Hey Pup! What's Up?

Upside Down?  Or...Right Side UP!?

Upside down...or right side up..these Harbor seals seem to have R&R figured out.  I am always amazed at how well animals are dressed to blend into the environment and how they manage to look oh so comfy...in someof the most uncomfortable looking places!

August has been a bit unusual this year as far as Southern Resident orca whales sightings.  The Residents can be a pretty clear indicator of "salmon or no salmon" present in our local waters.  Since the beginning of the month, these three families of whales have been on the move...but far and near.

My first day back out on the water was August 9th and the news of the new J Pod calf was hot off the presses.  How encouraging to see a new little (ha...8 ft. long and maybe 400 pound) calf traveling alongside an eleven year old first time mom.  Everyone was in high spirits and celebrating the new birth!

Since that week, it's been "now you see them, now you don't" as far as Southern Resident orcas in our area.  They seem to arrive back in the islands, check out the fish situation, and after a day, or even hours, they hightail it back out the Straits of Juan de Fuca.  If the salmon were present...they'd stay.  That's my story and I'm stickin' to it.

The flip side of that is the focus of our whale / wildlife watching trips really turns to wildlife...all of it!  We are always in seach mode for whales, but when you go intentionally slow, so you don't miss anything...guess what.  You don't miss much!  I often say, "The slower you go, the more you see...the more you see..the more you are amazed by...all you see!"  Go slow mode is one of my favorites.

Seal pupping season is the beginning of July.  That means, lots of pups are being weaned in mid August.  The pups spend a lot of time in some of our small bays where the current is not too stong.  Are they looking for mom?  Shutting down the engine and just sitting in what I call a "nursery bay" we spot one little head pop up after another.  They stare at us with big eyes.  No, we are not your mother...nor the source of your next meal.  But we are good at admiring them as they dip, dive, cruise by, snort, flip over, slip silently under the surface or just float bouyantly with their plump little bodies watch us.  Hum.  Just who is watching who?

Cruising by on a Mission

Snow White

What White Whiskers You Have!

Going Down...

Beauty 

As sweet as Snow White looks, I know he/she is part of the food chain for Transient orca whales.  We go slow, and look in every place Transient orcas would be collecting groceries.

Chubby

This chubby little one does a perfect job of playing the blending game.  Hard to spot at first, my binoculars pick out this "rock" when it wiggles a flipper.

Buddies

Remember the school game: Statue?  Think something about running around in a frenzy and then having to freeze into a statue when the word is shouted.  Not moving has it's advantages if you're someone's prey...in the game of Wildlife.

Steller sea lions are also on the Transient orca whale grocery list.  Handy that they have returned to the Salish Sea a little early this year.  All the better to enjoy a wide variety of food!  Our slow trip around Whale Rocks turns up these handsome guys.

Waltzing with Sea lions...the grizzlies of the sea!

While there are seven or eight "big boys" already occupying this protected rocky island, some are in "Mine Mode"  and some are totally zonked out or practicing sea lion yoga.

High Five

And what is this?  A strange duo as sea lions this small are usually still on the breeding grounds.

Big and Jr.? or Ms.? or Mrs.? or??

I'll be checking around to see if I can solve this mystery.  Is Mr. Small, a Mrs.?  Or a Miss?  Or a Ms.? Or a juvenile that shouldn't be here?  Or should be here, but I've never seen it before?

That's the magic of working on the water as a marine naturalist.  The slower you go...the more you see..the more you see...the more you wonder...the more you wonder the more you know...the more you know...the slower you go!

Nap Time

Sticking Close to Mum