Sunday, May 20, 2007

Ruffles (J1) & JPod near San Juan Islands, May 20th 2007.





This afternoon we ventured out on Supercat towards the San Juan Islands to watch J1 "Ruffles" and the other members of JPod. Although the weather was a little cold and damp, it did not dampen the spirits of our passengers who witnessed some amazing Orca behavior. The above series of pictures is of Ruffles, the large male of JPod who's estimated date of birth is 1952 and was given his name due to the distinctive shape of his dorsal fin. The dorsal fin of an adult male Orca can reach up to 6 feet tall and is used in conjunction with the saddle patch (the white/grey area behind the dorsal fin) to identify individual Orcas.

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