December 2023

Before we take a look at our 2023 whale sightings numbers as a whole, let's wrap up our monthly series with a look back at just the month of December.

We had confirmed presence of Bigg's killer whales on 29 of the 31 days for the month, which seems high for this time of year, but we've also clocked in at 27 and 28 days in recent years so it's really not too unexpected! The T46s and T99s were among the Salish Sea regulars who spent time here last month, but we also got visits from more uncommon visitors like the T30s, T241s, and T252s. Another highlight was the observation of a new calf traveling with T75C!

The Southern Residents were confirmed present on 16 days in December, also about on par with recent years. Js and Ks both spent some time in Puget Sound, J-Pod made at least one foray up to the northern Strait of Georgia, and most of L-Pod made at least one appearance in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. They proved extra elusive while making their treks north and west, but we speculate they were in fact present on at least 25 days of December, similar to last year. The biggest news of course was the documentation of new calf J60, seen for the first time in Puget Sound right around Christmas!

Meanwhile we've come to expect northern Salish Sea winter visits from Northern Residents, more so in January or February but sometimes in December, too. This year the A23s, A25s, and A94 visited the Powell River and Campbell River area early in the month, as shown by the yellow dots.

The gray dots indicate sightings where orcas were confirmed but it was not possible to confirm ecotype. Many or most of these are probably Bigg's killer whales, but with the weather, reduced daylight, and fewer eyes on the water it's more difficult to get documentation this time of year, which is why we see more gray dots on the maps in the winter.

In the weeks ahead we'll take a few different looks at 2023 in review for both Bigg's killer whales and Southern Residents!

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