There's Something About Orca

by Sam Lipman

Why orca and not tigers or dinosaurs or bottlenose dolphins or bears? A question that I am often asked and a question that, if I am perfectly honest, I find difficult to answer. I don't really know "why orca". For me, it has just always been that way, from as far back as I can remember, when I first laid eyes on one. 

I had always loved all animals as a child but growing up in a big concrete town, I never had the opportunity to see or learn about whales and dolphins. That is, until I saw Keiko, the orca who played Willy in the hit Hollywood movie "Free Willy". My four-year old heart melted. 

I remember being sat in that cinema chair in 1994 filled with absolute awe and, despite the fact I was only watching this magnificent creature through a television screen (albeit a very large TV screen), I felt a connection with him, with his entire species. There was just something special about this animal, something magical - something that even to this day I find incredibly difficult to put into words. And this wonder wasn't limited to Keiko as an individual - not at all. I still get shivers down my spine and feel that indescribable excitement building when I watch those first few moments of the "Free Willy" movie - the video footage of orca swimming through the open ocean, with the signature opening credit theme music playing over the top. 

This burning passion that gripped me as a toddler has stayed with me throughout my life so far and I now bare the proud label of "orcaholic", that many of you share with me.

So why orca? The conclusion that I have reached is that there's just something about orca. Which isn't very helpful at all, so I put the question to the girl who grew up with orca (and many other cetacean species) in her back garden, Melisa Pinnow. 

Once you've read why it's orca for Melisa, we would love to hear from YOU - why have orca stolen your attention, and possibly even your heart?  

by Melisa Pinnow (guest blogger)

25 year old Matia L77 does an inverted tail slap
(Photo © Melisa Pinnow)

I am asked this question all the time and I often wonder about it myself. I believe one reason I fell in love with orcas is due to their lifelong family bonds. Sons and daughters stay with their mothers their entire lives, making them relatable. It proves to me that these beings can feel emotions, experiencing happiness and excitement as a younger sibling is being born or sadness and mourning when a family member passes away or is captured for life in a tank. Their extremely high level of intelligence, problem solving abilities and hunting techniques also draws me in. 

I love how they all have unique saddle patches, eye patches and dorsal fin shapes that allow me to identify and get to know each individual I meet and their personalities are just as unique. Another reason is an adult male’s 6 foot tall dorsal fin. Watching something so tall rise up out of the water as a male surfaces is an amazing sight. I also love all of their surface behaviors they do from breaching, spy hopping, belly flopping and cartwheeling to above water vocalizations and playing with kelp. 

Unique saddle patches: 17 year-old Crewser L92 & 
56 year-old grandma Baba L26 (Photo © Melisa Pinnow)

Another reason is that they are just as curious of us as we are of them. On 8/31/12 a 5 month old female named L119 came straight over to our boat and playfully tail slapped and looked up at us from underwater. She paralleled us for a bit then abruptly turned and rolled around in delight as if we were the most exciting thing she had ever seen in her life. On separate occasions we have also had Cappuccino K21, Cousteau L113, Mystery L85, Samish J14, Wave Walker L88, Star J46, Mega L41, and Mike J26 come over to our boat and eye us. I also love orcas for the sounds they make. An orca’s quick exhale and inhale is my favorite sound in the world. During summer nights I open up my window and go to sleep to the sounds of the Southern Resident orcas breathing as they swim past my house.  I also love their vocalizations they make, especially the calls of resident orcas because each pod has a unique accent that makes it so you can identify a pod just by listening to them. Plus, who couldn’t love an orca’s sleek black and white patterned body! These are the reasons I am interested in orcas. 

Melisa is also author of Orca in my Garden.  

35 year old Nugget L55 breaches (Photo © Melisa Pinnow) 

Orca in my Garden

by Melisa Pinnow (guest blogger) 

Ever since I was born in 1993, I have lived on an island in Washington State where a small population of orcas frolics along the west side in the summer time, looking for Chinook salmon to munch on. This island is called San Juan Island. We lived in a house with a view of the west side and growing up at this house was great. I had the big yard to run around in, a big pond with frogs and dragonflies galore and a forest surrounding the house that I was ready to explore. But I don't remember watching the orcas until I was 10 years old, even though they were literally in my back yard. 

K16 'Opus' spy hopping (Photo © Melisa Pinnow)

The first time I ever saw an orca that I can remember was when I was 10. I was at a beach near my house when I scrambled up onto a high rock to look over the water. I do not remember if I had seen the orca surface and had climbed up the rock to get a better look at him or if I had just gotten lucky to see this spectacular sight while I was up there. Either way, a huge male surfaced not 20 feet away from me heading north. His dorsal fin was tall and straight while his saddle patch was closed and may or may not have had a finger.  Every time I think back on this encounter I wish I could go back in time with the knowledge I have now and identify this male that I saw. Not getting to know all of the orcas that passed away before I became interested in them drives me crazy. At 10 though, this orca was cool to me but I left not feeling interested.

The second time I watched the orcas was when I was 12 and I was with a friend at the same beach. A pod of orcas was heading south past us and one spy hopped to look at us while we sat on some rocks with the waves licking our toes from about 200 feet away. My friend and I ran away because we thought that the orca was hunting us and was going to come up onto the rock and grab us, like a population of Argentinean orcas that grab seal pups off of the beach by purposefully beaching themselves. Of course I would find out many years later that these were orcas that are only Chinook salmon. As I grew older I remember wanting to go out on a whale watching boat and see the orcas up close. In 2008 and 09 I remember asking my mom all the time we could go out whale watching. I am not sure what spiked the change to make me suddenly interested in watching the orcas, but my dream was about to come true. 

L78 'Gaia' with mum L2 'Grace' (Photo © Melisa Pinnow)

In July of 2010, my mom told me it was time for me to get a job so I asked a friend who was working on a whale watching boat if there were any openings. There were and after introducing myself to the boss/captain he invited me out on the boat to see if I would like the job. I was finally on a whale watching boat! 

We headed up Presidents Channel in between Waldron and Orcas Island. There we found J pod heading towards us. As we paralleled the J pod I saw someone who I will never forget. Ruffles J1, a 59 year old male, slowly surfaced in one fluid motion about 100 feet off of the boat. I will never forget that image of the tip of his 6 foot dorsal fin slowly ascending from the depths until his body followed. I got the job and Ruffles became the first orca I could identify in the Southern Resident population of orcas. After seeing him a few more times he passed away around November 2010. 

Over that winter I started learning how to identify the rest of J pod, as well as K and L pod members. I had caught the orca bug and there is no cure. Now as I write this in the year 2012 I look back and am amazed at how much my life has changed in such a short amount of time. I do not know where I would be now if it wasn't for Ruffles pulling me into his world. I now know how to identify every member of the Southern Resident orca population, except for a few calves if they are not next to their mothers, and am a certified marine naturalist telling guests aboard the whale watching boat all about the orcas that changed my life and how to help change theirs so that they will be around for generations to come. 

L84 'Nyssa' breaches (Photo © Melisa Pinnow