Bremer Orcas and Pilot Whales took over the Patch today as families gathered to feast and socialise in a very special day off Bremer Bay. Our morning cruise to the Patch was greeted with the company of Common Dolphins who quickly ventured over to say good morning before continuing on with their day. It was only a matter of minutes before blows were sighted and Orca surfaced just up ahead. It was exciting to see Alki and her family together including baby Grace who was looking very well today as she continues to swim right alongside her mum. The family appeared to have finished an earlier meal and were regrouping for the next foraging foray into the depths. They spent a good 2.5 hours on the forage and one of the young calves kept herself occupied as she swam underneath and around us exploring. They began to move quickly to deeper water and soon we could see why, Pilot Whales had arrived and were moving through the area in big numbers.
We wished Alki and her family well as we spent some special time with the Pilots and were amazed by the sociable activity witnessed and the duration of this activity. Spy hopping, breaching, fluke slapping and bow riding for almost two hours as they stole the show. Our final encounter was with Noosa and Urkel who were gathering together with their family and trying to forage when we looked over our shoulder and yet again the Pilots were back, this time surging towards the Orca. Noosa was in no mood to interact with the Pilots and began to usher her family further away to find slightly more suitable foraging grounds away from the 700+ strong Pilot Whales.
