Killer Whales Spotted Hunting off the Farallon Islands

By Susanna Beck
Published: February 2007

Mother K20 and calf K38. Credit: Cannon

On January 24, a large group of killer whales (orcas) were sighted in the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary.  The visiting black and white whales were spotted by the captain and passengers aboard the Superfish on a trip to the Farallon Islands. 

Two of the whales photographed by Sandra Cannon (from SFBAY Images) were identified by the saddle patch behind their dorsal fin as K20, a 20-year-old mother from the K-pod, and her 3 year-old calf, K38.  The K-pod is one of three pods (K, L, and J) who make up the Southern Resident killer whales from the Pacific Northwest’s San Juan Islands.

In the Eastern North Pacific Ocean, there are three distinct ecotypes of killer whales (Orcinus orca).  The first group, the Resident killer whales, spend the spring, summer and fall in the inland waterways of the San Juan Islands and Puget Sound.  They feed primarily on Chinook salmon and live in family groups.  Transient killer whales, by comparison, regularly travel from Southeastern Alaska to Southern California in small groups and generally feed on marine mammals.  The third group, Offshore killer whales, cover the largest geographic range and generally stay at least 9 miles offshore. 

The recent sighting in the Farallones marine sanctuary is unusual because the whales were identified as members of the Resident population, previously thought to have remained in the Pacific Northwest year-round.  Researchers concluded that the K-pod traveled approximately 1,170 miles from where they were last spotted in Puget Sound during mid-December.

Following the Fish

Resident killer whales were first seen off the coast of California on January 29, 2000, just outside of Monterey Bay.  Biologists in Washington documented the absence of the pod during the winter months, but prior to 2000, no one knew that the pod traveled this far south.  Are the whales leaving home because of depleting salmon fisheries in the Pacific Northwest?  Researchers, including Ken Balcomb of the Center for Whale Research, think so.

In February 2006, NOAA fisheries declared Resident killer whales “endangered” due to their small population size.  NOAA researchers have been working to determine the habitat range that needs to be protected in order to ensure the population’s survival.  The Center for Whale Research reports that the Resident pods include only 85 individuals, a number that is far short of the 200 that scientists would consider a healthy population.  With new evidence indicating that the coast of California is regular winter habitat for these amazing predators, biologists are hoping that the area will be designated as critical habitat, an area that would require special management and protection.  Nonetheless, the positive identification of K20 and her calf is great news for a population where every healthy calf makes a difference. 

Help Spot the Orcas

“Further research on the winter migration of the killer whale pod is essential,” says Balcomb.  In order to aid scientists in this study, please contact the Center for Whale Research regarding any killer whale sightings. 

Going whale watching soon?

Photos taken from the side of the animal that clearly show the dorsal fin and saddle patch help researchers to identify the specific pod and individual.  It is important to note the following during any sightings:

-Time, date, location (latitude and longitude if possible)

-Total number of whales

-Total number of male whales (very tall dorsal fin)

-Whales with unusual marks (scars, fin deformities, etc.)

-Direction the whale(s) were traveling

The Center for Whale Research: 1-866-672-2638

www.whaleresearch.com

*Special thanks to FMSA Naturalist Carol Keiper who helped wth this article.