A harbour seal found itself in a precarious situation while trying to eat fish. In September, a group of whale watchers spotted a humpback whale nicknamed “Zillion” feeding on a school of small bait fish just southwest of Victoria. Zillion opened her jaws and lunged toward the surface hoping to get fish. Instead, she caught a harbour seal. The pictures are so incredible they look photoshopped.
In August 2023, a professional photographer captured a handful of powerful images showing a Bigg’s killer whale hunting harbour porpoises off Sangster Island. Simon Pidcock watched as the whale gave two hits from underneath and launched a harbour porpoise about two metres into the air.
A team of rescue members spent four days on the water to save a humpback whale that had become severely entangled near Prince Rupert. They made more than 50 rope cuts to disentangle the whale of the gear and floats.
Scott Suffron was kayaking the waters of Indian Arm in August when he spotted two whales coming up for air about half a kilometre ahead. A spurt of water erupted into the air and one large fin sliced through the water's surface. Equipped with both his GoPro and iPhone, Suffron started documenting the two as they breached to the left of his kayak.
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) announced a $30,000 penalty in August to a Vancouver film company for operating a drone too close to killer whales. This was the first time a fine had been issued in Canada for the unlawful use of a drone to capture killer whale footage.
People in Victoria were in the right spot at the right time to see a spy-hopping orca — and a photographer luckily captured the moment on camera in February. Captain Mark Malleson was conducting a tour with Prince of Whales Whale Watching when Bigg’s killer whales were spotted near Ogden Point Breakwater.
Stephen Gabrysh witnessed a humpback whale missing its tail off the Island’s coast in July. He saw the animal on July 10 and noticed it was emaciated and exhibiting odd behaviour. The whale was moving slowly, spending a lot of time at the surface and doing partial dives, without bringing its fluke out of the water.
