April is always a favourite month at the Lab. After a long, wet winter, the first rebellions of spring are truly underway. The large rhododendron outside our main house is often among the first to bloom, providing essential nectar for the coastal pollinators.
This month, we’ve had several lovely passings from Bigg’s orcas, and a few acoustic events from which we surmised that they had been successful in a recent hunt! A few humpback blows were seen fleetingly: the first returnees after their impressive migration to their warmer breeding grounds in Mexico and Hawaii. We cannot wait for these waters to be filled, soon, with the sights and sounds of feeding humpbacks!
We did not see or hear any Northern Residents at the Lab this month, but received plenty of reports of them further north up the coast. In early April, Bend (A72) and Simoom (A34) and their families were identified in a larger group of 30-40 individuals near Ketchikan, Alaska. It is becoming more common to get reports of Northern Residents from Alaska at this time of year, probably owing to increased tourism over the past decade. It underlines just how remarkable their range is and their dedication to follow the salmon that sustains them! Towards the end of the month, we heard of Holly (A42) and her family, still with their “adopted” son A94, in a channel near Bella Coola. This is much closer to us, around 120 miles to the north on the Central British Columbia coast. We’ve not heard news of A60 (Fife) and his family recently, but we know that it won’t be long before we do. At this time of year, these reports truly excite us as we prepare to witness them socialize, forage and rub at the beaches in just a few months.
A big change at the Lab this year is the demolition and rebuilding of our outpost on Cracroft Point, known affectionately as ‘CP’. Many of you will be familiar with the beautiful close footage we have captured over the years of orca and other whales gliding through the surface: much of this has been filmed from CP as it sits right on the point where orca often cut close as they make their way into and out of Blackney Pass. We have operated an outpost here since the 1990s, and the current structure has been in place since the early 2000s. After decades of weathering from salty air, it is time for a rebuild! Demolition started this month, and we are moving with momentum to get the project finished before August – typically the best month for Northern Resident orcas in the area. We greatly look forward to bringing you more of these updates as the project continues!
Despite multiple projects and a steady rise into our summer season, spring at the lab continues to be peaceful, with plenty of time to enjoy the ebb and flow of the tide and sink into the rhythms of this beautiful place. Suzie Hall, Quin McIntire, Mark Worthing and Jesse Howardson – all “old hands” of OrcaLab at this point – have spent time here in April, pouring their energy and love into the Lab and its surroundings, now in its 56th year.
