Marine Scientist
Josh Parker
Iconic day in Bremer Bay as the Southern Ocean displayed its power as we headed out past Point Henry Peninsula, sky grey and clouds heavy, it wasn’t long before we entered a patch of rain. This added to the thrill of today with high hopes onboard and excited passengers, we set our eyes on any signs of Orca. A veteran to this, and an eagle eye for any birds on the horizon, Leanne exclaimed, “Orca 11 o’clock!”. As we came up alongside the first family pod of the day, we were happy for it to be Alki’s pod whom we have not sighted since February.
Before long females from Alki’s, Queen’s and Noosa’s formed a FLOT line in search of food, enjoyment in numbers and the chance for the young calves to socialise. In behind was the large and mature male, Biggs. Spending the day closely following the females and appearing to take an interest towards them, perhaps one is in season or will be soon and he is wanting to make a good impression. The calves didn’t mind this mature male following them as they focused in on playtime and spent the majority of their day chasing after each other. Interaction between family pods is important and developing strong bonds will set them up for a meaningful relationship in future years ahead. The family was extremely relaxed and social all day, a pleasure to enjoy the company of these three families as over twenty Orca travelled together. John Totterdall and his team were busy today with their current research being completed and it was fantastic to have a good number of Orca in The Patch for them to work with in good weather conditions.
The rain had cleared by the time we had arrived in The Patch which left the afternoon to enjoy champagne and beer on the lovely cruise back to the coast. It was wonderful for Graeme and his team to provide the opportunity of watching them in action as they shot a net and we watched on as pilchards were surrounded. The vast majority of your baitfish pilchards purchased around Australia come from right here in Bremer Bay with the latest captures being processed and will be soon on their way to Brisbane, incredible! A perfect end to a special day as we enjoyed a unique insight into an iconic day in Bremer Bay.
