Otters & Orcas, Sea Bears & Bald Eagles -Rat Fish

A chilly yet fantastic day on the water this first day of December. We had word that SRKW’s were inbound but learned they were Biggs instead. There were so many of them that they were mistaken for Rezies from shore.

Sea Bears and Bald Eagles

We stopped by to see some Stellar Sea Lions along the way, always a joy to view. A Bald Eagle was on a rock, and as we were leaving the Sea Bears, I noticed a Bald Eagle diving for a fish. As it flew by, I could not tell what it had caught, but now home on the computer, I see two things. This eagle has a leg band, and the fish is what is known as a Rat Fish. You cannot see its eyes that are like silver dollars. It has a spine with a poisonous barb.

Biggs Orcas

Then we met up with the Biggs Orcas traveling north into Haro Strait. One of the females, T99B, has three notches at the top of her dorsal. It was her and a few others that I spotted one day when the only whales being viewed were Humpback Whales. The group I was with had seen plenty of Humpback and wanted to see Orca, so we went searching and found them.

Calf T34A1

She was here today, as were members from several pods. The mom with the calf is T34A and her calf T34A1. The young one is just a few months old having been born sometime this past spring. These Orcas were moving out today, not wasting any time in their travels.

River Otters

We spent a good bit of time with them before making our way north on our way home. A stop off at Battleship Island allowed us to view another bald eagle and a pair of mischievous River Otters. I say mischievous because I have never seen an otter that was not mischievous and curious. As I write this, I am reminded of the very first book I can remember owning as a child called “Okee the Otter.”

Back at the dock, we saw a large group of seals near our slip and a Great Blue Heron on the shore. Lots of marine life making for a beautiful day to be on the water.