Chatham Strait
As a result of eons of tectonic activity, a series of north-south geological faults span the length of Southeast Alaska. One of the larger ones is Chatham Strait, which separates the islands of Baranof and Chichagof to the west and Admiralty to the east. This is the place to come to in search of those charismatic megafauna—the whales. Southeast Alaska is visited each year by approximately 900 of these animals in search of food. Immense quantities of prey are required to create a thick layer of blubber necessary to fuel them for their migration back to Hawaii. There they will reproduce and give birth to their young and then return to Alaska next spring, all without eating!
During the morning we explored one of the sheltered bays of Chichagof Island by kayak and by Zodiac. At a nearby river, the salmon were running and the bears were eating! Two of them were clearly visible from the Zodiacs, as well as from the kayaks, from a safe distance of course! And the birds—eagles, ravens and gulls—were partaking in the bounty of spilled fish offal.
Early afternoon found us sailing further north where we found two groups of humpback whales bubblenet feeding. This is a very complex feeding behavior. Several whales dive and one or two emit sounds to scare fish into a tight ball. We could hear this haunting series of moans on our hydrophone. Another produces a circle of bubbles around the frightened prey that acts like a cage. Then the whales all come up through this water column filled with prey, usually herring, sandlance or capelin. Their ventral pouches distend with water, the jaws close, and the water is forced out through the baleen, which acts as a sieve. This is one of the greatest whale activities that humans can watch!! In some cases, as happened today, gulls hover around the whales to capture some of the fish as they are forced to the surface. Some get so close, as can be seen above, that it appears they are trying to steal fish out of the whale’s mouth!
Later, just at the start of dinner, a pod of Orcas distracted us from that important social happening. These were resident orcas, after one of the big schools of salmon that are abundant in these waters at this time of the year. The cameras clicked and whirred as these tuxedoed beauties showed off their capacity for spy hopping and playfully slapping their flukes on the surface!
As a result of eons of tectonic activity, a series of north-south geological faults span the length of Southeast Alaska. One of the larger ones is Chatham Strait, which separates the islands of Baranof and Chichagof to the west and Admiralty to the east. This is the place to come to in search of those charismatic megafauna—the whales. Southeast Alaska is visited each year by approximately 900 of these animals in search of food. Immense quantities of prey are required to create a thick layer of blubber necessary to fuel them for their migration back to Hawaii. There they will reproduce and give birth to their young and then return to Alaska next spring, all without eating!
During the morning we explored one of the sheltered bays of Chichagof Island by kayak and by Zodiac. At a nearby river, the salmon were running and the bears were eating! Two of them were clearly visible from the Zodiacs, as well as from the kayaks, from a safe distance of course! And the birds—eagles, ravens and gulls—were partaking in the bounty of spilled fish offal.
Early afternoon found us sailing further north where we found two groups of humpback whales bubblenet feeding. This is a very complex feeding behavior. Several whales dive and one or two emit sounds to scare fish into a tight ball. We could hear this haunting series of moans on our hydrophone. Another produces a circle of bubbles around the frightened prey that acts like a cage. Then the whales all come up through this water column filled with prey, usually herring, sandlance or capelin. Their ventral pouches distend with water, the jaws close, and the water is forced out through the baleen, which acts as a sieve. This is one of the greatest whale activities that humans can watch!! In some cases, as happened today, gulls hover around the whales to capture some of the fish as they are forced to the surface. Some get so close, as can be seen above, that it appears they are trying to steal fish out of the whale’s mouth!
Later, just at the start of dinner, a pod of Orcas distracted us from that important social happening. These were resident orcas, after one of the big schools of salmon that are abundant in these waters at this time of the year. The cameras clicked and whirred as these tuxedoed beauties showed off their capacity for spy hopping and playfully slapping their flukes on the surface!
