Bigg’s annual 2023

Here is our 2023 Bigg's killer whale Salish Sea sightings map! Each color represents a different season with the size of the dot indicating the relative group size.

The 1413 sightings we documented (defined as a unique group on a unique day) was yet another record, surpassing our previous record of 1220 set in 2022. To put into perspective just how much things have changed, especially for those newer to watching whales in the Salish Sea, this represents a more than 8-fold increase in sightings from just 10 years ago.

The answer to "when can I see Bigg's in the Salish Sea?" is now "almost anywhere at any time", but the seasonal peak in August and September first noted for Bigg's in the 1980s and 1990s still holds true: August had the greatest number of unique sightings at 200, and September had the greatest number of individual whales confirmed at 167. On the flip side, February was the lowest month for both.

Tomorrow we'll share another series of maps looking more at the seasonal differences, but we wanted to start with this annual take because it's pretty darn impressive!

Thanks as always to the dozens (if not hundreds) of community members who share reports, photos, and videos, that make this type of region-wide tracking possible. Our partners in this effort include Orca Network, the Pacific Whale Watch Association, Orcasound - Listen for Whales, and many of the regional Facebook sightings groups that have revolutionized the way we can track whales. And shout out too to our map wizard Tomis and communications intern Andoni who has been making these graphics for us!