Breaching humpback. It’s hard to believe that such large, impressive creatures as whales depend on tiny ones…
– victoriawhalewatching.com

…such as the lovely northern krill Meganyctipanes norvegica…
– Wikipedia Commons

LOTS of krill…
– Adventure Associates

Everything eats krill. Groupers, salmon, jellyfish, birds…name it. And anything that eats any of those depends on krill
– earthbuzz.com

Like the iconic orca
– greatpacificadventures.com

A few species of whales are relatively common in British Columbia
– U. Gorter

A few others are rarely seen, like this Fin whale
– J. Towers

Cumulatively, quite of few of the world’s whale species have been seen here
– U. Gorter

Which is why every sighting report is valuable
– bcwhalewatchingtours.com

By mapping observations, we can learn a lot about whale behavior
– Whales and Dolphins BC

Out latest undertaking is a “heat map”, which shows, for the first time, the “hot spots” for whales in our local waters!
– Whales and Dolphins BC

Cumulatively we will begin to answer many questions…like “why do breaching humpbacks always seem to land on their head?
– sidneywhalewatching.com

So keep your eyes pealed and your camera handy!
– grizzlybearwatching.com

Susan MacKay – “Whales”
by Andrew Bryant, 22 Oct 2015.

Susan Mackay is a long-time club member, founder of Whales and Dolphins BC and President of the non-profit Wild Ocean Whale Society (WOWs).  She’s also a member of the Marine Mammal Response Network, a group that responds to reports of injured, distressed or dead marine mammals.

Susan spoke to us about the various species of whales that frequent our local waters, and included some fascinating videos and hydrophone recordings. She brought things clearly into focus by describing the incredible krill-based food chain, the basis of much of our marine ecosystem.  She also emphasized the value in reporting whale observations, which allow both researchers and the public to better understand whales and their hunting behaviors.

As always, Susan spoke with an in-depth knowledge that only comes from spending many, many hours on the water with these fantastic leviathons!