Captain’s Blog

Southern Resident Killer Whale Pregnancies: Cautious Optimism for Their Future

September 23, 2020

Written by Rachael Merrett- Orca Spirit Marine Naturalist The whale world has been abuzz about the orca pregnancies detected within all three pods of the Southern Resident Killer Whale population since SR3 (Sealife Response + Rehab + Research) announced their discovery in July of 2020. They revealed that there are pregnancies in all three pods, […]

Meet the Whales of K-Pod in 2020 from the Southern Resident Orca Population!

March 18, 2019

Updated September 2020 K-pod orcas are the smallest of three orca pods belonging to the endangered Southern Resident Killer Whale population. While these whales can be seen during our whale watching season, K-pod is often the last pod to show up in the Salish Sea during the spring and summer months. The Southern Residents have […]

Meet the Whales of J-Pod from the Southern Resident Orca Population!

March 11, 2019

Updated September 2020 J-Pod orcas are one of three orca pods that belong to the endangered Southern Resident Killer Whale population. It is believed that this population has used the Salish Sea for tens of thousands of years to hunt their preferred prey- Chinook salmon. The population is the most highly studied population of marine […]

Meet the Whales of L-Pod from the Southern Resident Orca Population!

March 4, 2019

Updated September 2020 L-Pod orcas make up the largest of the three pods in the Southern Resident Killer Whale population. They the largest pod and they also include the oldest living Southern Resident, Ocean Sun (L-25) who is estimated to have been born in 1928. The secret to identifying individual whales is to look at […]

Whale Watchers Scholarship 2018 Contest – 3rd Place

December 28, 2018

This is our second year of our whale watchers’ scholarship in order to raise awareness and give back to the community. As we said last year, We understand that the pursuit of education and knowledge will lead to better solutions in the future, and want to help students to be able to afford the costs […]

What Is The Difference Between Transient and Resident Killer Whales (Orcas)

November 16, 2018

The waters surrounding Victoria are an exciting place to go whale watching because there are so many different types of wildlife that call this region home.  People from around the world flock to this area, excited to have an opportunity to see the greatest predator in the world’s oceans- the killer whale! Photo Credit: Rachael […]

Giants of the Salish Sea : Humpback Whales

August 7, 2016

Standing at Clover Point and looking out into the Salish Sea, it’s hard to believe there are giants swimming just off in the distance: humpback whales. Humpbacks reach lengths of 17 m (55 ft) and 40,000 kg (88,184 lbs). They are predominantly black with variable amounts of white ventrally. The whales have huge pectoral flippers […]

How the Oldest Killer Whales On Earth Stay Young

August 2, 2016

How would you react if you were told, for the first time, that your species was only expected to walk the Earth for 30 or so years at a time? 50 years? 100 years? You’d probably race to the nearest health food store to pick up some kale and spinach, either to prolong your life […]

Why Do Orcas Hate Great White Sharks So Much?

July 19, 2016

Let’s take a trip back in time. No, not to a time before hunting decimated whale populations all over the world (although you’d read that post, wouldn’t you? Of course you would, who wouldn’t?). Let’s go back to elementary school. So, not quite as painful, but almost. You’re swaying calmly on the swings when the biggest, […]