This afternoon, Kersti Muul texted us as an FYI that a beluga whale had been spotted in Tacoma’s Commencement Bay. Then this evening, she got word of what’s probably the same one, seen off West Seattle.
The photo is by Shannon Felix, who was kayaking near Jack Block Park at the time of the sighting, around 5:30 pm. This is way out of the usual range for belugas, which – as explained in this NOAA fact sheet – are generally Arctic dwellers. But they can stray – we found this report of one off San Diego last year. Kersti says she’s consulted a beluga researcher to confirm that’s what this is.
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