Queen of the Bremer Canyon and her presence in The Patch is always thrilling to see and this morning she had arrived with her family. The winds from yesterday had subsided and a gentle rolling swell moved through, perfect conditions for Orca spotting and it didn’t take long as the all too familiar dorsal fin of Queen (WA008 Split Tip) surfaced amongst Noosa and family. A wonderful greeting followed as all the calves raced over to say hello and the females joined with them seeming relaxed and pleased to see us this morning. The playtime continued as the calves chased after each other excitedly and allowed us to join in on the fun. Diving underneath and around us we could observe the close bond already forming amongst the youngest members of this family, a bond they will need as they grow older and sharpen their apex predator skills.
Queen was wonderful as always, a privilege to spend time with such a special Orca and along with Noosa these two have been fundamental in this years observations. The lessons of foraging, tracking, hunting and feeding all stems from the matriarchs of the family pods and teaching these skills takes many years of repetition and patience. Queen and Noosa both have a vital roll to play in not only the success of their family moving forward but the success of the family pods they are associated with regularly. Time and time again Queen and Noosa will instigate the beginning of hunts and other family pods close by race to join with them and share in their success. The rhythm of their population would be very different without the influence of these two remarkable Orca and their families. A joy to spend time with them today as they spent the morning socialising before the afternoon was spent foraging with a small oil slick appearing, a possible squid had been captured for lunch. Queen of the Bremer Canyon continued to patrol the foraging grounds she has grown up with and we wished them well for the afternoon ahead.
