By the early 1900s, commercial whaling had eliminated all humpback whales from the Salish Sea. A century later, they’re making a dramatic comeback. What is the Salish Sea restaurant providing for these giants?

Since 2019, Eagle Wing has been working with University of Victoria researcher Dr. Rhonda Reidy as she studies the feeding ecology of this recovering population. Equipped with dip nets, sample bags and observation cards, our research team is on the lookout for humpback whale poop! Reidy and her partners use DNA sequencing techniques to reveal what fish and krill species are on the humpback menu!

Known as “the big little fish,” herring are a cornerstone of marine biodiversity on the BC coast. They’re food for everything from salmon to seabirds to bears and mighty humpback whales.

Since fall 2019, Eagle Wing has been working with World Fisheries Trust (WFT) on forage fish abundance and distribution in the waters around Victoria. On tours, we look for bait balls—swirling schools of forage fish that are being gobbled up by a frenzy of seabirds. Using dip nets and underwater cameras, our research team members scoop up fish scales and take images, while documenting bait ball locations.

The Salish Sea is home to two types of porpoise. There are shy harbour porpoise. And occasionally we’ll have a lively encounter with more extroverted Dall’s porpoise.

But some porpoise populations are in decline. Where are they in the Salish Sea? What habitats are important to them? Since 2020, Eagle Wing has been helping Sea View Marine Sciences researcher Dr. Anna Hall collect data to answer these and other questions. Our research team documents each porpoise sighting—helping Hall learn more about what these enigmatic marine mammals need to survive and thrive!

We know that the Salish Sea is a popular place for whales and other marine mammals. But what species are seen and when? Which individuals do we encounter? What places are important to them?

Long-term data will reveal patterns that will help inform whale conservation measures. As a member of the Pacific Whale Watch Association (PWWA) we use a private cell phone app to log daily sightings data in real time. We also routinely take ID photos and document details of whale and other marine mammal sightings. The data is shared with scientists, government agencies and other observation networks.