Salish Sea Orcas
   HOME



picture info

Salish Sea Orcas
The waters of the Salish Sea, on the west coast of North America, are home to several ecologically distinct populations of orcas (''Orcinus orca''). The area supports three major ecotypes of orcas: northern resident orcas, northern residents, southern resident orcas, southern residents, and transients. A fourth ecotype, the offshore orcas, occasionally venture into nearshore waters. Little to no interaction occurs between the different ecotypes. Resident and transient orcas have not been observed interbreeding, although occasional brief interactions occur. Studied since the 1960s, the orcas of the Salish Sea region have become well-known in cetacean research. According to John KB Ford, Graeme B Ellis, and Kenneth C Balcomb, the resident orcas represent "the most intensively studied population of marine mammals in the world." The frequency of sightings of orcas in the Puget Sound region, combined with their prominent place in the ecosystem and their charisma, have made them icons o ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Orca Pod Southern Residents
The orca (''Orcinus orca''), or killer whale, is a toothed whale and the largest member of the oceanic dolphin family. The only Extant taxon, extant species in the genus ''Orcinus'', it is recognizable by its Countershading, black-and-white-patterned body. A cosmopolitan species, it inhabits a wide range of marine environments, from Arctic Ocean, Arctic to Southern Ocean, Antarctic regions to tropical seas. Orcas are apex predators with a diverse diet. Individual populations often specialize in particular types of prey, including fish, sharks, Batoids, rays, and marine mammals such as Pinniped, seals, Cetacea, dolphins, and whales. They are highly Social animal, social, with some populations forming stable matrilineal family groups (pods). Their sophisticated hunting techniques and vocal behaviors, often unique to specific groups and passed down from generation to generation, are considered to be manifestations of animal culture. The International Union for Conservation of N ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Georgia Strait
The Strait of Georgia () or the Georgia Strait is an arm of the Salish Sea between Vancouver Island and the extreme southwestern mainland coast of British Columbia, Canada, and the extreme northwestern mainland coast of Washington (state), Washington, United States. It is approximately long and varies in width from .Environmental History and Features of Puget Sound
, NOAA-NWFSC
Along with the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Puget Sound, it is a constituent part of the Salish Sea. Archipelagos and narrow channels mark each end of the Strait of Georgia, the Gulf Islands and San Juan Islands in the south, and the Discovery Islands in the north. The main channels to the south are Boundary Pass, Haro Strait and Rosario Strait, which connect the Strait of Georgia to the Strait of Juan de ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Whidbey Island
Whidbey Island (historical spellings Whidby, Whitbey, or Whitby) is the largest of the islands composing Island County, Washington, Island County, Washington (state), Washington, in the United States, and the largest island in Washington state. Whidbey is about north of Seattle, and lies between the Olympic Peninsula and the Interstate 5 (Washington), I-5 corridor of western Washington. The island forms the northern boundary of Puget Sound. It is home to Naval Air Station Whidbey Island. The state parks and natural forests are home to numerous old growth trees. According to the United States Census, 2000, 2000 census, Whidbey Island was home to 67,000 residents with an estimated 29,000 of those living in rural locations. This increased slightly to 69,480 residents as of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. Whidbey Island is approximately from north to south, and wide, with a total land area of , making it the List of islands of the United States by area, 40th large ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

San Juan Islands
The San Juan Islands is an archipelago in the Pacific Northwest of the United States between the U.S. state of Washington and Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. The San Juan Islands are part of Washington state, and form the core of San Juan County, Washington, San Juan County. In the archipelago, four islands are accessible to vehicular and foot traffic via the Washington State Ferries system. History The Gulf of Georgia Culture Area encompasses the San Juan and Gulf Islands, which share many archaeological similarities. These islands were home to various Coast Salish languages, Coast Salish peoples, including the Nooksack (tribe), Nooksack and Northern Straits Salish, Northern Straits groups (consisting of the Lummi people, Lummi, Klallam, Saanich dialect, Saanich, Samish people, Samish, and Songhees dialects). European exploration in the area introduced smallpox in the 1770s. The Spanish explorer Francisco de Eliza named the San Juan Islands ''Isla y Archipié ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  




Johnstone Strait
Johnstone Strait () is a channel along the north east coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. Opposite the Vancouver Island coast, running north to south, are Hanson Island, West Cracroft Island, the mainland British Columbia Coast, Hardwicke Island, West Thurlow Island and East Thurlow Island. At that point, the strait meets Discovery Passage which connects to Georgia Strait. Name origin The Strait was named by Vancouver for James Johnstone, master of the armed tender ''Chatham''. In 1792, his survey party established that Vancouver Island was an island. Geography The strait is between and wide. It is a major navigation channel on the west coast of North America. It is the preferred channel for vessels from the Strait of Georgia leaving to the north of Vancouver Island through the Queen Charlotte Strait bound for Prince Rupert, Haida Gwaii, Alaska, and the North Pacific Ocean, and for southbound vessels from those areas bound for the ports of Va ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Chatham Sound
Chatham Sound is a sound on the North Coast of British Columbia, Canada, bordering on Alaska, United States. It is located between the Dundas and Stephens Islands and the Tsimpsean Peninsula, it is part of the Inside Passage and extends from Portland Inlet in the north to Porcher Island in the south. The sound can be divided into two parts, by a line drawn between Tugwell and Melville Islands. The northern part, is influenced by the Nass River outflows and village of Lax Kw'alaams, and the southern part influenced by the Skeena River outflows and the city of Prince Rupert. It may have been named in 1788 by British Captain Charles Duncan after John Pitt, 2nd Earl of Chatham, who was First Lord of the Admiralty at that time. Geography Chatham Sound is a semi-enclosed basin with an area of about . It is connected to the open waters of the Hecate Strait and Dixon Entrance via several channels, such as Main, Brown, Hudson Bay, and Edye Passages. Along its southern end, the sound pr ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Haida Gwaii
Haida Gwaii (; / , literally "Islands of the Haida people"), previously known as the Queen Charlotte Islands, is an archipelago located between off the British Columbia Coast, northern Pacific coast in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The islands are separated from the mainland to the east by the shallow Hecate Strait. Queen Charlotte Sound (Canada), Queen Charlotte Sound lies to the south, with Vancouver Island beyond. To the north, the disputed Dixon Entrance separates Haida Gwaii from the Alexander Archipelago in the U.S. state of Alaska. Haida Gwaii consists of two main islands: Graham Island () in the north and Moresby Island (, or "Islands of Beauty") in the south, along with approximately 400 smaller islands with a total landmass of . Other major islands include Anthony Island (British Columbia), Anthony Island (), Burnaby Island (), Langara Island (), Lyell Island (), Louise Island, (), Alder Island (Haida Gwaii), Alder Island and Kunghit Island (). On June ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Gray's Harbor
Grays Harbor is an estuary, estuarine bay located north of the mouth of the Columbia River, on the southwest Pacific coast of Washington (state), Washington state, in the United States. It is a ria, which formed at the end of the last ice age, when sea levels flooded the Chehalis River (Washington), Chehalis River. The bay is long and wide. The Chehalis River flows into its eastern end, where the city of Aberdeen, Washington, Aberdeen stands at that river's mouth, on its north bank, with the somewhat smaller city of Hoquiam, Washington, Hoquiam immediately to its northwest, along the bayshore. Besides the Chehalis, many lesser rivers and streams flow into Grays Harbor, such as the Hoquiam River and Humptulips River. A pair of low peninsulas separate it from the Pacific Ocean, except for an opening about two miles (3 km) in width. The northern peninsula, which is largely covered by the community of Ocean Shores, Washington, Ocean Shores, ends in Point Brown. Facing that acr ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Alaska
Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the northernmost, westernmost, and easternmost (the Aleutian Islands cross the 180th meridian into the eastern hemisphere) state in the United States. It borders the Canadian territory of Yukon and the province of British Columbia to the east. It shares a western maritime border, in the Bering Strait, with Russia's Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. The Chukchi and Beaufort Seas of the Arctic Ocean lie to the north, and the Pacific Ocean lies to the south. Technically, it is a semi-exclave of the U.S., and is the largest exclave in the world. Alaska is the largest U.S. state by area, comprising more total area than the following three largest states of Texas, California, and Montana combined, and is the seventh-largest subnational division i ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Springer A73 With Her Younger Calf Storm A116 Looking Well
Springer or springers may refer to: Publishers * Springer Science+Business Media, aka Springer International Publishing, a worldwide publishing group founded in 1842 in Germany formerly known as Springer-Verlag. ** Springer Nature, a multinational academic publishing group created by the merger of Springer Science+Business Media, Nature Publishing Group, Palgrave Macmillan, and Macmillan Education * Axel Springer SE, a German publishing house, including several newspapers * Springer Publishing, an American publishing company of academic journals and books, mainly focusing on public health. Places ;United States * Springer, New Mexico * Springer, Oklahoma * Springer Mountain, southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail * Springer Opera House, Columbus, Georgia Animals * In cattle, a cow or heifer near to calving * English Springer Spaniel, a breed of dog * Welsh Springer Spaniel, a breed of dog * Springer (orca), an orca (killer whale) identified as A73 in her wild community Vehic ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Harbor Porpoise
The harbour porpoise (''Phocoena phocoena'') is one of eight extant species of porpoise. It is one of the smallest species of cetacean. As its name implies, it stays close to coastal areas or river estuaries, and as such, is the most familiar porpoise to whale-watching, whale watchers. This porpoise often ventures up rivers, and has been seen hundreds of kilometres from the sea. The harbour porpoise may be Polytypic taxon, polytypic, with geographically distinct populations representing distinct races: ''P. p. phocoena'' in the North Atlantic and West Africa, ''Black sea harbour porpoise, P. p. relicta'' in the Black Sea and Sea of Azov, an unnamed population in the northwestern Pacific and ''P. p. vomerina'' in the northeastern Pacific. Taxonomy The English word porpoise comes from the French (Old French , 12th century), which is from Medieval Latin , which is a compound of ''porcus'' (pig) and (fish). The old word is probably a loan-translation of a Germanic word, compare D ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Chinook Salmon
The Chinook salmon (''Oncorhynchus tshawytscha'') is the largest and most valuable species of Oncorhynchus, Pacific salmon. Its common name is derived from the Chinookan peoples. Other vernacular names for the species include king salmon, quinnat salmon, spring salmon, blackmouth, and tyee salmon. The scientific species name is based on the Russian common name ''chavycha'' (чавыча). Chinook are anadromous fish native to the North Pacific Ocean and the river systems of western North America, ranging from California to Alaska, as well as Asian rivers ranging from northern Japan to the Palyavaam River in Arctic northeast Siberia. They have been introduced to other parts of the world, including New Zealand and Patagonia. Introduced Chinook salmon are thriving in Lake Michigan and Michigan's western rivers. A large Chinook is a prized and sought-after catch for a sporting angler. The flesh of the salmon is also highly valued for its dietary nutritional content, which includes h ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]