Sept 18th – Resident Orcas off San Juan!
Resident Orcas
Today we had another lovely encounter with Resident Orcas off San Juan! Despite the weather the crew and passengers spirits were high and we were treated to a wonderful encounter with Resident Orcas foraging (hunting) off San Juan Island 
We got to see several wonderful spy-hops, tail slaps and a couple of breaches this afternoon. As we watched the Orcas hunting we could see several of them traveling at speed in hot pursuit of Salmon. Orcas can reach speeds of over 30 miles an hour when they are pursuing prey. We could also hear the Orcas vocalizing and using their echo-location (biological sonar) as they hunted. It is believed Orcas must find at least 10% of their body weight a day in food to sustain their health and with Resident Orcas that means a lot of Chinook Salmon!
We got to see several wonderful spy-hops, tail slaps and a couple of breaches this afternoon. As we watched the Orcas hunting we could see several of them traveling at speed in hot pursuit of Salmon. Orcas can reach speeds of over 30 miles an hour when they are pursuing prey. We could also hear the Orcas vocalizing and using their echo-location (biological sonar) as they hunted. It is believed Orcas must find at least 10% of their body weight a day in food to sustain their health and with Resident Orcas that means a lot of Chinook Salmon!
Apart from the Orcas we also saw Harbor Porpoise and a large number of Harbor Seals at the Chain Islets.
To see more images from this incredible encounter please click on the link below;
1 comment:
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