Encounter with Bigg’s in Puget Sound

EncSummary: After receiving a report of probable Bigg’s way up in Port Susan, the team headed down to the Edmonds marina and left around 1000. We headed north up into Possession Sound, past Hat Island, and then up into Port Susan. Reports had said that there was a male in the group, so we wondered if it was the T137s who had been down in the south sound in previous days. About halfway up Port Susan, fins were seen on the Camano Island side of the channel. Since we had T137A on the brain, we were surprised at how big the male looked. We then quickly realized the male we were seeing was T46E and the other two whales with him were his younger brother T46F and probable older sister T122.

The encounter began at 1045. The three whales were in a fairly tight group heading south about a half mile off the Camano Island shoreline. We made one quick photo-ID pass before pulling off and launching the drone for the first of several flights that day. Unfortunately, the water clarity in these parts is so bad the whales were disappearing the moment they dove. By the time the whales had reached Camano Head, they had spread out across the east portion of Possession Sound while foraging. The three whales briefly came back together around noon before spreading back out again. The two westernmost whales converged on the easternmost whale as they approached the edge of Snohomish River delta. Near the edge of the drop-off mid-delta, the three siblings gathered to make a seal kill. The whales shared the seal as they passed the Port of Everett about a mile or so offshore. The whales spread out a little again as they dipped south of Everett before swinging north and grouping up yet again. One last photo-ID attempt was foiled by the whales going into resting mode and not arching. We ended the encounter at 1402 about one mile south of Hat Island with the three whales heading slowly north in a tight group.