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British Columbia Wildlife
Whales
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BCeh.com | Vancouver Island | Gulf Islands | Victoria | Okanagan Valley
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Killer Whale - Orca Whale (Orcinus orca)
Grey Whale (Eschrichtius robustus)
Humpback Whale (Megaptera novaeangliae)
Grey Whales are from the eastern north Pacific and every spring these Gray Whales migrate along the coast from Mexico all the way up to Alaska passing by Vancouver Island. Records show sometimes Grey Whales only migrate as far as Vancouver Island and have been recorded as living off the west coast of Vancouver Island for 8 months before they would join the other Grey Whales in the fall and winter months, passing Vancouver Island on route back to do some serious mating and calving action in the lagoons of Mexico.
Grey Whales is a baleen whale. Grey Whales average 40 -50 feet long and weigh about 50 tons! Heck a newborn calve will measure 12 feet and weigh 1 and half tons. Grey Whales are tubular and bulky and tapered at both ends having a elongated head with 2-5 deep ventral grooves along the throat, small flippers with pointed tips and wide flukes separated by a median notch and they love to breach (jump out of the water).
The Killer Whale or Orca live in tight inbred groups called pods. Killer Whale pods are also matriarchal - meaning that calves after 12 years old having matured to full size and are still traveling with their Mothers making for good whale watching conditions and whale pod sizes. The smaller pods are relatively known as transient whales which are more mobile exploring the west coast from Alaska to Washington dropping in on Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands. The larger whale pods are known as resident pods which grow fat following the salmon - in a cat and mouse fashion - around and around Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands.
A Killer Whale is a toothed whale, Odontoceti, commonly referred to as an Orca and also known as a Blackfish of BC. Killer Whales grow to 25 feet long and weigh up to 6 tons. Orca Calves are 7 feet at birth and 450 pounds and nurse for about two years. Although they inhabit the waters all year long , summers is the best time to see Killer Whales in their natural habitat.
The Humpback Whales are also known as a baleen whale, Mysticeti, belonging to the family of rorqual whales. Humpback Whales can measure up to 57 feet long and weigh 40 tons. Whale Watching Tours often claim Humpback Whales are the most robust if you can find one to observe. Humpbacks have a small dorsal hump, long wing-like flippers (up to 16 feet) , distinctive head knobs, a rounded protuberance near the tip of the lower jaw and 13 to 37 ventral grooves. Humpbacks are usually covered in whale lice and barnacles and because no two Humpback tails are alike the tails are used for identification purposes. Whale Watching Tours have the opportunity to view the Humpbacks in the summer months only.
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BC Whales
BC Wildlife
