DISCOVERY BAY — A senior staff member of the Center for Whale Research has identified some of the orcas spotted cavorting in Discovery Bay on Tuesday.
Joe D’Amico — the owner of Security Services Northwest Inc. ( http://ssnwhq.com/ ) — videotaped the orcas at 3:45 p.m. off the shores of “Fort Discovery,” SSNW headquarters, which is on the western shore of Discovery Bay between Port Townsend and Sequim.
Here’s the video:
David Ellifrit of the whale center in Friday Harbor said in the center’s whale sighting report issued Wednesday that he definitely recognized K21.
“[I can’t tell, but I bet K40, K16, and K35 are in there, too] along with at least the L2s, L5 and L84, and maybe the L54s. Cool!” wrote Ellifrit, who is senior staff assistant for the Orca Survey project and is responsible for curation of the photographic library.
The center estimates that as of July 2011, the total Southern Resident population was 88 and is composed of three pods: J, K and L.
Southern Resident orcas — whose home waters are in and near the San Juan Islands, the lower Puget Sound and the Georgia Strait — are identified on the center’s website at www.whaleresearch.com.
Those Ellifrit mentioned are:
■ K21, a male born in 1986, can be recognized by his distinctive mostly black “saddle patch” near the base of his dorsel fin.
■ K40, a female born in 1963 and the oldest of the 20-member K Pod, is probably K21’s sister, the website says.
■ K16, a female born in 1985, is the mother of K35, a male born in 2002.
■ L2 and L5 are both females, with L2 born in 1960 and L5 in 1964.
■ L84 is a male born in 1990.
■ L54 is a female born in 1977.
L Pod, with 42 members, is the largest resident pod.
J pod has an estimated 26 members and tends to stay in its home waters year-round, the center said.
The other two pods travel farther afield. During the winter, members of K and L pods have been seen far west of Vancouver Island and as far south as Monterey, Calif.
Orcas are identified individually largely by their dorsal fins and their saddle patches, which are unique on each animal.
Dorsal fins vary in terms of shape, size and scars, while the coloring and shape of the saddle patches differ.
In addition to the Southern Resident Community, there is a Northern Resident Community that centers around northern British Columbia; a Transient Community, found in small groups from Mexico to the Bering Sea; and an Offshore Community, most often seen in the Pacific Ocean 15 to 25 miles out at sea off Vancouver Island and the Queen Charlottes, the center said.
Within each pod, families form into sub-pods, the center said, which are centered around older females, the children remaining close to their mothers for life.
For more information, visit the center’s website.
