Whale Watching Tours
Vancouver Island, British Columbia,
Canada
Vancouver Island whale watching tours are one of the popular wildlife tours on the west coast of British Columbia Canada.
Since 1972 Canadian
biologists have studied the whale populations off the coast of Vancouver Island. In the early 1970s a pioneer mammalogist, Michael A.
Biggs of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, was part of the identification studies enabling scientists to determine the migratory patterns, reproductive cycles, age, birth and death rates of Killer
Whales (orcas). Our history is whales.
Whale Watching Tours started on the Islands in the late
1970s also. Tours are timed with the tourist season and migratory patterns of the whales. Tours generally operate between April to September.
Whale tours offer various modes of transportation options. There are zodiac, cabin cruiser and floatplane flightseeing whale watching tours. Zodiacs provide the open-air, wet and wild whale watching experience. The cabin cruiser provides comfort and heat. The floatplane provides a birds-eye view of whale pods.
The most comfortable type of whale watching tour is aboard a heated cabin cruiser. Cabin cruisers may include extras like an upper patio,
viewing decks, telescopes, see-through floors, under water cameras
and microphones and washrooms.
There are various types of whales to view off the coast of Vancouver Island. There are Grey Whales, Killer Whales and Humpback Whales.
Grey Whales ( known as Eschrichtius
Robustus) arrive in the spring time. The best time to view a Grey Whale is during their spring migration. In the spring months the whales travel from Mexico to their feeding grounds near Alaska - passing by Vancouver Island. In the fall the whales make their return trip back to to Mexico.
Killer Whales (Orca) live
and travel in pods (small groups). There are two types of whale pods - transient and resident. Transient whale pods are more mobile exploring the west coast from Alaska to Washington. The larger whale pods are known
as resident pods which stay in local waters and follow the salmon.
A Killer Whale (also known as Orcinus
Orca) is a toothed whale commonly referred to as an Orca and sometimes referred to
as a Blackfish. Orcas grow up to 25 feet long and weigh up to 6 tons. Although they inhabit the waters all year long, sightseeing tours operate during the summer months.
Humpback
Whales (also known as Megaptera Novaeangliae) can measure
up to 57 feet long and weigh 40 tons. Whale Watching Tours
often claim Humpback Whales are the most robust
if you can find one to observe. Humpbacks are usually
covered in whale lice and barnacles. Whale Watching Tours have
the opportunity to view the Humpbacks in the summer months only.
