DAy 2 cont'd

After this fascinating visit to Eagle Eye we returned to our boats and began our homeward voyage. The day's excitement was not over. Just as we rounded the first point three sparkling killer whale dorsal fins cut the water in front of our fleet. As our adrenaline rushed and our paddle strokes became scattered, we gathered together to watch in wonder as the entire A30 pod of seven whales passed across our bow. Then with a stroke of luck, A30 herself decided to take a detour from her family and came for a visit. When she was just meters from the side of our boats, she dove and we shrieked with excitement as her black and white streamline body streaked below us only to break the surface back alongside her pod. As the whales moved off, and the looks of awe and wonder lingered on our faces, we continued on our way feeling more content then we ever could have dreamed of.

As darkness fell and we fulfilled our hearty appetites, the guides introduced us to the hydrophone. This under-water microphone is now one of the most important aids in Killer Whale research. Each whale clan has a distinct dialect with every pod carrying a number of personalized calls. This aspect of whale identification has the advantage of not being dependant on daylight, and remote automated recording stations can be set up where humans are not available.

The hydrophone also picks up the sounds of the killer whales echolocation. Being the killer whales method of "seeing" under water, echolocation uses a repetitive series of short duration pulses of sound referred to as "click trains" each lasting for around ten seconds with the repetitive click rate ranging from a few to over 200 clicks per second. Echoes from these clicks allow the animals to create an acoustical image of their surroundings, assisting them in both navigation and hunting.

A camp-fire was built and we sat encircled by its ring of light and warmth. Stories were told, jokes were exchanged and questions answered, while in the background the hydrophone amplified, out into the night, the haunting calls of the passing Orcas.

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