A whale researcher will ask British Columbians to be good neighbours to marine giants in an upcoming webinar presented by Nanaimo Area Land Trust.
Jackie Hildering, humpback whale researcher in Port McNeill, will explain how humans can help protect humpback whales in the Return of Giants, a webinar about getting a second chance with the whales that she says came close to extinction before numbers rebounded.
Hildering said data is poor on how many whales there were when whaling was halted in Canada in 1966, but sa国际传媒渟ightings were the exceptionsa国际传媒� along the B.C. coast up into the 2000s when their numbers rose from an estimated seven humpbacks sighted in 2003 to 96 counted in the waters of northeast Vancouver Island in 2019.
sa国际传媒淚t truly is a second chance and itsa国际传媒檚 not just population growth post-whaling. Theysa国际传媒檙e also shifting from somewheresa国际传媒a国际传媒� said Hildering, who is director of education and communications for the Marine Education and Research Society. sa国际传媒淲e donsa国际传媒檛 know where that shift is from and what that means in terms of climate and/or prey, so this is a unique chance to learn so much.sa国际传媒�
She said theresa国际传媒檚 knowledge to be gained about climate, ecosystems, social associations and feeding strategies from the whales, which can rest just below the watersa国际传媒檚 surface or surface unexpectedly after very long dives.
sa国际传媒淲hat has also become so incredibly necessary is boater education,sa国际传媒� Hildering said. sa国际传媒淸Humpbacks] are a game changer for all flavours of boaters on our coast because theysa国际传媒檙e giants. The mature females are as big as big as school buses.sa国际传媒�
Humpback habits, physical size and even how they sense their environment is different from orcas and dolphins that hunt with their natural form of echo-locating sonar that allows them to track and pinpoint prey and other objects, such as boats.
sa国际传媒淸Humpbacks] donsa国际传媒檛 have the bio-sonar of toothed whales,sa国际传媒� Hildering said. sa国际传媒淓specially when theysa国际传媒檙e feeding, having left our rich waters to go to the breeding lagoons of primarily Mexico and Hawaii, they are hungry. They are feeding and they are most often oblivious to boats, so thatsa国际传媒檚 one huge educational need to bring across to people.sa国际传媒�
Itsa国际传媒檚 also difficult to portray how high the risks of net entanglement and collisions are, she said, because most whales sink when they die. With no dead whale bodies floating on the watersa国际传媒檚 surface theresa国际传媒檚 no evidence of a death, but 50 per cent of the whales studied show scars of boat collisions and net entanglement.
sa国际传媒淭here wasnsa国际传媒檛 even the legal obligation to report collision or entanglement up to sa国际传媒� 2018 and even Transport Canada hasnsa国际传媒檛 caught up,sa国际传媒� Hildering said. sa国际传媒淚t will change, but how is even the best-intentioned boater supposed to know about whale behaviour, let alone what the marine mammal regulations are?sa国际传媒�
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Hildering is often asked why humpback whales are here, but the better question, she said, is why would humpbacks leave an area where theysa国际传媒檙e finding food. The whales belong here because the waters around Vancouver Island are rich in the sa国际传媒減lanktonic soupsa国际传媒� they thrive on, the researcher said.
sa国际传媒淭heresa国际传媒檚 this thinking that theysa国际传媒檙e in transit, but what our research supports is these are neighbours that come back to specific spots on our coast year upon year upon year,sa国际传媒� she said. sa国际传媒淥f the 96 I referenced from 2019, 89 per cent of those were whales we had documented previously. They are specialists in certain strategies for certain prey in this area sa国际传媒� knowing what works in a certain area like fishermen and fisherwomen do.sa国际传媒�
Hildering, also known as sa国际传媒榯he Marine Detectivesa国际传媒� and standup comic of marine conservation, is an educator, cold-water diver and underwater photographer, who has worked on-camera with PBS, BBC and Animal Planet, so next weeksa国际传媒檚 webinar promises to be entertaining and educational, said NALT in a press release. The free webinar will be presented Thursday, Jan. 21, at 7 p.m. Links to attend the webinar will be made available Monday, Jan. 18. For more information, contact paul@nalt.bc.ca.
To learn more about the Marine Education and Research Society, visit and for more information about Hildering, visit .
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