled researcher, educator, and Captain, having worked in locations all over British Columbia, as well as in Mexico and Antarctica. He has been involved in our humpback whale research for the past 7 years.

Yours truly. Jackie Hildering. Vote 3 . . . Vote #5773!

 

Jackie Hildering (Port McNeill, B.C.) has been collecting and processing our humpback whale data for 7 years.  She is a highly respected marine educator with a very strong connection to the local community. She has worked as a marine naturalist for 12 years; was Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s Education Coordinator for 7 years; runs a Young Naturalist Club; is President of the local dive club; and works for the SOS Marine Conservation Foundation.

Her role in the community is further evident in the local recognition she has received.  This includes:

  • 2010 winner of the Vancouver Aquarium’s Murray A. Newman Award for Excellence in Aquatic Conservation.
  • Recognition from Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s Director of Oceans, Habitat and Enhancement for “contribution to the preservation and enhancement of the salmonid resource  . . . helping ensure a better future for all Canadians” (June 2010)
  • Professional Merit Award – Port McNeill & District Chamber of Commerce (2009)
  • LiveSmart BC “Community Hero” (Oct 2008)
  • One of the top 3 nominees for the “Free the Children” Society’s “Me to We Awards” in the educator category (2007)


Invasive and Indiscriminate Tagging of Whales?

Update: October 2016 – Confirmed that endangered Southern Resident L95 died due to an infection resulting from limpet tagging. Read news item here.

Update: January 22, 2012 update to the December 10, 2010 blog item below:  Approval granted to limpet tag the endangered southern resident killer whales. See news items at the end of the blog. 

The American “Northwest Fisheries Science Center” (NWFSC) has applied for expansion of their permit to satellite tag endangered and threatened whales with airguns, including the endangered Southern Resident killer whale population and the threatened Northern Residents and Transient populations (the range of all these whales very much includes British Columbian waters).

It is the opinion of many involved in whale research and conservation that the impact of the airgun tagging far out weighs any benefit to the whales. There are other ways to get data on the movement of killer whales e.g. acoustic tracking and collaboration with researchers who have been studying these whales more extensively than NWFSC.

It is my opinion that the tagging cannot provide data that will help reduce the threats of toxin accumulation, prey availability, disturbance or noise so – why do it?  The photos here indicate just how invasive these types of tags are.

Below, I also include a letter from the North Island Marine Mammal Stewardship Association (NIMMSA) in which they powerfully express their concerns about the tagging.

If you too are concerned about the merit of this tagging program, please help in creating awareness. Share this blog on Facebook; do what you want with the images (help them go viral) and provide coment via this link before December 23rd, 2010.

Close up of the tag.

News items and further resources regarding limpet tagging of killer whales:

Humpback Comeback Project – Worth the Vote

Update: See this link for the results of the Humpback Comeback Project in the AVIVA competition.

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In recognition of how important the information was to our Humpback Comeback Project, Jim Borrowman provided us with his photos of a humpback whale entanglement dating back to September 23rd, 1994. This was a time when it was very rare to see humpbacks around N. Vancouver Island (B.C., CANADA) since they had been whaled intensely into the 1950s.

I include one of these images below but be warned that it is very upsetting.  I share it with you as it shows how devastating the threat of getting entangled in fishing gear can be. The photo provides insight into how necessary research into the threat of entanglement is and  . . . how valuable your voting is for the Humpback Comeback Project. (Please click here to place your daily vote so that $25K could be won for humpback entanglement research).

Christie McMillan (colleague in the Project who has expertise in judging the severity of entanglement injuries), concluded that the whale must have been entangled for a considerable time before these images were taken. The evidence of this is that the whale is very thin (emaciated) and its skin condition is very poor, being heavily covered in cyamids (whale lice).

Whale with severe entanglement injuries, 1994. Photo by Jim Borrowman; Stubbs Island Whale Watching; http://www.stubbs-island.com/

 

Jim Borrowman, Mike Durban and Dave Towers worked together and succeeded in freeing this whale from the lines. This heroic effort served as the inspiration for the children’s book “The Rescue of Nanoose” by Mary Borrowman and Chloe O’Loughlin; illustrated by Jacqueline Wang.

More, larger photos showing the severity of this entanglement at this link.

If you need more background on how to vote for the Humpback Comeback Project , please click here.

Brutal, Breath-Taking Beauty – Transient Killer Whales

In our work as the Marine Education and Research Society, Jared Towers, Christie McMillan and I went out on December 4th, 2010 on the waters of Northern Vancouver Island in the hopes of finding a Humpback Whale. We didn’t. Instead Nature gifted us with two sightings of Transient (mammal-eating) Killer Whales; a total of 16 animals (now also known as “Bigg’s Killer Whales“).

First we found the T55s and T19s. The lighting on this December day was so beautiful; when these whales blew, rainbows appeared to erupt around them.

A Mother Hunting: Transient Killer Whale mother T140 and her calf chasing Pacific White-Sided Dolphins. Note Telegraph Cove in the background. Image: ©Jackie Hildering

Then, when in transit back to Alert Bay, we found T139, the T140s and T141s.  We had also seen +/-300 Pacific White-Sided Dolphins in the area so knew that there was a possibility that these Killer Whales might choose to have dinner. The display we then witnessed was both brutal and breath-taking.

One of the mature females erupted out of the water higher than I have ever witnessed. She cleared the surface by at least 1.5 body lengths, apparently having rammed the dolphin that was spinning through the air ahead of her. Other spectacular leaps followed, one where mother and calf leapt at the same time – mother high, her calf lower but in almost perfect synchronicity.

Once aware that the Transient Killer Whales were there, the dolphins cascaded away with incredible energy. We could see them still in full flight, several kilometres away, even more than 10 minutes after the initial attack.  But yes, at least one dolphin did not get away. It is the role of Transient Killer Whales to eat other marine mammals; they need to feed their babies too.

I share some of these photos of these encounters at the link below. Realize that the images were taken with a 400 mm lens.

Even after my 12 years on (and under) these waters, I am left stunned at the area’s beauty, biodiversity and the opportunity to learn. 

Click here for more photos from the December 4, 2010 encounter.

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“Idol” for Humpbacks – Vote #5773

Update: See this link for the results of the Humpback Comeback Project in the AVIVA competition.

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Ready Team?

If you are reading this it is because you likely care enough to take one minute a day (to 9 AM Pacific, December 15, 2010), to help British Columbia’s humpbacks.

$25,000 for humpback entanglement research is at stake. Our “Humpback Comeback Project” has made the final round of voting in the AVIVA Community Fund and will need your votes to successfully compete “Idol style” against projects supported by the population base of urban Ontario.

How to help?

  • Register at this link if you have not yet had the opportunity to do so  (then click the link in the email that will be sent to you).
  • Spread the word any way you can . Our huge thanks to those who have Tweeted, Facebooked, forwarded these email bulletins, made posters and helped us get radio and print interviews. Your support has not only landed the Project in the final voting round, it has been deeply inspirational.

    "Arial" (BCY0767); known to us to be 3-years-old; born to "Houdini"( BCX0022); and having very strong fidelity to the area. Image: Hildering

    Whale-sized thanks indeed.


    Jackie Hildering
    Marine Educator / Biologist

If you would like a daily reminder, I would be very happy to provide you with one. Please click here.

If you would like to follow along on Facebook, join at this link.

For knowledge of just how bad the threat of entanglement can be, please see the images at the postings here.

Please note that your minute of voting a day supports the effort invested by myself and others who have volunteered their own resources for up to seven years to catalogue the return of the humpbacks and strive to understand the threats to them.

We will continue to volunteer our data collection time but can not carry out this extended study without financial support.