March 30, 2026 - T-party with the T099s, T036s, and the T036A1s!
Another beautiful day was waiting for us out in the Strait of Georgia, as we climbed aboard Keta, our open boat and got ready to start the adventure! It’s not every day that we start our tours with some idea of where we might be going, but today we had a clue. We had been given a tip from a shore-based spotter that orca were seen heading north from Parksville!
All bundled in our gear and feeling cozy in the anti-exposure suits, we began the journey. We bumped through the waves heading north, eagerly scanning the horizon in search of these earlier seen animals. It’s never guaranteed that we will be able to find whales that were spotted earlier in the day, since they are constantly on the move. Orca in particular cover huge distances: over 100 miles every single day! With this amount of movement and limitless directions to choose from on their travels, it can be tricky. But we were armed with sharp eyes, an experienced crew, and some luck on our side.
It wasn’t long until we spotted them: splashes and dorsal fins in the distance. We had found the whales!
As we were getting into position alongside the whales, it was hard to know which way to look since there were whales in seemingly every direction! This large group of about 10 whales seemed to be in three distinct groups, that is, until they weren’t. The whales quickly formed into a larger group, called a T-party, and the action began!
Lucky for us, the onboard Marine Naturalist Vanessa Vereschahen was quick with her camera, capturing not only the action but also the important information that we needed to figure out the identification for these whales. Dorsal fins, saddle patches, and eye patches are all unique for each whale, allowing us to know exactly which whales are present in any given encounter. Today, there were three different pods spending their time socializing in the Strait:
T036 Flapjack ♀ (1970)
T036B Tattertip ♀ (1998)
T036B1 Bhotia ♀ (2009)
T036B1A Maple ♀ (2025)
T036B2 Greenfelder ♀ (2013)
T036B4 Auk ♂ (2024)
T036A1 Tierna ♀ (2005)
T036A1A Drift ♂ (2022)
T099 ♀ Bella ( ~1984)
T099B ♀ Holly (2007)
T099C ♂ Barakat (2009)
T099D ♂ Puck (2015)
T099E ♀ Qwiin qwiin oo qwii la (2021)
This meeting of whales is particularly special, since these whales are all related! Although it’s tough to see by their names. The scientific name of an orca typically tells you about its lineage, starting with a number, then their offspring are given a letter in order of their birth, and it flips back and forth from numbers to letters as the generations progress. But, this isn’t true for older whales. When they first started cataloguing, they would assign numbers in the order they saw the whales, which led to some connections being missed. Over time, these connections were noticed, and researchers noted likely family ties that the names wouldn’t connect. The T099s are one of these missed connections! It’s thought that T099 Bella is actually T036 Flapjack’s firstborn. There is another piece missing from this puzzle, too, as T137 Loon is also thought to be Flapjack’s daughter. That means that although T036B Tattertip, who we saw today, bears the “B” typical of the second born of the family, she is likely Flapjack’s 4th kid!
This means that this was a big family reunion in the works! The family seemed very pleased to be seeing each other again, with all sorts of tail slapping, breaching, and other lively activity from the whales. It was an amazing sight, and we enjoyed the energy as we watched the whales playing out in the wild.
Eventually, it was time to leave these whales to their social celebrations, and we continued on our way, feeling fortunate to have seen them socializing in the wild. The excitement of the day wasn’t over yet, though! We made the long journey home, travelling with purpose over the waves back towards Nanaimo. There was one more stop to make before returning to the harbour, though. Keta was pointed into Northumberland Channel, aiming at the log booms that are tied up along the shoreline. As we approached, we could hear why we were here before we could see it. There was a constant loud noise heard over the engines as we slowed down: the barking of California Sea Lions! These large pinnipeds are often found enjoying their day resting on these logs. Since they need to spend nearly half their time outside of the water to maintain their body heat, this can be the perfect place. The logs will float up and down with the tide, ensuring that the spot is always available to them. In addition to the open space, there are plenty of food options nearby, thanks to the proximity of Dodd Narrows and the Nanaimo River Estuary. The sea lions follow the same basic schedule all day: Eat, sleep, bark, repeat!
We left the sea lions to their routine, and we returned to Nanaimo, overjoyed by all the wildlife we were lucky enough to see during our adventure. Throughout the tour, Vanessa Vereschahen, the onboard Marine Naturalist, captured some amazing photos, the best of which you can enjoy below!
T036B Tattertip surfacing beside T036B4 Auk.
T099C Barakat following behind T036B Tattertip.
T036 Flapjack surfacing with another couple of members of the T-party!
T036B2 Greenfelder surfacing in front of T099D Puck.
T099C Barakat surfacing with T036 Flapjack behind him.
T099C Barakat diving in front of T036 Flapjack.
Tails up!
One of the whales swimming upside down and slapping their tail.
T036A1 Tierna showing off her eye patch.
T099B Holly with her distinct notches on the dorsal fin.
T099E Qwiin qwiin oo qwii la surfacing just ahead of her brother T099C Barakat.
T036B4 Auk travelling ahead of T036A1 Tierna and T036A1A Drift following behind.
T036B2 Greenfelder surfacing beside a very surprised greebe.
T099C Barakat showing off his eye patch.
T036 Flapjack surfacing in the waves.
One of the young whales breaking the waters surface.
T036A1 Tierna surfacing just behind T036B2 Greenfelder.
T036B1A Maple surfacing in the back with T036B4 Auk breaking the surface in the back.
One of the T-partiers on their side with T099C Barakat in behind.
T036 Flapjack surfacing in the waves.
T036B2 Greenfelder surfacing in the waves.
T036B4 Auk breaching with a couple of the others crowding around.
A tail in the air beside T036B4 Auk.
A tail swishing through the water during the gathering.
T099D Puck surfacing.
One of youngsters breaching.
A stampede of sea lions at the long booms.
Causing a ruckus in Northumberland Channel.
A California Sea Lion striking a pose.
A Bald Eagle watching us from overhead.
A great view of the Gabriola Bluffs.
A Juvenile Bald Eagle soaring overhead.
A group of Double Crested Cormorants at the bluffs.
A young Bald Eagle watching from a dead branch.