Episode 25 - Winter Whale Research + Special NRKW Encounters

On Episode 25 of After the Breach Podcast, co-hosts Jeff and Sara welcome back their friend and colleague, Gary Sutton. Aside from being a captain in the Salish Sea he has also been working with OceanWise as a researcher and he joins in to talk about the research he’s a part of and some exciting upcoming projects.

Before they get into that the three discuss the Northern Resident killer whales, which are a salmon-eating population similar to the Southern Resident killer whales that are a frequent topic of conversation. This population spends most of their time in the waters off northern Vancouver Island and along the central coast of British Columbia and even up into Alaska. While they are not infrequent visitors to the most northern reaches of the Salish Sea, the past few weeks have found three matrilines of Northern Resident killer whales visiting the waters of Howe Sound, where Jeff, Sara, and Gary all got to see them.

Gary shares some interesting foraging observations about his visit with the A23s, A25s, and A42s, while Jeff and Sara talk about their impromptu visit with them. For Jeff this was a reconnection with a whale that changed his life and for Sara this was her first visit with this ecotype.

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Links from this episode:

• Ocean Wise Research on Instagram
• Gary Sutton on Instagram
• Orcalab

Photos from this episode:

Northern Resident killer whales in Howe Sound, photo by Sara Shimazu

 

Northern Resident killer whales in Howe Sound, photo by Sara Shimazu

 

Northern Resident killer whales in Howe Sound, photo by Sara Shimazu

 

Northern Resident killer whales in Howe Sound, photo by Sara Shimazu

 

Northern Resident killer whales in Howe Sound, photo by Sara Shimazu

 

Northern Resident killer whale, A61 "Surge," photo by Jeff Friedman

 

Northern Resident killer whales in Howe Sound, photo by Jeff Friedman