Please can you help? There are big prizes and big gratitude!
We are conducting a survey for recreational boaters who paddle, sail, or motor off the coast of British Columbia.
By doing the survey, you are helping with the safety of whales and boaters. The answers will inform our future education efforts, including the development of an online course aimed at the safety of boaters and whales.
The survey will take 5 to 10 minutes to complete; answers are confidential; and you could win the prizes listed below.
It would also be greatly appreciated too if you could spread the word about the survey by sharing the link to this blog, the poster included at the end of this blog, and/or our social media posts provided at the links below.
We need MANY boaters to do this survey. The more input we get, the greater the insights into what information about laws and best practices is reaching recreational boaters, and what the limiting factors might be.
Thank you from our team at the Marine Education and Research Society and our partners in this survey, the Ocean Wise Marine Mammal Research Program, and Cetus Research & Conservation Society. Funding support has been provided by the Government of Canada.
Social media posts about the survey: Facebook at this link. Instagram at this link ________________________________________
Prize information: Out of gratitude for your time, those who participate in this survey can choose to be entered into a prize draw. The draw will take place on March 1, 2024.
There will be four winners, one winner for each of the following prizes.
Update: Known dead Humpbacks between October 12 and November 30, 2022 are:
October 12, 2022 – Dead Humpback #1. Floating near Lax Kw’alaams, northern BC.
October 15, 2022 – Dead Humpback was seen floating from a distance near Wales Island. Presumed to be Whale #1. Colouration on the underside of the whale and location suggest this is likely.
October 23, 2022 – Dead Humpback #2 on the north side of Malcolm Island. We secured her body and identified her. She was Spike (BCX1847) a young female. Signs of blunt-force trauma.
November 5, 2022 – Dead Humpback #3 (male). Naikoon Provincial Park, Haida Gwaii To date we in the Canadian Pacific Humpback Collaboration have not been able to identify this individual. He is likely a previously undocumented Humpback. He has very distinctive markings allowing us to know this is not the same whale as dead Humpback #1. Signs of blunt-force trauma.
November 13, 2022 – Dead Humpback #4 (male). Naikoon Provincial Park, Haida Gwaii. This whale was in a further state of decay confounding the ability to ID who this might be. We were however able to conclude by comparing photos of a pectoral fin and underside of the body that this is not the same whale as dead Humpback #1.
November 20, 2022 – Dead Humpback #5 (3rd dead Humpback on East Beach, Haida Gwaii). Very decomposed but photos allowing us to compare the shape of the right pectoral fin to dead Humpback #1 lead us to believe this is an additional dead Humpback.
Original post:
With more Humpbacks along the coast, there is more overlap with fishing gear and vessel traffic and indeed: “Dead whales most often sink. So, as bad as the situation appears, it is likely worse.”
We are heartened that there has been this level of concern and have strived to speak about these whales as ambassadors.
See below for what you can do to increase whale and boater safety. Thank you.
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Summary of the known dead Humpback Whales:
1. October 12, 2022 – Dead Humpback #1. Floating near Lax Kw’alaams, northern BC.
2. October 15, 2022 – Dead Humpback seen floating from a distance near Wales Island. Presumed to be Whale #1. Colouration on the underside of the whale and location suggest this is likely.
3. October 23, 2022 – Dead Humpback #2 on the north side of Malcolm Island. We secured her body and identified her. She was Spike (BCX1847) a young female. Signs of blunt-force trauma.
4. November 5, 2022 – Dead Humpback #3 (male). Naikoon Provincial Park, Haida Gwaii To date we in the Canadian Pacific Humpback Collaboration have not been able to identify this individual. He is likely a previously undocumented Humpback. He has very distinctive markings allowing us to know this is not the same whale as dead Humpback #1. Signs of blunt-force trauma.
5. November 13, 2022 – Dead Humpback #4 (male). Naikoon Provincial Park, Haida Gwaii. This whale was in a further state of decay confounding the ability to ID who this might be. We were however able to conclude by comparing photos of a pectoral fin and underside of the body that this is not the same whale as dead Humpback #1.
6. November 20, 2022 – Dead Humpback #5 (3rd dead Humpback on East Beach, Haida Gwaii). Very decomposed but photos allowing us to compare the shape of the right pectoral fin to dead Humpback #1 lead us to believe this is an additional dead Humpback.
Note that there are currently at least 3 Humpback Whales known to be entangled along BC’s coast. This has been reported to the Incident Reporting Line 1-800-465-4336.
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What to do?
– Know the laws and best practices to reduce the chance of collision, and what to do if you see entanglement, a dead marine mammal, violations or other incidents of concern. See www.SeeABlowGoSlow.org.
– If you are a coastal British Columbian, put the Incident Reporting Line number into your phone 1-800-465-4336.
– Model best boater behaviour including the use of the Whale Warning Flag in the waters of British Columbia and Washington State. See www.whaleflag.org.
– Use your voice for the other large whale species that is very vulnerable to vessel strike. Up to December 2nd you can weigh in that protection should not be reduced for Fin Whales when it is not known how many whales there are and threats are increasing. Please see our information at this link.
Please note that the source of the Humpback Whale population estimate used in last night’s news report is not known to BC’s Humpback Whale researchers. There have not been multi-year surveys to allow for an accurate / reliable population estimate.
There is one study (SPLASH) that led to the estimate that in 2006, the number of Humpback Whales along BC’s coast was 2,145 whales. This estimate did not include 1st-year calves nor Humpbacks in BC’s non-coastal waters.
A survey was done in 2018 (PRISMM) that will lead to another estimate for all of BC’s waters. But that will be based on one year of data and this was a year where whale presence / absence is likely to have been impacted by a marine heat wave.
This article also appeared in the Canadian Power Squadron members’ magazine, The Port Hole, in December 2021.
Humpback Whales were heavily targeted by whaling. The last whaling station in BC only closed in 1967. Humpbacks remained an uncommon sight off our coast formany decades.
As an indication of how quickly the numbers of Humpbacks have increased, in 2003, when we began research in our core study area around north eastern Vancouver Island, we documented only seven Humpbacks in the whole year. Come 2019, we documented 95 in the same area with the same amount of research effort.
With the return of these giants, there is an increased overlap with human activities. Therefore, it is essential that coastal British Columbians know about large whales like Humpbacks, for the sake of whale AND boater safety. Not only have whales died as a result of collision and entanglement, there has been significant human injury (one boater is paralyzed as the result of collision), kayaks have been flipped, and motorized vessels have been disabled.
One of the most common misconceptions about Humpbacks is that they know where boats are and will get out of the way. Unlike toothed whales, such as Orca, Humpback Whales do not have the same bio-sonar capabilities. These giants are very unpredictable. They can be oblivious of boats especially when feeding or socializing. They can be resting just below the surface; unexpectedly surface after long dives; or suddenly become acrobatic.
A further dangerous misconception is that Humpbacks are migrating through BC waters, travelling in a predictable direction. Reality is that many of these whales return from the breeding grounds to feed in the same, specific areas of our coast year-after-year. They are seasonal neighbours who have preferred feeding areas and strategies. Thereby, they are often travelling in unpredictable patterns in the same area NOT travelling in a straight line.
What can you do to reduce your risk of collision?
Give whales space. It is the law to stay 100 metres away from Humpbacks and this becomes 200 metres when the whales are resting or with a calf. Since it is difficult to determine if a whale is resting or when is a mother with a calf, we recommend always staying at least 200 metres away from Humpback Whales. For Orca in the area south from Campbell River to Ucluelet, the minimum approach distance is 400 metres.
Always be on the lookout for blows and other indicators of whale presence such as large aggregation of birds. Humpbacks and some bird species share the same food sources, such as krill and small schooling fish. More birds therefore signal an increased chance of whale presence.
If despite your vigilance, a whale surfaces within 100m, shut off the boat engine until the whale is beyond 100m.
Watch for vessels flying the “Whale Warning Flag”. This signals that whales are in the area.
Familiarize yourself with areas known to have a greater likelihood of whale presence and be extra vigilant in these areas. See link below.
Know the laws and further best practices. Including your legal responsibility to report any collisions and entanglements to the DFO Incident Reporting Line. See www.SeeABlowGoSlow.org
While commercial whaling was banned in 1966, there are still many ways to kill a whale. All of us are connected to whales through our consumer and voting choices – impacting changes in climate; vessel traffic; the threat of entanglement and plastic pollution; and ocean noise. The resource below addresses entanglement and vessel strike. For the many daily actions you can undertake to help the whales, see this page and also sign up for our newsletter.
“How to Save a Whale” is an essential resource on the risks of collision and entanglement. It was made possible by theSitka Foundation.
With the fortunate increase in the number of Humpback Whales off our coast, it is essential that boaters know more about the risks of collision and entanglement (for the sake of whale AND boater safety).
Our preliminary results, conducted in collaboration with Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), show that ~ 50% of Humpbacks in British Columbia have scarring that shows they have been entangled (>1,000 Humpbacks). This data provides an indication of how very serious the risk of entanglement is. It does not reveal how many Humpbacks have died as a result of entanglement.
Summary of key points on what to do in case you find an entangled whale:
With great urgency, report the entanglement with location. In British Columbia call theDFO Incident Line at 1-800-465-4336.If you do not have cell service, use VHF Channel 16 (Coast Guard). For entanglements in Washington State, call SOS WHALe (1-877-767-9425). For entanglements in other ares of Canada, see phone numbers at the end of this page.
If at all possible, remain with the whale at a distance until trained help arrives or another boat takes over tracking, otherwise the chances of relocating the whale are greatly diminished.
Take whatever video/photos are possible to document the entanglement and to identify the whale as an individual but maintain a distance that doesn’t stress the whale (minimum of 100 metres).
Why it is so important NOT to attempt to remove any fishing gear or rope from the whale:
It risks human and whale safety (has led to human death). Professional training and equipment are needed to assess the entanglement and proceed safely with the greatest chance of success.
Often, much of the fishing gear in which the whale is entangled is not visible at the surface. If members of the public put themselves at risk and remove gear at the surface, they would not help the whale because now it is more difficult to: – Recognize that the whale is entangled; and – Disentangle the whale even if it is relocated. Trailing gear at the surface provides the opportunity for trained responders to attach a tag to track the whale and/or to attach floatation to maintain contact with and slow down an entangled whale. Loss of this gear can significantly reduce rescuers’ ability to save the whale.
For Canada’s Marine Mammal Regulations and key points on how to avoid collision, please see our pagewww.SeeABlowGoSlow.org.
Marine Education and Research Society 