Bears, Birds, Orcas, Whales - Alaskan Wildlife

Photos that are not aviation related
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zigzag
Posts: 488
Joined: Sun 07 Sep 2008, 7:22 am

Bears, Birds, Orcas, Whales - Alaskan Wildlife

Post by zigzag »

For your delectation a few shots of the wildlife seen on our holiday to Alaska and beyond

1.Black Bear Fishing, nr Juneau
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

2.
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

3.
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

4. ......and like every fisherman theres the one that got away
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

5. Better luck next time maybe
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

6. A few Orcas near Juneau
ImageOrcas nr Juneau by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

7.
ImageOrcas nr Juneau by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

8.
ImageOrcas nr Juneau by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

9.
ImageOrcas nr Juneau by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr


10. A few birds, starting with Puffins
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

11.
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

12. A gull in Tracy Arm
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

13. Bald Eagle at Gustavus ferry dock
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

14. In Galcier Bay NP we found a group of 7 Orcas killing & eating a stellar sea lion (they were teaching the young how to hunt and kill and toyed with the sea lion for over an hour)
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

15. Theres the poor sea lion on the left
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

16.
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

17.
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

18. Some rather more fortunate Sea Lions, Glacier Bay NP
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

19. Grizzy, Glacier Bay NP
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

20. Sea Otters, Glacier Bay NP
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

21. We saw humpbacks from Alaska Marine Highway ferry
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

22.
ImageAlaska 2017 by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

23. Another black bear in Tracy Arm, feasting on mussels
ImageBlack Bear Tracy Arm by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

24. Seals on ice floes Tracy Arm
ImageTracy Arm AK by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

25. Prior to going up to Alaska we were in Oregon and Washington State where we saw more Orcas
ImageOrcas Puget Sound by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

26.
ImageOrcas Puget Sound by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

27. And more humpbacks, in particular this one.........all humpbacks can be identified by the patterns and markings on their tails, these are unique, from this individuals can be identified and are given names and registered on a whale research database. This whale had not been seen before and so was new to the database, he or she therefore needed a name and my suggestion of 'Eclipse' was chosen.So Ladies & Gentlemen I introduce my whale 'Eclipse' to you all.
ImageOrcas Puget Sound by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

28.
ImageOrcas Puget Sound by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr

29.
ImageOrcas Puget Sound by Andy Kenyon, on Flickr
If you like these pics there are more utterly brilliant shots at https://www.flickr.com/photos/131094099@N08/albums
#MOT

FarnboroJohn
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Joined: Tue 28 Aug 2012, 6:57 pm

Re: Bears, Birds, Orcas, Whales - Alaskan Wildlife

Post by FarnboroJohn »

Fantastic set and I am really envious of the trip and sightings!

The Puffin is Horned Puffin, different from our own Atlantic Puffin.

The gull is a Kittiwake - "Black-legged Kittiwake" over there - same as ours.

Steller's Sea Lion, after the travelling naturalist Steller. I think it is the biggest sea lion species? Very impressive beast, until it runs up against a pod of Orcas.....

I'm not sure about the seals on the ice. Are they just Harbour Seals (= our Common Seal, though Pacific ones are on average a bit larger)?

Thank you for sharing and congratulations on getting to name a Humpback!

John

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zigzag
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Re: Bears, Birds, Orcas, Whales - Alaskan Wildlife

Post by zigzag »

John

Thanks for the kind words and the extra information on the birds, birds never were a strong point of mine :grin: .

The seals on the ice are indeed harbour seals, apparently they like it down the end of the fjord near the glacier as predators (presumably orcas) dont like to go down that far near the glacier, not sure whether because of the ice, the current (there is a very strong flow of meltwater) or the narrowness of the channel, neither can big vessels get down there.

This was just a family holiday, not a wildlife spotting trip, we thought we would see wildlife but didnt go out of our way to do so, and we got some great sightings, the wildlife is so abundant up there its fantastic if you are interested. Id love to go back solely for photography of the scenery and wildlife, however this was a trip of a lifetime so I cant see that happening anytime soon.
If you like these pics there are more utterly brilliant shots at https://www.flickr.com/photos/131094099@N08/albums
#MOT

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helired3
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Re: Bears, Birds, Orcas, Whales - Alaskan Wildlife

Post by helired3 »

Great set Thank you for sharing it :clap:
Ian Harris https://www.flickr.com/photos/ian_harrisuk/

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st24
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Re: Bears, Birds, Orcas, Whales - Alaskan Wildlife

Post by st24 »

Stunning stuff Andy, looks like a fabulous trip!! :up:
You caaan't trust the system... Maaan!

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Dr Cake
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Re: Bears, Birds, Orcas, Whales - Alaskan Wildlife

Post by Dr Cake »

Brilliant set. Must admit that I didn't know the bears were so abundant. We just saw one Black Bear when were in the Canadian Rockies.
One day I'll get to Alaska. Unfortunately not anytime soon. :sad:

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