Fins from the Inn

This afternoon I glanced out the window of the Yachats Inn and was surprised to see large fins breaking the surface of the water fairly close to shore.  We ran out the door and down to the shore to try to get a better look:

 

Orcas!  Although we've spent quite a bit of time in Yachats, Oregon, this is the first time we've seen Orcas here.  We watched them swim south past Yachats, and then decided to try to catch up with them further south.  

We stopped at Cooks Chasm, looked north, and saw them rounding the corner and headed our way.  And when they disappeared out of view, we drove south to Strawberry Hill.  After a short wait, the Orcas appeared again! 

There were at least five animals (including one small individual), possibly more.  Here's one of the better pictures I took:

 

Luck was on our side today — it's always worth a glance out the window!

White splash

I was finishing up work on Bodega Head at the end of the day and a white splash offshore caught my eye.  I took my binoculars out of my backpack, and then when I saw what had caused the splash, I dropped my field notebook and scrambled to get my camera.  

Sadly, the animals were too far away for photographs, but it was still very exciting to see a small group of Orcas — my first from shore in California!

It was hard to tell, but there were between 4-6 smaller animals (females or juveniles)...all actively swimming north towards Goat Rock and the Russian River area.

Then I glanced south and saw one very large dorsal fin — a male — separate from the rest of the group.

It was probably my imagination, but other animals seemed to be hugging the shoreline.

A group of California Sea Lions:

 

Two passing Gray Whales:

 

This is *not* an Orca from tonight, but instead one from Monterey, photographed from a boat.  I can't remember the exact year (it's from a scanned 35 mm slide), but it's probably from the early 2000s:

 

Although Orcas are rarely seen from shore in this area, keep your eyes open!  Conditions like today — flat, calm, gray seas — offer great viewing conditions.

 

Offshore neighbors

During late summer and fall, I try to get out on at least one or two pelagic trips to Bodega Canyon and Cordell Bank.  I went out on September 19th with Shearwater Journeys aboard the New Sea Angler.  Here are a few trip highlights:

 

Guadalupe Murrelet (Synthliboramphus hypoleucus) — (in 2012, Xantus's Murrelet was split into two different species, Scripps's Murrelet and Guadalupe Murrelet).  Guadalupe Murrelet is one of the southernmost breeding alcids (a group that includes auks, auklets, guillemots, murres, murrelets, and puffins).  They nest on islands off the west coast of Baja California and then disperse northward after the breeding season. However, it's rare to see them in central/northern California.  

Note the amount of white on the face and how it arches up and over the eye.  Also look for the white wing linings in the last picture (below).

 

 

 

We also had great looks at an adult Tufted Puffin (in non-breeding plumage): 

 

And although challenging to photograph, there was a good number of Arctic Terns (Sterna paradisaea), ~180 during the entire trip.

 

The mammal highlight was a lone male Orca (Orcinus orca) — a different individual than the Orcas we observed on 7 September:

 

This Orca wasn't rising very far above the surface, but here's another image in case it's useful for identification purposes: 

 

Every trip out to sea is different, and I'm thankful for every opportunity to become more aware of our "offshore neighbors."  Spending time on a boat changes how I look at the ocean from land.  When I scan the western horizon from Bodega Head, I visualize these amazing animals and wonder about their lives in the open ocean.  It's helpful and inspiring to know who lives out there!

Slow rollers

 

I joined a Redwood Region Ornithological Society pelagic trip to Bodega Canyon and Cordell Bank today (7 September 2014).  One of the highlights was an encounter with a few Orcas (Orcinus orca).  [In the photo above, there are two Black-footed Albatross in the foreground.]

The Orcas were slowly rolling at the surface.  Their enormous dorsal fins would emerge one after the other and then disappear below the surface.

 

Below are examples of at least two different individuals.  Note the size and shape of the dorsal fin and the gray blaze or saddle just behind it.

 

 

One more shot, with Pink-footed Shearwaters.  The shearwaters are ~19 inches long and have a wingspan of ~43 inches.  Using the shearwater length for scale, we estimated the height of this Orca's dorsal fin to be ~71 inches (nearly 6 feet)!