Lazy Day

Today was the perfect opportunity to take orca photos because they were logging around on the surface, making it easier to get a nice shot of them. We encountered J-Pod on the west side of San Juan Island just north of Lime Kiln State Park. They were heading north, but at a pretty lazy pace. Orcas don't sleep... at least not like humans. Humans shut down when sleeping, which works fine for us because our breathing is involuntary, or unconscious. However, orcas must breathe consciously, or they naturally hold their breath and must tell their body to breathe at the surface. If they slept like us they would suffocate. So they rest by logging together at the surface and going under as a group and coming up to breathe as a group... never going fully unconscious. Today we observed resting behavior, which was quite convenient for all of our aspiring photographers. It appeared that the Js were all grouped up for rest and affection, as some of them rolled around lazily rubbing each other, which is one of the ways they bond. It seemed like little J42 and her playmate J41, Eclipse, weren't in the mood to chill out and they were seen spy hopping and half breaching as if to beg their mothers to pay attention to them and keep moving.

We had a nice encounter with the orcas and then moved on to Speiden Island to see the Harbor Seals, Mouflon Sheep, and even a great Bald Eagle kill. The eagle was hanging out in a tree next to a nest and seemed to be eating a fish of some sort. Our guests really enjoyed the trip and got some awesome photos to remember it with.

Megan, Naturalist