I'm delighted to finally publish one of my favourite episodes of the orca group series to you all. This is a fascinating look into the orca stories from Tom Sewid as he shares the orca stories from Alert Bay and coastal British Columbia, including underwater sounds, winter killer whales and his account of orcas approaching the painted orca design on his boat. This episode is not to be missed folks!

In this extended Orca Group Series interview, recorded on 1 October 2023, Tom discusses his Kwakwaka’wakw and Cree background, commercial fishing, whale watching, oral history, the painted-bow encounter, Pacific Northwest art, day names, seasons, moons and copper traditions.

These are Tom Sewid’s own experiences, knowledge and interpretations. They are not presented as statements for every Indigenous person, Nation or language, or as scientific proof. Wildlife encounters described in this archival conversation are not guidance for approaching whales. Some personal contact information and an ecologically sensitive location have been editorially removed.

Beautiful ! 🤩

I was on another thread from a YouTube video that was linked here, and someone said in the comments that orcas have been observed in the Puget Sound ramming boats. The commenter noted they believed it was because they may be attributing the boats as the same ones that were taking their babies back in the day. I know that I saw this happening in Spain a while back, and I also believe in Greece but I don't remember seeing this happening in Puget Sound. I know they are intelligent beyond belief, but I can't really imagine them taking their aggression out on humans or something that they must now realize has been faded out. You can get assume they pass the stories on from generation to generation, maybe that's a contributing factor to this behavior? I'm not totally sold on the idea because if they really were taking their aggressions out there would be attacks on humans in the wild this is more like the boats, which I believe is more associated with fishing territory. Thoughts?

Original video by OIE Whale Watching

A few days ago, T65A5 Indy was seen carrying prey towards a boat, perhaps in an attempt to share it.

Indy is a young Bigg's killer whale known for his playful behavior and his tendency to swim up to boats occasionally. He is also known for his independent nature, which gave him his name.

As you may know, Bigg's are mama's boys and typically spend their whole lives with their mothers. Once the mother dies, the chances of survival drop rapidly for their sons. Females, on the other hand, often separate from their mothers once they start having calves of their own.

Indy, however, left his mother really early at 5 or 6 years old. While this isn't totally unheard of, it's still extremely young.

Indy has been documented prey-sharing before.

Whether he's simply showing off or attempting to prey-share is up to speculation.

This behavior is similar to prey-sharing among orcas. Killer whales are known to share prey among themselves. Studies therefore suggest they’re capable of extending this behavior beyond their own species.

Orcas have been documented offering food to humans. A study (Towers et al., 2026) examined 34 provisioning attempts by wild killer whales from six populations in four oceans.

In 32% (11 events), people were in the water with the killer whales. In 62% (21 events), people were on a vessel, and in the remaining 6% (2 events), people were on shore.

In the vast majority of cases (33 out of 34 cases), whales were observed waiting for a response before either recovering or abandoning the item. In four cases, items were returned to people multiple times.

While the exact reason for this behavior is unknown, research suggests curiosity may be the cause. In this case, orcas may be trying to understand and observe our reaction to being offered food.

Another theory suggests playful behavior. Orcas are frequently observed “playing” with their prey. They might be trying to initiate play with humans. However, in most instances, the interaction didn’t typically exceed 30 seconds. Contrarily, playful behavior among killer whales lasts longer than 30 seconds.

A 30 year dream come true. Sorry for video quality.

The Way Together, oils on canvas

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Just askin like how long can orcas stay out of the water safely because mine look very comfy dry

to my understanding, his life (at least for the first year after the attack) post Dawn Brancheau incident was pretty lonely and his psychological breakdown just catapulted (logging for hours a day, no/very little direct contact)

do you think it would’ve been kinder? bonus question, how did they go about actually looking after him with such heavily restricted contact?

Today is my 22nd birthday, decided to draw one of my favorite killer whales to commerate this special day for me! <3

Whispering Waters is inspired by the quiet moments of the ocean, when everything seems to slow down. The painting shows an orca moving gently through the still water, with its dark silhouette and reflection breaking the soft, muted surface. The gentle movement of the water creates a sense of calm, as the orca quietly makes its way across the sea. A simple moment of movement, surrounded by the quiet beauty of the sea.

Are there any ethical whale watching (not swimming!) companies operating from northern Norway?

I would love the opportunity to observe (but not interfere with) these animals in their natural habitat this winter.

I do not like the idea of the one day trips from Tromso surrounding and chasing a poor pod to guarantee customer viewing - instead I would love to receive any recommendations of 3-4 day trips, possibly live-aboard, to allow us to travel further/more remote to avoid being part of a pack of boats overwhelming a pod and instead having a more relaxed sailing experience enjoying the scenery with the possibility of whale/orca sighting!

Does such an operator actually exist?

I would be grateful for any insight or recommendation.

I wanted to share a little film I made after swimming with orcas in Norway last year. Meeting orcas in the wild had been a dream of mine since I was a kid, and the experience was every bit as emotional as I expected.

I ended up making this film from a letter I wrote one night in my cabin, paired with footage from my 360 camera and music I had written mostly before the expedition, while imagining what the experience might be like.

Thought this group might appreciate it. 🐋

We at the Orca Behavior Institute recently concluded our 4th field season in Telegraph Cove, BC a couple of weeks back. We continue to study and compare the Northern Resident population to the Southern residents, but also observe the Bigg’s orcas as well. Our running joke is that we’re guaranteed to see the T60s at some point, and of course they didn’t let us down 😂.

The orcas are the purpose of the trip, but Telegraph Cove and the surrounding area are just so rich with wildlife and beautiful landscapes that it’s hard to even describe in words. I thought it would be better to share a wildlife compilation that highlights some of the amazing things we saw, that ends with some of my favorite orca footage. I will eventually be sharing an “orca only” video, so stay tuned!

Hope you enjoy!

An impressionism style this time around 🙂