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A new orca whale research project for the San Juan Islands of Washington has just been approved by the National Marine Fisheries Service, the infamous federal agency known for constantly blocking protections for marine mammals or bungling their conservation management. This study will directly impact the killer whales we enjoy observing on our San Juan Islands kayak tours. This new study involves shooting metal tags that are known to cause major tissue damage and possible life-threatening infections. Our local resident killer whales have long been known to suffer mortality from common bacteria that should not ordinarily be lethal. The high level of industrial toxins that have been absorbed by our San Juan Islands orca whales is likely suppressing their immune systems and making them susceptible to minor injuries. This highly invasive metal darting study is too risky for a mortally threatened and beloved population of killer whales such as we have in Washington state. It is better suited for a remote region where orcas are not struggling with industrial toxins and a decimated food supply. In addition, our San Juan Islands orca whales are very trusting of humans and often swim right up to, or underneath, our “grouped-up” kayaks. Please note: Whenever orcas are present during our whale watching kayak tours, we stop paddling and form a very tight group to minimize our profile to the whales. We also move out of their path, but as the whales swim faster than we can kayak, close encounters are bound to happen whenever the orcas so desire! In any case, we always treat the whales with the utmost respect as they deserve. After decades of peaceful interactions, do we really want to destroy the trust of our resident orca whales by shooting them with painful metal darts? This photo shows holes in the fin from a dart. As a side note, the decision was made without consultation with Canadian authorities, an odd fact considering this population of killer whales utilizes Canadian waters as part of their home range. Here is an article from their perspective. Finally, here is a great analysis of a scientist speaking out against the unnecessary project. Join a Kayak Quest for Whales from Friday Harbor, Washington

People who enjoy orca whale watching and kayaking in Washington’s Salish Sea rejoiced at yesterday’s news. U.S. District Court Judge James Redden ruled that the National Marine Fishers Service (NMFS) miserably failed yet again to produce either a legal or scientifically adequate plan to protect endangered salmon from extinction. This is the 3rd time in 10 years that the judge has ruled against NMFS and demands that they improve their shoddy efforts that are damaging salmon, killer whales, and our coastal economy. See our blog article on NMFS failings in killer whale management in the San Juan Islands. The new ruling primarily concerns salmon stocks crucial to orca whale survival that have been 99% destroyed by federal dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. In deciding the case, the court wrote, “The history of (NMFS) lack of, or at best, marginal compliance with the procedural and substantive requirements of the Endangered Species Act has been laid out”… The court went on to call NMFS’ plan “neither a reasonable, nor a prudent, course of action.” “Coupled with the significant uncertainty surrounding the reliability of NMFS habitat methodologies, the evidence that habitat actions are falling behind schedule, and that benefits are not accruing as promised, NMFS’ approach to these issues is neither cautious nor rational.” In finding the current plan’s heavy reliance on unidentified and uncertain habitat actions illegal, the court wrote: “Coupled with the significant uncertainty surrounding the reliability of NMFS’ habitat methodologies, the evidence that habitat actions are falling behind schedule, and that benefits are not accruing as promised, NMFS’ approach to these issues is neither cautious nor rational.” Earthjustice, the public interest law firm that represented fishing and conservation groups in the case said, “Taking out the four dams that strangle the lower Snake River would bring millions of dollars from restored salmon runs to communities from coastal California to Alaska and inland to Idaho. Let’s reject the path that continues wasting tax money on failed salmon technical fixes and embrace a solution that could set an example for the rest of the nation.” “The judge’s decision is a victory for wildlife, taxpayers, and the fishing industry,” said John Kostyack, Executive Director of the National Wildlife Federation. “Protecting Columbia-Snake River salmon protects fishing jobs, saves taxpayers billions of dollars, and helps preserve the outdoor heritage of the Northwest.” Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune said “We applaud the court for keeping a solid eye on science and the law. Zeke Grader, Executive Director of Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations said, “As this ruling highlights, the federal government has spent nearly 20 years spending enormous sums of tax money foolishly by doing all the wrong stuff. Facing the problem squarely, including potential removal of the four fish-killing dams on the lower Snake River, will create many thousands more jobs, revive the fishing industry, save billions of dollars for taxpayers, and lead in the development of clean, renewable, more efficient energy. What we need most now is for the Obama Administration to lead us to those solutions, not just bury its head in the sand in denial as has so often happened in the past.” Now we wait to see if NMFS can get their act together to save salmon and orca whales and prove that they create a new plan acceptable to the courts, concerned San Juan Island kayakers, and killer whale watchers in Washington state. Join a Kayak Quest for Orca Whales in Washington’s San Juan Islands Today!

The new whale watching rules we discussed in our previous article apply to kayaks and most commercial and private boats. They are meant to protect the orcas from sound pollution that can interrupt hunting and cause stress in whales. Strangely, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) applied these new regulations to include silent sea kayaks while exempting freighters and military vessels. Obviously, these huge ships are the fastest and loudest in the whales’ habitat, and thereby pose the greatest risk of colliding with or deafening the whales. Military vessels are even allowed to use their new high-energy sonar that has been proven to kill whales and drive survivors from their home. Military ships were also given permission by NMFS to drop bombs and shoot torpedoes in the whales’ most critical habitat. It seems that NMFS believes that silent kayaks are more of a threat to the survival of orca whales than the most advanced military weapon systems! Commercial Fishing Vessels Exempted from New Orca Whale Watching Regulations NMFS has rightly concluded that orca whales in the San Juan Islands are not always capable of finding enough salmon to survive. Now that we humans have destroyed the majority of salmon spawning habitat, prey numbers are so low in some years that killer whales have starved and been unable to give birth. Our San Juan Islands kayaking tour route is one of very few places in Washington where salmon congregate in sufficient numbers to make hunting easy for orcas. (The concentrations of salmon along San Juan Island are why our kayaking tours are able to see orca whales on most days.) In light of these scientific facts, we can only speculate as to why NMFS has decided to exempt commercial salmon fishing boats from the new orca whale watching regulations. Fishermen can drop nets directly in the whales’ path despite the risk of entanglement and drowning. They can net endangered salmon in the most critical killer whale feeding spots, taking fish away from potentially starving whales. In Alaskan waters, NMFS has given permission to commercial fisherman to throw dynamite or shoot orca whales if they dare steal fish from their lines. I’m sure the hypocrisy of NMFS is apparent to anyone familiar with the situation. That federal regulators can condone throwing explosives at orcas in one location and propose banning kayaking with killer whales at another is simply beyond belief! Join a Kayak Quest for Killer Whales in the San Juan Islands of Washington Photo courtesy of Captain Jim Maya, operator of the best orca whale watching cruises in the San Juan Islands.

We haven’t yet crunched the numbers, but it appears that new orca whale watching rules for the San Juan Islands of Washington have not had any impact on our killer whale watching kayak trips’ success rate this year. We will publish our June 2011 results in a few days so stay tuned our blog! Most of our kayaking encounters with the killer whales are admittedly at greater distances this year, but there are no regulations that prevent orca whales from approaching us! Check out our YouTube Channel for orca whale watching and kayaking San Juan Islands to see a video from this June of two orca whale pods swimming right up to our kayaks while we rest in a kelp forest in a protected cove. Some of the orcas passed within 10 meters of our kayaks as they rubbed themselves in the kelp. Others breached less than 30 meters away! You can hear all the excited commentary from the guests and guides on the video so be sure to check it out. New Rules for Orca Whale Watching on San Juan Islands Kayaking Tours Kayaking tours, individual kayaks, and most other boats traveling the San Juan Islands need to be aware of new federal orca whale watching rules. The new federal rules double the approach distance to 200 yards, superceding the prior rule of 100 yards set by Washington state law. Kayaks must also clear a path in the whales line of travel out to 400 yards. Orca Whales in the San Juan Islands are Endangered and Need Help to Survive The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), the federal agency in charge of protecting whales and endangered marine wildlife, created the new whale watching regulations due to scientific research indicating noise from motorized boats impacts the whales’ ability to hunt and causes stress. As biologists and conservationists with decades of experience around whales, we agreed with this and urged the new rules to be applied to all motorized vessels. Unfortunately, NMFS inexplicably exempted the largest and noisiest vessels but applied them to silent sea kayaks! One wonders if anyone in this federal agency understands what a kayak is? When asked why the regulations were applied to silent sea kayaks, the agency was unable to provide any scientific reason or data to support the decision. We will be discussing the new killer whale watching regulations for the San Juan Islands in another blog article that will appear in a couple of days. There are some serious problems with the new rules and the federal agency that created them. Join a San Juan Islands Kayak Tour from Friday Harbor, Washington

It’s been a strange winter in the San Juan Islands of Washington state. Fickle weather and inaccurate forecasts have made it difficult to lead many kayak tours this season. Compared to the horrendous storms the rest of the country has suffered with, we have been fortunate to have much milder conditions in Washington and the Pacific Northwest. So it has been possible to go on several kayaking trips this winter in the San Juan Islands without putting on arctic clothing and make some observations of winter wildlife. Or it was, up until this week when we finally got a nasty blast from the north! Fortunately, sea water temperatures in the San Juan Islands remain very steady, even during deep freezes, due to the strong currents mixing it up. So we haven’t expected it to have any affect on the whales and seals. While kayaking, we noticed that the harbor seals and northern sea lions seemed to be spending just a bit more time in the water and less on the rocks where exposure to wind chill has been extreme. As is normal for winter, orca whales have been present on only a few days each month this winter in the San Juan Islands and finding them while kayaking has been difficult. Early winter salmon spawning runs usually draw more consistent killer whale activity further south in the Salish Sea into Puget Sound and this year has been no different. Many folks from Seattle have enjoyed seeing J and K pods hunting right from their living room windows or from the ferries. It’s always nice to see how much positive attention the orcas get these days when they are active around the city! Our largest resident family of orcas, L pod, was recently observed in California’s Monterrey Bay where they were photo-identified by local San Juan Island killer whale biologist Ken Balcomb on a research mission. L pod traditionally roams the furthest of our three orca families and this is not the first time they’ve been found so far south. L pod could reappear in Washington at any time, but they are traditionally the latest pod to return to the primary summer feeding area along our San Juan Island kayaking routes. Balcomb’s Center for Whale Research just released their population summary for Washington’s orca whales in 2010. The final year-end tally for our resident killer whale community is 87 whales. Of the 5 calves born last year, 6 have survived. Sadly, the oldest and largest bull orca has been missing since mid-November and is presumed dead. J-1, known as Ruffles, was an iconic killer whale famous among whale watchers, kayakers, and biologists. His towering 6-foot high dorsal fin with its distinctive wavy edge made him easily recognized from afar. Ruffles made it to the ripe old age of 60 and is survived by his mother J-2 Granny who is estimated to be 100 years old, and presides as the matriarchal leader of J pod. Photos courtesy of whale watching captain Jim Maya of San Juan Island. Kayaking with Killer Whales in the San Juan Islands near Seattle, Washington

The federal government’s new plan to save salmon in Washington appears to be the typical politically-influenced poppycock that we’ve come to expect from the agencies in charge of saving salmon, orca whales, and our oceans. An intelligent salmon management plan for the Columbia River is critical to saving the threatened killer whales of the San Juan Islands and is mandated by law under the Endangered Species Act. Salmon and orca whale advocates recently asked a federal judge to reject the plan as it ignores the most important scientific findings regarding orca whales and salmon in Washington: Salmon make up over 90% of the orca whales diet in the San Juan Islands, so a large population is crucial to a healthy resident killer whale community. Salmon in Washington are already reduced to about 10% of their historical population. Killer whales in the San Juan Islands die from starvation in years when salmon are scarcest. Both salmon and orca whales in the San Juan Islands are on the federal threatened list and any further declines could quickly spiral into regional extinction. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is the agency charged with saving both salmon and orca whales in Washington. Unfortunately, these are the same careless and neglectful bureaucrats who allowed salmon and orcas to become endangered already! Their previously proposed plans have been repeatedly rejected by federal courts for being ineffective, unscientific, and politically motivated. Although the Obama administration promised to put science ahead of politics when it comes to the environmental, they have failed us just as the Bush administration did. Independent and government scientists are united regarding the critical link between salmon and orca whales in the San Juan Islands. UW’s Center for Conservation Biology did a multi-year orca study that involved collecting orca whale feces for hormonal analysis. They concluded that starvation and stress caused from salmon scarcity were the cause of the orca whales’ threatened status in the San Juan Islands. NMFS’s own scientists concluded that “Chinook salmon, a relatively rare species [today], was by far the most frequent prey item [for orca whales in Washington].” NMFS also claims to have scientific data that shows sound pollution is harming killer whales in the San Juan Islands. Yet they don’t stop commercial fishing vessels from taking salmon in the favorite orca whale hunting areas when they could easily fish elsewhere. This harms orcas by stealing their scarce food, exposes them to ear-splitting sound pollution, and potential entanglement and drowning in nets. And NMFS just gave permission to the Navy to use bombs and skull-busting sonar in the whales’ home waters. Instead, they are targeting whale watchers and kayakers as the culprits! Can they be more willfully ignorant and hypocritical?! Just how can the bureaucrats at the top of NMFS ignore the good science that we tax-payers funded? And why are these same bureaucrats considering outlawing kayaking from San Juan Island? There is absolutely no science to indicate that silent kayaks have any adverse effect on whales. Could it be that kayakers are an easy political target when NMFS is desperate to appear like they are doing something? They have received thousands of comments in support of kayaking from San Juan Island but NMFS doesn’t seem to be interested in either science or the opinion of the community as proven by their Navy bombing decision. Let’s hope that the judge scraps the proposed salmon plan from NMFS soon. And that smarter people prevail when a decision is made regarding kayaking with whales in the San Juan Islands. For more information, visit: http://www.wildsalmon.org and http://www.orcanetwork.org. Go Kayak Whale Watching in the San Juan Islands near Seattle, Washington