(November photo of Southern Resident Killer Whales’ visit, by Jamie Kinney)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Humans are making a difference for orcas, Donna Sandstrom declared as she opened The Whale Trail‘s “Welcome the Orcas 2024” gathering, in honor of the endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales that spent weeks in Puget Sound.

Sandstrom described last week’s gathering in The Hall at Fauntleroy as a “superpod” of participants – not only the attendees, but also partner organizations including Seal Sitters, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, Fauntleroy Community Association, American Cetacean Society, and Washington Conservation Action. Sandstrom also thanked the sponsors whose contributions allowed the meeting to access a larger room so that more could attend, as well as the many volunteers who were helping with the event.

Sandstrom opened with The Whale Trail’s origin story, her involvement with the rescue of wayward whale Springer – “Springer’s ultimate gift to me was hope” – she wrote an acclaimed young-adult book about Springer (now the mom of two calves), “Orca Rescue!” Her book was nominated for another award this year, the 2025 Sasquatch Award, which means 4th, 5th, and 6th graders are reading it, “and that makes me so happy.” It continued, after she founded The Whale Trail in 2008, as a way to let people know where the whales (not just orcas) travel and can be seen – TWT’s interpretive signs are up and down much of the west coast of North America, and aboard Washington State Ferries. More than 150 sites so far, in four states and two countries. She also talked about her involvement with Gov. Inslee’s resident-orca-recovery task force, “championing noise reduction.” That led to rules for how close boats could get to the resident orcas, as well as a commercial whale-watch licensing program, with new rules kicking in soon (more on that shortly).

She listed five things that gave her hope:

1. Public process that worked
2. Sea change is under way (awareness of the noise issue)
3. Transboundary resolve and collaboration – “everything we do here is mirrored in Canada”
4. Southern Residents show signs of responding – 2022 was the first year they returned to Salish Sea every summer month for the first time in 5 years. Also, they have 9 calves under 5 years old, including six females. “Our job is to make the Salish Sea a place that can sustain them.”
5. Orca mom Tahlequah‘s resilience – she’s had a calf since the dead onr she carried around for so long, now-2-year-old Phoenix, “That’s resilience. That’s hope.”

Sandstrom also listed three things you can do:

-Watch from shore and stay 1000 yards away at sea
-Support TWT and other nonprofits
-Don’t give up

Then the night’s guest speakers took the stage.

MARK AND MAYA SEARS: The father-and-daughter research team are highly prized guests at The Whale Trail’s gatherings, with updates on the SRKWs from their research during the orcas’ visits. First – to show how far things have come – Mark showed a flyer from the mid-’70s, “when they were still capturing these whales.”

He called that “not just bad science, but no science at all” – until finally the federal government put a stop to captures. He started working with them decades ago, collecting samples from the whales. He showed a chart of the population decline – saying “the endangered listing hasn’t really helped” so far.

The Searses have a permit to approach the whales for photo ID, predation events (when the whales eat), and fecal/mucus samples. Maya’s specialty is photo identification when the orcas show up. – “we kind of keep tabs on who’s been out there with us.” She explained that the dorsal fin and saddle patch are most helpful with ID.

Then it was back to Mark for a discussion of prey – the residents are fish-eaters, the transients tend to eat marine mammals. “When the residents kill a fish, we go in and collect” what’s left – gills, scales, etc.; the orcas break fish into chunks and share with other whales. Sometimes these samples can reveal which river or hatchery system the fish came from. He explained how researchers can tell the difference between chum, coho, and chinook.

As for the transients, he said they “really go after harbor porpoises these days” – those mammals’ population has exploded in Puget Sound. He also showed how they track whales in search of fecal/mucus samples – via their “footprints” in the water.

Maya said researchers are looking to find out more about whales’ health – samples can show that, too: parasites, for example – and there’s a theory that when they’re sick, they don’t eat, so seeing a whale that appears to have lost weight might just mean it’s ailing. The researchers use drones to examine the body shapes of whales, both for illness and for possible pregnancy. She said they work with partners for sample analysis – SeaDoc Society, San Diego Zoo, Wild Orca, and NOAA. They’re “always looking for a large sample” because they can analyze those for many things, from genes to hormones to bacteria.

She got into some specifics about how they test the samples – testing for bacterial/fungal infections, for example. The testing is a lot like pet testing at veterinary labs – on paperwork, “instead of cat or dog, we check a box that says ‘other’ and write in ‘killer whale’.” (That evoked audience laughter.)

The SRKWs spent so much time in Puget Sound this fall, the Searses were running ragged, Mark said, He showed a map of an area off south Whidbey Island that has much to offer the whales. “A lot of the fish that come in early – the chums and cohos – seem to mill around this area… especially early in the fall.”

(November photo of visiting Southern Residents, by Robin Sinner)

That’s why J Pod was here for 28 days in a row, October 19 through November 15 (then they returned Nov. 19-23, and the L’s were here November 30 and December 10. He showed photos of the orcas’ various types of behaviors during their visit. “We can’t wrap this up in a scientific context – it’s more things that we’ve noticed,” adding Maya, saying the orcas “seem to be more in a ‘business’ mode. …..They just don’t have much time to rest if they’re looking for food.” The “sea was boiling with chum” while they were here, though – that’s what the jumping fish (November video below, by John Saalwaechter) were about.

Maya Sears said they felt the resting/playing ratio this year meant the orcas
‘were eating well.”

WDFW CAPT. ALAN MYERS: His appearance was timely, with new rules starting in the new year. Enforcement of orca-related rules “is a mission near and dear to my heart,” he said. He also spoke of his anger at watching the whales being harassed by “large commercial vessels .. with well-intentioned people crowding on deck” as the whales were “just trying to live.” So they agreed “there has to be a change” – and there was.

Noise/disturbance, pollution, climate change, population growth, too few fish, all are threats to the orcas “but the noise … we found that we could have a role in addressing” He noted that foraging success decreases with vessels within (about a mile), even those operating at just 1-2 knots.” Closer than 400 yards, even less foraging success. Whales then dive more deeply, and their surface behavior increases. Used to be all they had was federal rules limiting to 200 yards – “so these vessels were right on top of them.” He cited the research showing that females are less likely to pursue and capture prey, especially mothers with calves, as noise increases.

So in 2022 WDFW recommended increasing the buffer around SRKW to 1,000 yards, “and make complementary changes to the commercial whale-watching licensing program.”

The legislature passed SB 5371 in 2023. Changes for next year involve 1,000-yard protection zone for all vessels. If a vessel is within 40 yards, “operator must disengage the transmission and wait to leave vicinity of SRKWs.” Commercial whale-watching vessels will be required to “immediately reposition and report” the whale’s location. If they’re too close, though, he stressed, it’s not necessarily malicious; he affirmed that most people want nothing more than to see these whales thrive. “Nine times out of 10, anybody who is out there, is out there because they love nature.”

When they talked to the Legislature, there was “a lot of concern about these rules” but they managed to get the new rules passed. It’s “not perfect but it’s a great start,” he added. Many already have voluntarily folloiwed the 1,000-yard guideline. And, he said, there’s been a big public-service announcement campaign urging people to “Be Whale Wise.”

And he noted that other law-enforcement partnerships will “make a difference” – NOAA Office for Law Enforcement, Coast Guard, county Sheriff’s Offices, Canadian law-enforcement agencies, and Tribal law enforcement. He said you might see WDFW boats out with flashing blue lights.

Non-law enforcement partnerships – with The Whale Trail, for example – matter too, including citizen naturalists, “everyday people,” whale researchers/biologists, and Soundwatch and Straitwatch. Everybody in the room “becomes the eyes and ears that matter the most,” he declared. “You are the ones most likely to see something happening and phone in the problem before it becomes a major catastrophe. It’s those eyes on the water that matter most when it comes to natural resources protection.”

As for “enforcement challenges and opportunities,” he said “education and outreach” are the keys to “better compliance,” and that’s where they need public help.They have to deal with conflicting information and rules too. like the distance enforcement – confusion can result with kilometers used north of the border vs. yards and feet down here. Also: Court systems can be overwhelmed, “and wildlife enforcement may take a back seat.” So that’s why education and outreach are vital for saving the orcas. “There’ll never be a cop on every corner, a badge on every boat, but with YOUR help, there’ll always be eyes out there.” If you “see somebody that’s getting ready to run over an orca,” he urged, “call 911.”

Q & A: Capt. Myers was asked how they deal with large cargo ships. They have a hotline to the U.S. Coast Guard, which can hail the vessel. “That happens more frequently than you think” – WDFW vessels are generally not big enough to intercept such ships. The USCG station in Seattle in fact “has a whale desk,” he added in response to another question – “that was just stood up two years ago.”

Regarding how boaters and whale-watchers get info about whale sightings, two apps were mentioned: Whale Report, which “sends its sightings to large vessels only” so they have the info they need “to slow down or avoid whales,” and for the general public, Whale Alert releases sighting info; it was started on the East Coast but has been customized for the West Coast too.

ALSO AT THE GATHERING: Sandstrom paid tribute to WSB co-founder Patrick Sand, who died suddenly in mid-October. “He would have been rushing in about now, taking a few photos, and rushing out.” She also thanked WSB for factual coverage of the organization’s work since its beginning 16 years ago (just one year after WSB started focusing on local news).

HOW TO GET INVOLVED: See The Whale Trail’s website.