West Seattle, Washington
01 Tuesday
Again today, orcas are in the area! Kersti Muul tells us several whales have been seen in Elliott Bay, near the Port of Seattle’s offices on the downtown waterfront. No word yet if they are transients or residents.
Up for some early-morning whale-watching before work? Just heard from Kersti Muul, who says Southern Resident Killer Whales are again visible off west-facing West Seattle, southbound, seen from Constellation Park south of Alki Point.
12:48 PM: Thanks to Kersti Muul for updates on the Southern Resident Killer Whales that started the day in the South Sound and are finally close to our area – she says the orcas are northbound in Colvos Passage (west side of Vashon Island) and likely to emerge around 1 pm. So have your binoculars ready and let us know if you see them!
1:24 PM: Kersti says in a comment that the whales are now visible from west-facing West Seattle if you look toward north Vashon – but they could go out of view for a while if they stay west of Blake Island.
11:57 AM: Thanks to Kersti Muul for word that Southern Resident Killer Whales are in the area again! Southbound off Bainbridge Island – still north of Elliott Bay – at last word.
1:35 PM: In comments, Robin Sinner reports: “1:15 pm, just saw two breaches from Constellation Park in West Seattle, southbound to red buoy.”
(Added: Photo by Monica Zaborac)
1:03 PM: Thanks for the tip – if you haven’t seen the Southern Resident Killer Whales yet on their latest visit to central Puget Sound, today might be your day. They are reported to be off West Point on the north side of the entrance to Elliott Bay, southbound. Let us know if you see them!
3:45 PM: Thanks for the updates – in view off west-facing West Seattle at last report!
Thanks to Trileigh Tucker for the report: A humpback whale is in view from Lowman Beach, north of the north end of Blake Island across the Sound. Let us know if you see it!
(Spyhopping orca in Elliott Bay, photographed by Eric Lemar)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
A day that began with orcas in view off West Seattle ended with a discussion about protecting them, locally and worldwide.
The Whale Trail presented author Erich Hoyt, as he launches a tour to promote a new edition of his seminal book “Orca: The Whale Called Killer.”
And after he spoke to a rapt audience at The Hall at Fauntleroy, attendees got a bonus – some observations from local orca researcher Mark Sears, who spent three hours on Puget Sound this morning with the Southern Resident Killer Whales.
The night began with an introduction from Donna Sandstrom, the West Seattleite who founded The Whale Trail in 2008, just three years after the SRKWs were declared endangered. Its purpose is to make it easier to watch them from shore and also – via TWT’s interpretive signs – to “tell their story when they’re not around.” It started with 16 signs, and now stretches from British Columbia to California: “Now you can follow The Whale Trail from San Juan Capistrano to Prince Rupert, BC.” (And soon, she disclosed later, Mexico, too!) “Shore-based whale watching is now more than ever “a strategic act of conservation.” That’s one of the hot topics addressed by the Governor’s Task Force, of which Sandstrom is a member.
She said reading Hoyt’s book was her initiation into fascination with the whales and a desire to help them.
9:38 AM: Donna Sandstrom from The Whale Trail says seven resident orcas are in view right now from Alki Statue of Liberty Plaza. They’ve been in the area for a while again this morning – here’s a photo Danny McMillin took:
10:08 AM: Whale watchers at Alki:
(That’s Donna in blue/pink at center.)
Tonight (Thursday, September 19th) The Whale Trail presents author Erich Hoyt at The Hall at Fauntleroy (details here). He’s here just in time for whale-watching – Kersti Muul sent the Wednesday sunset photos, explaining, “The Southern Resident Killer Whales were welcomed in grand style to West Seattle with a beautiful sunset providing backlit blows and a visit from Erich Hoyt and his daughter. Donna [Sandstrom, Whale Trail executive director] is in the picture next to her Whale Trail sign watching them go by. What a magical evening and a great intro to Erich’s book tour. The three-mile-away breach was still spectacular… just sharing the same air as them is humbling.”
Wednesday was the second consecutive day the SRKWs ventured into central Puget Sound.
For a second day, Kersti Muul tips us, Southern Resident Killer Whales are in central Puget Sound and headed our way. She says they’ve just been reported off Carkeek Park and are traveling southbound “at a good clip.” No guarantee they’ll make it this far – Kersti says they turned around yesterday before getting this far south – but we’re always committed to giving you a heads-up when we get an alert! Let us know if you see them.
If you’ve got good rain gear and binoculars – or a window with a good view of the water – you can look for a dozen or so orcas headed this way. Kersti Muul says they were southbound off Richmond Beach at last report. And they’re likely Southern Resident Killer Whales. Let us know if you spot them!
Big event ahead for West Seattle-headquartered The Whale Trail. Just announced:
Erich Hoyt, internationally renowned author and marine conservationist, is returning to deliver a new series of talks about orcas and marine conservation. ‘Orca Tour 2019’ follows the sell-out 2014 and 2015 tours and will focus on Erich’s efforts to protect marine mammal habitats worldwide and how they might support the conservation of orcas in the North Pacific. The talks, as well as the release of Erich’s expanded new edition of “Orca: The Whale Called Killer,” are especially timely given the recent loss of three southern resident orcas.
“Orca: The Whale Called Killer” charts Erich Hoyt’s adventures and conservation work, which began with killer whales off the B.C. coast and was followed by two decades of orca research in Kamchatka, Russia. As co-chair of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Marine Mammal Protected Areas Task Force, and policy lead for the Healthy Seas program of the U.K.-based Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC), Erich co-directs a 10-year project to map the habitats for 130 species of marine mammals across the world’s oceans. His book, “Marine Protected Areas for Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises,” has helped set the standard for marine biodiversity conservation work.
“This is a rare chance to hear from Erich in person,” said Donna Sandstrom, Executive Director of The Whale Trail and a member of Governor Jay Inslee’s Task Force on Southern Resident Killer Whale Recovery. “Erich has been thinking about how to protect orcas as long as he has been writing about them, starting in the 1980s when he contributed to the successful effort to protect Robson Bight, a critical habitat for the northern resident orcas. Erich’s talk will inspire and inform our efforts to protect J, K and L pods, here, where his work began.”
Erich added: “It’s special for me coming back to the Northwest to celebrate this new edition of my book—the work that set me on a life path. In my talks, I will introduce a global context for addressing threats and supporting marine habitat conservation. Much has changed for the orcas here. People know the individuals and their families and appreciate their precarious existence—especially the endangered southern residents. We all want to do more to help them.”
The Orca Tour is organized by The Whale Trail and local sponsoring organizations. “Orca: The Whale Called Killer” and Erich’s other books will be on sale at each event. A Q &A and book signing will follow each presentation.
Orca Tour – WEST SEATTLE
Who: The Whale Trail presents “Orca Tour 2019” with Author and Conservationist Erich Hoyt, sponsored by Sound Community Bank
What: Presentation and talk given by Erich Hoyt on “Healthy Seas for Whales and Dolphins” and book signing of new edition of “ORCA: The Whale Called Killer”
When: Thursday, September 19, 7 PM
Where: Hall at Fauntleroy, 9131 California Ave SW, West Seattle
Tickets: $15 General Admission • $10 Students/Seniors/Kids under 12
Advance Tickets: erichhoyt.brownpapertickets.com
Beautiful day for whale-watching! Kersti Muul sends word that the T-137 transient orcas are “milling” off Alki Point – “no direction” so hard to tell which way they’re headed next. Let us know if you see them!
Jeff Hogan from Killer Whale Tales just texted to say orcas are in view off Alki, headed south. We also have another texted report of a sighting from Me-Kwa-Mooks. Let us know if you see them!
(November 2018 photo by Trileigh Tucker – resident orcas being observed by licensed researchers)
The Center for Whale Research says the endangered Southern Resident Killer Whale population is down to 73. CWR has announced:
We are saddened to report that three adult killer whales (orca) are missing and presumed dead as of July 1, 2019. These whales are from the extremely endangered Southern Resident killer whale population, that historically frequent the Salish Sea almost daily in summer months. Due to the scarcity of suitable Chinook salmon prey, this population of whales now rarely visit the core waters of its designated Critical Habitat: Puget Sound, Georgia Strait, and the inland reach of the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
The missing whales are J17, K25, and L84.
J17 is a 42-year-old J pod matriarch and mother of Tahlequah (J35), who carried her dead calf for an unprecedented 17 days last year. We reported that J17 was not in good body condition last winter, perhaps from stress. She is survived by two daughters and a son, J35, J53, and J44, respectively.
Also missing is 28-year-old, K25, an adult male in the prime of his life who was not in good body condition last winter. He is survived by two sisters and a brother, K20, K27, and K34, respectively.
And, lastly, 29-year-old male, L84, has been missing all summer in encounters conducted by our Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans colleagues along the west coast of Vancouver Island. L pod has not come into the Salish Sea yet this summer. L84 was the last of a matriline of eleven whales, ten of whom died previously.
73 is just two above the population’s historic low, 71. And the numbers don’t represent the entire picture of their plight, as explained during The Whale Trail‘s April featured lecture in West Seattle.
(Photo by Lynne Barre, NOAA Fisheries)
Though West Seattleite Donna Sandstrom, founder and executive director of the nonprofit advocacy/education organization The Whale Trail, served on Gov. Jay Inslee‘s orca task force, she hadn’t met him until he visited one of the stops along the “trail” earlier this month. She shared the photo and explains:
We met him, First Lady Trudi, and their grandson Brody at West Beach in Deception Pass State Park, along with other Whale Trail partners from NOAA Fisheries, Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary, WDW Enforcement and Washington State Parks.
We talked about land-based whale-watching and its role in orca recovery. And spotted some seals too!
A big day for The Whale Trail, started in West Seattle a little over a decade ago, and inspired by watching orcas from Alki.
You can read the governor’s report on the visit here. See the full list of 100+ Whale Trail sites, from Southern California to British Columbia, by going here.
Just got word from Kersti Muul that orcas were seen northbound off north Vashon about half an hour ago.
Just got a tip – six orcas “with a baby” in view northbound passing the Vashon ferry dock as of a short time ago. Still a good half-hour of light if you’re up for whale-watching!
10:21 AM: Two humpback whales are in the area, reports Kersti Muul. “East of shipping channel, off Alki,” but no direction determined yet. Let us know if you see them! (Not sure you’d know what humpbacks look like? Here’s their page in The Whale Trail‘s species guide.)
1:58 PM: And now orcas are in our area too, Kersti reports – a group of transients southbound off Bainbridge.
Thanks to Kersti Muul for the tip: Orcas are visible from West Seattle. Currently, midchannel southbound, north of Elliott Bay. Let us know if you see them!
11:36 AM: The tip’s just in from Kersti Muul: Orcas headed this way, transients, southbound from mid-Bainbridge Island. Let us know if you see them!
12:19 PM: Update from Kersti – the whales have paused for “a kill” between Bainbridge and Blake Islands.
Thanks to Kersti Muul for the alert – she relays word that Washington State Ferries spotted orcas off the north end of Vashon, northbound, as of the top of the hour. Transients, not residents. As always – if you see them, please let us know!
The photo and report are from Eilene Hutchinson:
Around 7:40 this evening, we were just south of Salty’s when we were startled by a loud sound and looked up to see a whale surfacing close to shore. We believe this was a gray whale.
It moved off to the north along the Harbor Ave shoreline. We drove to Duwamish Head, where along with others, we watched it surface a number of times before the whale headed southwest toward Alki Point about 8:00 PM.
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