16 year-old male Bigg's killer whale T167A

11 year-old female T167B

A double tail slap during prey sharing from the T90s and T167 siblings

T167A and T90B surface together under a snow-capped Mt. Baker

Our encounters with uncommon killer whales in the Salish Sea continued today as we caught up with siblings T167A and T167B who were traveling with the T90s!

We had only met the T167s once before back in 2021. It's always extra special to spend time in the presence of orcas we don't see very often.

Bigg's killer whale T421 spyhops next to his brother T421 in Bellingham Channel

I guess they live here now? 😅

Another day, another spyhop from the T419s! This time in Bellingham Channel. What made the day even more special is we got to share it with our Bigg's 201 class.

You can learn more about our Whale University courses here:
www.orcabehaviorinstitute.org/whale-univer...

A spyhopping Bigg's killer whale in the eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca

Earlier this week the T419s exited Puget Sound after spending three weeks there, and today they finally popped up further north! We were able to get out for our second encounter with there. Here, one spyhops afrer a harbor porpoise kill.

#orcas #whalesky #salishsea #biggskillerwhales

Here's a side by side comparison. Does he have a specific style for his breaches or what?

If you love Galiano as much as we do, be sure to check out our webstore and grab your sticker!

www.orcabehaviorinstitute.org/product/t19b...

Some adult males rarely breach, but the T19 brothers will often oblige! This month we witnessed a spectacular breach by T19B Galiano in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Our research assistant Vanessa captured this photo, which immediately brought to mind our holographic sticker designed by Sara Shimazu!

Will T49A6 remain the fan favorite, or does the new calf threaten his popularity among his supporters? What are your thoughts?

While we wait to see how these situations unfold, here is a short clip of some highlights featuring T49A7, filmed by Jason on March 28 in the San Juan Islands! (3/3)

However, with the arrival of a new calf T49A7, we can't wait to see how this addition will impact the family's dynamics. Will T49A3, at the age of 15, choose to follow the path of his older brothers, T49A1 and T49A2, and begin to disperse from the family? (2/3)

Led by their matriarch, T49A Nan, the T49As are one of the most beloved Bigg's killer whale matrilines in the Salish Sea. Until just a few weeks ago, the four-year-old T49A6 Charlie II was the youngest brother in the family, capturing the hearts of orca lovers everywhere. (1/3)

4/14 at 10:30

Bigg's killer whales T34s and T37s southbound approaching San Juan County Park

#orcas #wssjis #whalesky

Some orcas do, but not this population! The mammal-eating Bigg's killer whales we get in the Salish Sea are primarily predating on seals, porpoises, and sea lions.

Chinook salmon found naturally hatching in Upper Klamath River for first time in a century The Klamath Tribes are celebrating evidence of Chinook salmon spawning in Klamath River tributary.

Good news to start your Monday: thanks to the removal of the four Klamath River dams, wild Chinook have hatched for the first time in over a century in the upper reaches of the Klamath!

This river reaches the Pacific in northern California, where K- and L-Pods spend time in the winter/spring.

Bigg's killer whale T65 Whidbey surfaces in the Strait of Juan de Fuca on the afternoon of April 12th

The legend behind the legends: T65 Whidbey.

IMO this 58+ year-old orca is one of the most underrated killer whales in the Salish Sea as the mom of three incredible children: T63 Chainsaw, T65A Artemis, and T65B Chunk.

Each kid has a devoted following, while she quietly comes and goes.

#whalesky

We believe it’s so important to share the story of the orcas of the Salish Sea all around the country and the world. People everywhere connect to the stories of these unique whales and we’ve been honored to spread the word about our Southern Resident and Biggs killer whales in Florida this weekend!

A huge thank you to our team in Florida for representing OBI at Tortuga Music Festival!

Today is the last day of the festival that featured acts like Post Malone, Riley Green & Kenny Chesney. Proceeds from the festival support ocean conservation including our Puget Sound drone-hydrophone project.

It's day 2 at the Tortuga Music Festival for team OBI and it's been a total blast! Another sunny day packed with good music & awesome people stopping by our booth.

Check out this short clip of some fun moments from today! Shout out to Amanda, Maddie, & Ryan for rocking the ocean & representing OBI!

🐢TORTUGA Day 1! 🎸🌊 🫍

The booth is set up, the sun is shining, and Amanda, Maddie, and Ryan are ready to rock the ocean representing OBI at the Tortuga Music Festival's Conservation Village on the beach in Fort Lauderdale this weekend!

If you're attending the festival stop by and say hi!

Playful juvenile Bigg's killer whales following behind 37 year-old female T172 Katmai

It was exciting to see T49B Van, who we hadn't seen in 4 years. Unlike her siblings T49A and T49C, she doesn't visit the Salish Sea very often.

The T49B/T117 group surging west as the T19s approached

A male Bigg's killer whale tail slaps in the Strait of Juan de Fuca as the two groups of orcas merged and started socializing

We're still reliving a picture perfect encounter in the Strait of Juan de Fuca last weekend with 11 Bigg's killer whales, including some we don't get to see too often! Present were the T19s, T49Bs, T117A, T117Bs, and T172.

#orcas #salishsea #whalesky

J-Pod northbound offshore of County Park 9:15 on 4/9

#orcas #whalesky #wssjis

T90s northbound in Griffin Bay
April 8th at 15:15

#orcas #whalesky #wssjis

An infographic summarizing OBI's tracking of killer whales throughout the Salish Sea in March 2026 including a comparison of sightings by population over the last three years, a report on OBl's field encounters, and some highlights from the month.

We shared the map with you, but here are some highlights from the orca sightings in the Salish Sea during March. It was a busy month that included the arrival of new Bigg's orca calves, sightings of mystery whales, and a particularly chaotic day when more than 50 individual orcas were documented!

Here's our first staff photo-ID challenge! Amanda (Whale U instructor and research assistant) and Vanessa (webstore manager and research assistant) face off for two rounds of Bigg's killer whale flashcards.

Can you ID any of these whales as you play along?

#salishsea #orcas #whalesky

The Orca Behavior Institute's March 2026 killer whale sightings map of the Salish Sea, showing first sighting locations for every unique report of killer whales.

Here is our March 2026 sightings map for killer whale reports in the Salish Sea! Bigg's bounced back in a big way, present all 31 days.

You can read our full recap of the month, including highlights for each population, here:
www.orcabehaviorinstitute.org/sightings-ma...

#whaleksy #orcas

A breach by male Bigg's killer whale T19B Galiano

It was a whale of a day yesterday in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and this full breach from T19B Galiano was just part of it!

We saw the T19s join up with the T49Bs, T117A, T117Bs, and T172 off the mouth of the Elwha River. It had been 4 years since we had seen the T49Bs!

First in-person Bigg's 301 field trip of the class As luck would have it, we'd barely puttered out of the Friday Harbor marina before catching the sight of fins along the Shaw Island shoreline. The T49As had stuck around the islands overnight!

www.orcabehaviorinstitute.org/orca-updates...

After our memorable day last Saturday, we hosted our 1st in-person Bigg's 301 field trip of the class on Sunday. Since January, this group of students has been deep-diving into Bigg's killer whale data on extended matriline groups & had the chance to see some of the orcas they're studying in person!

A male Bigg's killer whale surfaces in front of the Lime Kiln Lighthouse in Haro Strait near San Juan Island, Washington

T65B1 Birdsall passing Lime Kiln lighthouse this afternoon

#orcas #killerwhales #salishsea #whalesky

First in-person Bigg's 201 field trip of the class This past Saturday (March 28th) we held our first in-person Bigg's 201 class, and the entire day was fabulous! A surprise group of ten Bigg's killer whales kicked off the morning, spotted from our fer...

www.orcabehaviorinstitute.org/orca-updates...

Last Sat, March 28 we kicked off our first in-person Bigg's 201 field trip of this class and it couldn’t have gone better! We had a fabulous orca-packed day, starting with a group of 10 Bigg's orcas spotted from our ferry just outside of Friday Harbor! Want to read more? Click the link in comments!

The Orca Behavior Institute | Patreon Killer whale research, advocacy, and science-based education

www.patreon.com/cw/orcabehav...

What do we know about these whales? What don't we know?

Join Monika Wieland Shields, Director of the Orca Behavior Institute, for a Patreon-exclusive talk about these "truly transient," enigmatic T419s on Monday, April 6th, at 6pm PST.

Not a Patron yet? Become a supporter via the link in comments!