September 26 began with humpback vocals in Blackfish Sound. Not yet full songs, but the first “pre-songs” of the season – a time when humpbacks typically begin practicing, often at night. Each evening the Lab listens, waiting for the voices to grow stronger as the nights deepen into Fall.
By 2:10am, the A34s joined in from the west of Johnstone Strait, their calls marking their return into the Strait, after they had crossed through Blackfish Sound and Weynton Passage. Continuing their eastbound movement, they eventually reached Strider Rubbing Beach. At 6:01am, a six-minute rubbing session began. With autumn nights lengthening, it was still too dark for the cameras to reveal which individuals took part.
OrcaLab operates five above-water and one underwater remote camera, controlled by the Lab by assistants from around the world. This non-invasive approach offers rare insights into their behaviour, with the live footage streamed on Explore.org, where a global community follows and reviews these moments.
After the early A34s rub, they shifted west again, reaching the range of the remote system of Kaizumi Rubbing Beach by 7am. About an hour later, they appeared on the Cracroft Point remote camera, some coming into the entrance of Blackney Pass as if deciding whether to take this route. Spread out and non-directional, they lingered before moving westward along the Hanson Island shoreline, passing Big Bay around 9:30am.
Their journey continued into Blackfish Sound through Weynton Passage, with Flower Island hydrophone recording their first faint calls at 11:43am. Around noon, Alex reported the A62s crossing from Weynton Passage toward Bold Head, while a second group trailed behind.
From there, calls became infrequent and distant for several hours. By late afternoon, the A34s returned to Johnstone Strait, seen again on Cracroft Point’s camera at 5:50pm. Heavy rain made tracking difficult, obscuring the view and filling the water’s surface with noise. At 6:24pm, fins appeared on the Sealion Rock camera, foraging in the gap. In the last dim light of evening, the A34s – likely followed by the A67s – passed the Lab, clearing north around 8pm. The A62s most likely remained in the Strait, where their calls continued from 10pm on. By the end of the day, multiple hydrophones suggested the whales were spread between Critical Point, Kaizumi Rubbing Beach, and the Robson Bight Reserve.
Amidst the grey, rainy weather, a bright piece of news reached the island: Claire and Jeremie’s baby, Eva, was born on September 24th – healthy and well. Excitement is already building at the Lab to hopefully meet her next year. A true OrcaLab baby – welcome to the world, little one!
