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Killer whales seem to be moving farther south
It's widely believed the orcas are expanding their range because depleted Pacific Northwest stocks of salmon can no longer sustain them.
The killer whales, at least three dozen of them, coursed through and even leaped across the wind-swept ocean.
Even queasy passengers aboard the Sea Wolf marveled as these magnificent predators preyed beneath diving birds and frolicked en masse atop the choppy surface.
Crew members counted 40 orcas, adults and juveniles, as they journeyed around the Monterey Peninsula and into heretofore uncharted waters.
No orca vacation
How far south members of the L-pod family of endangered southern resident killer whales may have ventured after Sunday's dramatic sighting off Cypress Point is unknown.
But this much is clear: They were a long way from home and did not seem inclined to return any time soon.
The Sea Wolf, which runs from Monterey Bay Whalewatch at Fisherman's Wharf, was plying stormy seas when it encountered the orcas.
Several were confirmed as belonging to the L-pod, one of three family groups of the southern residents that historically have thrived off the Pacific Northwest, feeding chiefly on salmon.
This marks the sixth consecutive winter they've been documented off California and the fourth time they've been identified off Monterey, said Nancy Black, a prominent researcher who owns Monterey Bay Whalewatch.
Southern resident killer whales have not been documented south of Monterey.
"We saw them last year also," Black said. "So maybe their new pattern is to venture this far down to look for the fish that they're not getting up north."
Desperate measures
It's widely believed the orcas are expanding their range because depleted Pacific Northwest stocks of Chinook salmon, their primary prey source, can no longer sustain them.
Last January L-pod and K-pod orcas were seen off San Francisco and Half Moon Bay.
The National Marine Fisheries Service said in a recent report that not long ago it was believed the southern residents did not venture south of the Columbia River, near the Washington-Oregon border.
The report also cited depleted salmon stocks -- as they pertain to orca survival -- as an issue of concern.
The situation isn't necessarily better off of California. The number of Chinook salmon returning to the Sacramento River plummeted to near historic lows last year.
Meager returns are expected this year too, and runs on other West Coast rivers have also dwindled.
This is due to dams and water diversions, but also, some contend, to environmental changes caused by global warming.
Ken Balcomb, director of the Center for Whale Research in Friday Harbor, Wash., essentially called for a ban on commercial and recreational Chinook salmon fishing, and extensive restoration of spawning habitat.
Even queasy passengers aboard the Sea Wolf marveled as these magnificent predators preyed beneath diving birds and frolicked en masse atop the choppy surface.
No orca vacation
How far south members of the L-pod family of endangered southern resident killer whales may have ventured after Sunday's dramatic sighting off Cypress Point is unknown.
But this much is clear: They were a long way from home and did not seem inclined to return any time soon.
The Sea Wolf, which runs from Monterey Bay Whalewatch at Fisherman's Wharf, was plying stormy seas when it encountered the orcas.
Several were confirmed as belonging to the L-pod, one of three family groups of the southern residents that historically have thrived off the Pacific Northwest, feeding chiefly on salmon.
This marks the sixth consecutive winter they've been documented off California and the fourth time they've been identified off Monterey, said Nancy Black, a prominent researcher who owns Monterey Bay Whalewatch.
Southern resident killer whales have not been documented south of Monterey.
"We saw them last year also," Black said. "So maybe their new pattern is to venture this far down to look for the fish that they're not getting up north."
Desperate measures
It's widely believed the orcas are expanding their range because depleted Pacific Northwest stocks of Chinook salmon, their primary prey source, can no longer sustain them.
Last January L-pod and K-pod orcas were seen off San Francisco and Half Moon Bay.
The National Marine Fisheries Service said in a recent report that not long ago it was believed the southern residents did not venture south of the Columbia River, near the Washington-Oregon border.
The report also cited depleted salmon stocks -- as they pertain to orca survival -- as an issue of concern.
The situation isn't necessarily better off of California. The number of Chinook salmon returning to the Sacramento River plummeted to near historic lows last year.
Meager returns are expected this year too, and runs on other West Coast rivers have also dwindled.
This is due to dams and water diversions, but also, some contend, to environmental changes caused by global warming.
Ken Balcomb, director of the Center for Whale Research in Friday Harbor, Wash., essentially called for a ban on commercial and recreational Chinook salmon fishing, and extensive restoration of spawning habitat.
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