We host students from all walks of life in our Whale University classes, but this may be our first feline participant! Noble, seen here, was quite taken with our Bigg's 301 lesson on mapping orca travel patterns. 🤓🗺️😻

With J Pod making a recent appearance in central Puget Sound, we thought it would be fun to look back and share a moment from an encounter we had with them (and J62) a year ago on Feb 20, 2025 at Cattle Point (San Juan Island). Enjoy this short clip recorded by Jason! (full video link in comments)

Your comments are needed in support of prioritizing salmon and steelhead recovery in the Columbia River Basin! These fish include key Chinook stocks for the Southern Residents. Our latest BOLD action guide will help you through the process: www.canva.com/design/DAHCN... Comments are due by 3/2!

The 2nd episode of the series "Southern Resident Killer Whales: 20 Years Endangered" from the @afterthebreach.bsky.social is out now! Episode one covered how the Southern Residents ended up endangered. This episode focuses on our accomplishments and shortcomings. Take a listen via the link below!

BREACHER FEATURE! Two of the most well-known Bigg's orca brothers are the stars of our newest OBI merch. T19B Galiano is featured on the holographic sticker & T19C Spouter is featured on the shiny pin. For a limited time you can pick up the duo in this pin and sticker set! 🔗 Link in the comments!

One of the best ways to learn to ID killer whales is to draw them! Even if you aren’t an artist, it trains your eye in new ways. It’s one of our assignments in our Bigg’s 201 class, and we always love to see what everyone comes up with. Here are some recent examples!

🎼 Sound On: On February 16, the Greater L4s were spotted near Sooke, BC, while Js were likely further south in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Later, Js & Ls calls were heard on the Andrew's Bay hydrophone. Here is the animated map of that day's events & a hydrophone clip of J-Pod recorded that night!

Here's a photo from @whaleresearch.bsky.social of the new calf they documented with L-Pod on 2/16! Look at that saddle patch 😍 Cautious optimism is the name of the game for newborn Southern Residents, but we sure hope mom and baby are able to thrive. #orcas #whalesky #salishsea

By popular demand, more images from 11/2/25 and the Southern Resident killer whale pass at Point Robinson, as seen from on the water while we were conducting our research project with CWR. 😍 #orcas #whalesky #salishsea #pugetsound

J-Pod audible on the Andrew's Bay hydrophone in Haro Strait 23:00 live.orcasound.net/listen/andre... #wssjis

Yesterday was our 1st Whale U trip of 2026, as our 50 Shades of Gray Whale class went to Whidbey to look for some the Sounders. We lucked out with sunshine and CRC53 Little Patch feeding right off the Langley sea wall! 🐋🎓 Learn more about Whale U here: www.orcabehaviorinstitute.org/whale-univer...

In honor of Valentine's Day, we want to know: who is your orca crush? 😍 Let us know in the comments below! We're also offering a last chance deal on our heart-themed sticker packs: they are $12 today only! After today, they'll be gone. www.orcabehaviorinstitute.org/product/2026...

10:00 report of at least 3 orcas heading NW from Turn Island towards Friday Harbor #wssjis #whalesky #salishsea

Who was at Point Robinson on November 2 when J-Pod, K-Pod, and part of L-Pod went south on an warm autumn afternoon? If you were there, can you find yourself in this photo? Here was the view from the water while we were out with the CWR for our first Puget Sound encounter of the field season.

We're excited to share that we have a new OBI Board member: Mollie Segall! This rapid fire Q&A between Mollie and Monika gives you a chance to get to know her including her goals for OBI, favorites whales, and perhaps most importantly, what she thinks of the T60 brothers 😏 Welcome Mollie!!

We are thrilled to announce that for the second year in a row, we will be attending the Tortuga Music Festival in Florida on April 10-12! 🎸🌊 Whether you live in Florida or are making the trip to hear music from the likes of Post Malone, Kenny Chesney, and Riley Green, we hope to see you there!

Whale evolution makes me uncomfortable

‪In the WA state legislative session, bills must leave their house of origin by 2/17, so now is a key time to let your elected officials know how you would like them to vote. Our BOLD action guide summarizes the bills and provides links to comment: tinyurl.com/boldactionfe... #salishsea

8:00 report of 2 male orcas heading west through Peavine Pass #wssjis

Western Washington sure is an amazing place. After spending the night in Seattle, we were up in the snow of Snoqualmie Pass the next morning. We then made a detour on the way home and got to see killer whales in Puget Sound in the afternoon! 🗻🌊 #orcas #whalesky #salishsea

Valentine’s Day is coming up and we've got a special deal just for Valentine's week! We’ve added the Total Eclipse Sticker featuring J41 and J62 to the Valentine’s sticker pack. 🎁 Grab your sticker deal today through this link! www.orcabehaviorinstitute.org/product/vale...

You've seen the map, but here's another look at how our January 2026 Salish Sea orca sightings stacked up! This is a brand new version of our monthly graphic, so let us know what you think! Is there anything else you would like to see on these recaps? #orcas #whalesky

Southern Resident killer whales are audible on the Haro Strait hydrophones this morning as of 8:30! live.orcasound.net/listen/orcas... #orcas #whalesky

January whale-watching in the Salish Sea? It's a thing! Monika joined @afterthebreach.bsky.social host Jeff and @sjiwhalewatch.bsky.social naturalist April to talk about last month's orca encounters around the San Juan Islands for this podcast episode. Take a listen via the link below! #whalesky

How is it we have already completed the first month of 2026? Here's the January killer whale sightings map for the Salish Sea! Check out the full report written by Monika on our website to learn more about it: www.orcabehaviorinstitute.org/sightings-ma...

Treat yourself to a "killer" Valentine's Day with this fun orca sticker set 💞 Snag this limited edition pack here: www.orcabehaviorinstitute.org/product/2026... #orcas #whalesky

It was a wild morning on the west side of San Juan Island! J-Pod calls were clearly audible on the Orcasound hydrophone in Haro Strait, but we couldn't find a single dorsal fin! In case you missed tuning in live, here's a clip of the vocalizations we heard. on.soundcloud.com/XEviyKtdayGD...

J-Pod audible on Orcasound hydrophone 8:39 live.orcasound.net/listen/orcas... #wssjis

When you hear about whale encounters, you probably hear terms such as tail slaps, spyhops, pec slaps, logging, or cartwheels used to describe their actions. This clip shows you a few of these behaviors to give you a visual for what these terms mean! ℹ️Link to the full 4K video in the comments below!

On 1/25, our Bigg's 201 virtual student Jess from Western Australia got the chance to connect with our researcher Sara! 😍 The two of them went out with Naturaliste Charters to see the orcas of Bremer Canyon, the first time Jess ever got to see killer whales! The whale photos are hers. #whalesky

We’ve got some KILLER new items to introduce and we’re especially excited for this unique sticker pack pulled together with Valentine’s Day in mind. Gift them to a “dorca” in your life or treat yourself! Browse these items and more at our online store here: www.orcabehaviorinstitute.org/shop

After sharing our annual Salish Sea orca sightings maps earlier this week, we thought it would be a good time to share some additional comparisons between 2025 and 2024. Given these numbers, does it change any of your predictions for what we might see unfold in 2026? #whalesky #orca #killerwhales

📢 Reminder! Comments on the revised Chehalis Dam proposal are due on 2/4! We summarize the issue, provide suggested talking points, and link to the comment portal in our BOLD Action guide, which you can find here: www.canva.com/.../DAG.../p... Please join us in taking this action for the SRKWs

Our teams at OBI and CWR are grateful to share that the @seadocsociety.bsky.social & Rock The Ocean are supporting the continuation of our collaborative research project, fully funding the next season of our collaboration in 2026. Thank you to the Sea Doc Society & Rock the Ocean for your support!

📣 LAST CALL to register for Whale U spring 2026 courses! We still have some space available in both Book Club and our brand new 50 Shade of Gray Whale course. You won't want to miss these courses, and with their start dates in early February, if you'd like to join us you'll need to register soon!

Here are our 2025 annual maps of Southern Resident and Bigg's killer whale presence side by side for your perusal! You can read our full summary on the year-long trends for both these Salish Sea orca populations here: www.orcabehaviorinstitute.org/orca-updates... #whalesky

It's exciting to receive updates from Sara while she is collecting data on orcas near Bremer Canyon! On 1/19, they spotted 2 unfamiliar whales: what looked like a sprouting male & an adult female. Who are they? Who do they associate with? We can't wait for Sara to return and share more details!

Biggs killer whales northbound on the Canadian side of Haro, audible on Lime Kiln hydrophones. 10:05 on 1/23/26 #orcas #wssjis

🐋🎓 Whale U Around the World! Our flagship Bigg's 201 class began as a hybrid course with in-person components. Due to the growing interest from folks from afar, we created a fully virtual version of Bigg's 201. What we didn't expect was that students would join us from 12 different countries!

Each year, we try to predict how many confirmed Bigg's killer whale sightings there will be. Last year, our staff member Amanda was closest with her guess of 1845 (there were 1860!). Submit your guess for 2026 by 1/31 for a chance to win a 6-month Patreon subscription forms.gle/L8eWSN2cWqxL...

The new year is off to a great start, and we've already kicked off one of the 2026 Whale U classes! If you're ready to find your place among fellow whale fans & want learn more about orcas, come join us! We can't wait to meet you! 🐋🎓Will You Whale U? www.orcabehaviorinstitute.org/whale-univer...

Orca Network is hosting their annual Ways of Whales workshop with a wonderful line up of guest speakers, and we've been invited to bring some educational materials to join in and table at this event. Stop by and snag our new T19B Galiano sticker! More details here: givebutter.com/c/e8NM4k

Action alert for Washington state residents: two more environmental bills are being heard next week. Learn the details and find the instructions to register your position via the link below. One is being heard on Monday, so it's important to take action this weekend! tinyurl.com/janboldaction2

Last weekend we had an incredible encounter in western Haro Strait when the T19s took down a Steller sea lion. This is just a clip, but you should definitely check out the full highlight video in 4K on our YouTube channel. ⭐️ Link to the 4K video in the comments! #orca #killerwhale #salishsea

A few more stats from December 2025 orca sightings in the Salish Sea! - A new calf was seen traveling with T252. - Another new calf was seen in K-Pod, K47 is the first known offspring of K36. - The 6th month of the year where Biggs sightings were down Vs 2024. Which one surprises you the most?

The latest episode of @afterthebreach.bsky.social podcast is part 1 of a new series: The Southern Resident orcas have now been endangered for 20 years. How did we get here, what have we done to help, and why aren't they recovering? Listen in to the start of this important conversation. #whalesky

We'll have an overall summary of 2025 to share soon, but for now here is our final monthly sightings map of the year summarizing killer whale sightings in the Salish Sea in December. Read the full description for this map on our website here: tinyurl.com/obidec2025 #orcas #whalesky

The world is a lot right now, but we can still take actions on the local level. In this BOLD action guide we've outlined a quick way Washington State residents can take action on a suite of bills that will impact the health of the Salish Sea. Each will just take a moment! tinyurl.com/jan26bills1

Last week, we shared a post about our first orca encounter of the year on January 2nd, where we came across the T77s in Sidney Channel, BC. Today, we are excited to share a highlight clip from that day, filmed and edited by Jason! We hope you enjoy it! ⭐️ Link to the 4K video in the comments!

Today was another incredible day on the water: we caught up with the T19s who successfully took a Steller sea lion in western Haro Strait! The winter lighting was reminiscent of the photos you see of foraging killer whales in Norway. #orcas #killerwhales #whalesky