Orca Nation » Video

3 Brothers, Cracroft disappearance

orcanation — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 21:04:57 +0000

This is a post dedicated to the legendary 3 brothers known as the A36′s. They are a small group of northern resident orcas (killer whales) who frequent the north of Vancouver Island during the summer season. This season they returned but have not since been sighted with brother A32 aka Cracroft. It’s possible as pointed out by Orca Lab that he is deceased. With this news, I wanted to celebrate this small and special brotherhood here. Every year that I have traveled north (since 2005) they have been a major part of my experience. Weather seen from Mackay Whale Watching, Stubbs Island Whale Watching, Seasmoke Whale Watching or the shores of Malcolm Island, they have always been there. Last year in particular was very special when I saw them passing Malcolm Island and making brilliant vocals on the (Friends of the Wild Side / Bere Point Research Camp) hydrophone. During that time period, we also saw them traveling with A12 since her son (Nimpkish) A33 had not returned with her the previous year (presumed dead). It was heart warming to see the group together. Please enjoy the photos and video below.

Here is the excerpt taken from the Orca Live website stating the sighting;

“CetaceaLab reports that a large group of northern resident whales were nearby yesterday (June 15). The group included the A5s, A24s, A34s, Cs and Ds. The A36s were also there along with A12. This is the second sighting of the A36s with A12. Sadly, it looks as if A32 (Cracroft) is now gone as he was not seen during either encounter. He will be missed very much. On another track, Paul is off to the IWC. The meeting is being held in Agadir, Morocco this year. We have set up a blog on www.orcalab.org (link at the top right) so that he will be able to post summaries and comments during the meeting. It is a crucial year for the IWC and for whales. The threat to resume commercial whaling is a very real possibility.
Helena
16 Jun 2010 08:27:59 PDT”

Also, check out this great video from last summer of the 3 Brothers produced by Rachael Griffin

Luna Love

orcanation — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 22:21:58 +0000

From the blogs……..

Friday, October 29, 2004 (Canada)
Orca Dream – Transformation

I will write this down before it fades.

I dreamed I was on an island near shore when I saw a pod of orca passing. I ran along side with my camera (typical of me) to get some footage of them. As I turned around the bend the pod got closer and one individual came towards shore. Rather then being a baby this time it seemed to be an almost full grown male… As the animal got closer, he transformed into a man, who then walked towards me. He was a young native man, seemed very happy and smiled the whole time. He came towards me and asked me to go with him however I was shocked and confused. I followed the man into what felt like a tunnel, almost underwater however it felt like we were in an air bubble and there were many others (indigenous looking) there too.

It was very compelling and the first time an orca has emerged into a human being before my eyes.

__^__

Friday, March 10, 2006 (Mexico)
Luna Dies

Very sad news…
Our friend Luna has died apparently struck by a tugboat at 9am this morning.

__^__

Tuesday, March 14, 2006 (Mexico)
La Sonrisa

He smiled at her, and then she tingled all over while thinking I’ve seen that face before…

__^__

She dreamed of him, and then he came true… Was it destiny? Stay tuned…

A journey that started in 1998 and came full circle in 2009

All text, images, concepts are © of orcagirl.com and are protected under Canadian copyright law

Northern Residents

orcanation — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 22:06:45 +0000

As things in the south become more tense and condensed with people and politics, I have been more and more inclined to escape to the north where the vibe is so completely different. I do love the south very much however I do end up needing breaks from it. Up here, it’s possible to watch whales without being around people and that is a nice bonus. To be situated on the shoreline in the wilderness… It’s a different experience and it’s very sacred to me. I have been going up north since 2003 (since Luna – he is the one who got me into all this) and have been returning every year. This year I managed to get up there 3 times to my secret spot that I love so much. Above you can see some of the media from those trips.

On the last trip I managed to witness something really incredible. Firstly, I heard the A36 brothers call all alone in the Queen Charlotte Strait. There was not a boat that day in the strait and the calls echoed incredibly. They were calling out, as if to be responded to, I am assuming they were looking for A12. A12 (an elder) lost her son this past year (A33 Nimpkish) and has been traveling solo sometimes when she is not with the 3 big boys who have seemed to adopted her as their step mom. The day after the calls, we saw the A36′s traveling in the strait with A12. They were not calling at that point. It’s an amazing observation to have, to share this understanding that orcas are like people, need friends and family and ultimately love and companionship in their lives… It is my dream to move up there in the future. Where I can access those days, standing alone on the shoreline, just me and an orca… Yes it is possible.

Luna & Dog on Animal Planet

orcanation — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 23:14:22 +0000

http://animal.discovery.com/videos/untamed-uncut/

The show will do a small 1-2 min segment on this clip. Sunday Sept 13 at 9 pm

Luna & Dog was also sighted on the Ellen DeGeneres show, the award winning feature film Saving Luna, and will appear in the feature film Unity – the sequal to the award winning feature film Earthlings. I never would have thought when capturing this, what impact this would make. I’ll keep you posted as stuff comes up.

Brothers J39 & J27

orcanation — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 02:06:32 +0000

A complete surprise while on our way into Vancouver via Prince of Whales Butchart Gardens, Adventure crossing combo (not designed to be a whale watching tour) ; Jpod was fishing near the north arm of the Fraser River around 7:30pm. Here, J27 and younger sibling J39 are showing communication and/or foraging behavior; tail slaps, pec slaps, even a breach!. You can see that Mako J39 copies what his big brother Blackberry J27 is doing and that they are a team!. It’s a heart warming observation to see the two together in this way. I was thinking about them all night! A side note; I observed and documented (images and video) animals spread far far apart, partaking in similar behavior. The animals were mainly solo, and far off into the distance, there were no boats around them. I am assuming the animals were participating in foraging behavior of some kind or some kind of long distance communication?.

You can see the blog post of the entire journey at Prince of Whales Blog

Some notes on these two co/ the Center for Whale Research;

J27 • Male • Born 1991
Mother is J11 (deceased), siblings are J25 (deceased), J31 & J39.

J39 • Male • Born 2003
Mother is J11 (deceased), siblings are J25 (deceased), J27 & J31.

The Jumper

orcanation — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 18:11:56 +0000

A group of southern residents, thought to belong to either K or L pod make their way off while one (female) breaches forward 6 times in total, what a wonderful moment shared by all!

Killer whales & Kites

orcanation — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 19:16:13 +0000

Caught up with Kpod and a few L’s traveling across Haro Strait to the San Juan Island area where they tend to forage. L78 is showing some battle scars, looks like rough play or tough love On the way home, there were a ton of kiteboarders out taking advantage of the high winds… Some rode along side, and played and jumped in our vessel wake. Reminds me of orcas

RIP Michael Jackson

orcanation — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 04:14:05 +0000

I can’t think of a better way to remember this musical legend then by featuring a video our orca friends; Keiko and the southern resident killer whales. From the movie Free Willy, this song was written by Michael and is a story of Keiko’s journey to freedom. Ironically both stars in this video are in the galaxy now hopefully together enjoying the mystery beyond our realm. Our entire world has been unified by the death of a man who touched all our lives through music, what an incredible impact he has made. Thank you.

Will you be there…

Looking Back & Ahead

orcanation — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 21:10:29 +0000

This is a video slide show of some of my photos of killer whales from 2003 to 2007. I selected some of my favorites out of approximately 5000 photos shot during that time. I have seen some interesting times, seen some of the orcas come and go, but as the song says; lucky time never stops … we go on and in the near future I will be encountering more orcas, taking new photos and new videos to later look back on… Cheers to new experiences and those that have past. I have been fortunate to capture it. This has been a life altering journey.

I have witnessed the story of the orcas hit epic heights. I remember my first whale watching trip back in 1997, no one was around and we were hanging out with a group of whales which are partially now deceased, it was actually Luna’s matriline before he was born.. Interesting no?. Little I would realize later in time, that I would be witnessing one of the planet’s most dramatic stories of life. I felt the power but at the time didn’t realize to what proportion was unfolding although i’d seen it in my dreams. I left Ryerson immediately upon graduating with the hopes of following this dream of orcas and here we are. It’s not always been easy and at points it’s left me devastatingly heart broken but has it been worth it? Yes. I am grateful to the entire Orca community who have allowed me to stand and take my position to cover my own story, of magic. The whale watching industry, the scientific community, non profit, government and the general public. All have been necessary for me to accomplish this unique mix of perspectives. Gracias todo.

Orcagirl Photos from Chantelle Tucker on Vimeo.

Documentary; Home

orcanation — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 05:32:30 +0000

On the topic of all being related comes probably one of the best illustrated documentaries unifying all of our existences by our host of life and how human behaviors are devestatingly impacting all life on which we depend.

HOME on YouTube

We are living in exceptional times. Scientists tell us that we have 10 years to change the way we live, avert the depletion of natural resources and the catastrophic evolution of the Earth’s climate. The stakes are high for us and our children. Everyone should take part in the effort, and HOME has been conceived to take a message of mobilization out to every human being. For this purpose, HOME needs to be free. A patron, the PPR Group, made this possible. EuropaCorp, the distributor, also pledged not to make any profit because Home is a non-profit film. HOME has been made for you : share it! And act for the planet.

Yann Arthus-Bertrand, GoodPlanet Fundation President