Andrew S. Wright's Great Bear Expedition: Day 4-5, Cetacea Lab

Missed the first two blog postings? Read the first here, and the second here.

Cetacea lab is situated on the south end of Gil Island at Whale Point, just west of York Point.  The rustic wilderness cabin and acoustic and observation lab exude a relaxed rural charm. The reality is very different.  Janie Wray and Hermann Meuter have pursued whale behaviour studies here for 9 years.  Inside, the acoustic recording equipment runs 24/7 while speakers relay the sounds to every room and outdoor area.  You cannot escape the continuous sound of bubbles and pops from the hydrophones.  But when the Orcas and Humpbacks squeak or groan, Neekas the dog barks, so not a single whale goes by without being logged or noted! Everybody is on duty 24/7.

A humpback mother and calf. Photo: Andrew S. Wright

As dedicated as the day they started, Janie shakes me out of my sleeping bag at 5 a.m. She has been listening to whales since 3 a.m. and she is anxious to greet the arriving humpbacks. Hustling into the boat we strike out to the south for what turns out to be a very, very long day.  In total we identify 15 unique whales by their flukes and observe another 5 whales that are currently unknown.  The work requires immense patience and is undertaken within the auspices of a strict movement protocol that keeps the boat at least 150 meters behind the whale and in a prime location to take an identification photograph of the whale’s fluke.  The protocol was developed to protect the whales, but as a photographer it is frustrating because we are not close enough for those awe inspiring pictures we are so used to seeing.

Photo: Andrew S. Wright

As the day drifts into evening we spend three hours with a mother and calf that are in resting mode. No flirting flukes and so identification is impossible, the calf’s spine is painfully clear and looks like a ridge of scallops.  Clearly a good deal of eating needs to be done to fatten the calf — fortunately the area is literally alive with forage fish. As the sunlight turns to the last golden glow of the day the mother and calf become very active and catch us by surprise with a breach. Janie gets excited for they tend to breach multiple times.  A huge passing 50 ft luxury power boat changes course and rolls right up on top of the whales for a better "look". The whales dive and are gone, seconds become minutes and the moment is lost for the whales resurface almost 1.5 km away.  They never resume their play.

Janie bemoans the boats behaviour and I am fuming for it was the stuff of a photographers dreams.  Hopefully, the whales will stick around for some time and Janie will get her ID photographs.

Photo: Andrew S. Wright

My second full day starts with a work party to Aristazabal Island to repair a hydrophone station that has failed.  Hermann has to dive some 70 ft to release the old equipment and to drop a concrete anchor block into place that will secure the new hydrophone.  We all support his work from the super slick intertidal zone, when I slip and fall trying to take a picture of the undertakings. The camera takes a whack as do I — thankfully both bodies are still working!  Returning to the lab in the late afternoon Janie and I grab some refreshment and are back out whale tracking for tomorrow they might be gone.

As we drift with the hydrophone Janie talks of their latest observations which are really exciting — for they have discovered lone whales are now bubble net feeding and making acoustic feeding calls at the same time.  Other whale researchers in other humpback communities have not seen this behaviour and they wonder if it is unique to this area.  Perhaps on first arrival they call to advertise their presence and invite others to join them for feeding in a bubble net team is arguably more effective.  Within an hour I get to hear and witness this behaviour for myself.  It is clear and discernable; for sure Janie and Hermann are on to something.

As we head back for supper we are rewarded by BCX1224 aka Sling pectoral slapping and tail lobbing another mature whale.  There is also a calf present, so we wonder has Sling become a mother and is she badgering an errant male?  For me the explosive tail lobbing is awe inspiring — the photographic mechanics unbelievably hard.

Today is my last day at the lab. As usual Janie and I are out on the water at 5 a.m.  Unfortunately the whales have gone.  Hopefully further north for today I transfer to the MV Great Bear 2 and head north to Prince Rupert.

The next seven days will be without any communication links and so a handful of updates will flood in on the 29th of June.

UPDATED - Check out where Andrew is currently on Google maps!

Read the fourth posting here.

Read the fifth and final posting here.