Date: 15-September-2017

Sequence: 1

Encounter Number: 82

Enc Start Time: 12:38

Enc End Time: 13:23

Vessel: Mike 1

Observers: Mark Malleson, Dan McSweeney

Pods or ecotype: Transients

Location: 22 nm ssw of Amphitrite Pt. Lighthouse

Begin Lat/Long: 48 23.9/125 37.0

End Lat/Long: 48 20.4/125 37.4

 

Encounter Summary:

Dan McSweeney and myself separated from Springtime on Mike 1 to do a track line which would take us out over La Perouse Bank and several other whale "hot spots", including Swiftsure Bank on our way back to Port Renfrew.
Springtime would stay within a couple of miles of the coast while we did an offshore trackline. The conditions were ideal with low swell and very little wind.
We were out at the "South-west corner" looking at a few humpbacks and spotted a cow killer whale dorsal fin as we slowed down for another humpback. We spotted a bull separated a few hundred metres which I was immediately able to ID as T046E. The cow was T122 who is part of the T046 group. I scanned around for the rest of the group and spotted another bull on the horizon which was likely T046D but then never was able to lock onto him again. We shadowed the 2 animals for 3/4 of an hour before they disappeared in the moderate swell.